| the U.S. dollar is also artificially |
[05 Oct 2011|10:53am] |
With the global economy under increasing pressure from the potential default of Greece and widespread, poor economic data, the U.S. Senate voted yesterday to open a week of debate on the Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act of 2011. That piece of legislation is very important, because it would allow the U.S. to impose what essentially amounts to a tariff on goods produced in places like China, whose currency is ugg outlet widely known to be intentionally undervalued. By forcing the value of a currency down, a nation enjoys a competitive advantage in trade agreements and its debt is generally cheaper to repay.
Of course, the U.S. dollar is also artificially undervalued - and has been for decades. But that's probably another story for another time. Once word reached Chinese officials that U.S. lawmakers were looking at the Chinese currency as a potential solution for U.S. economic ills, they were not happy. uggs outlet Statements from at least three ministries within the Chinese government lashed out at the potential legislation, suggesting that the U.S. is attempting to blame others for problems of its own creation.
Under pressure from the U.S. and other countries, China has taken moderate steps in the past several years to increase the value of its yuan against the U.S. dollar and other leading currencies. But with economies sagging and increasing pressure on lawmakers and government officials, measures such as these are likely going to become more frequent. In fact, we may be at the precipice of a very dangerous period in international relations, ugg boots outlet based primarily on the fact that all nations seem to be suffering economically. With that sort of pressure in place, it's easy to envision economic arguments quickly escalating to military conflict. The U.S. and China will likely tread lightly around the currency issue, in the hopes that the mere discussion will spur more change in Chinese currency policy.
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| Another purring-related |
[05 Oct 2011|10:53am] |
Cat’s Purring
Cat’s purring certainly did have its main advantages over other animal species, throughout animal history. Nonetheless, most feline species also produce some sort of purr-like vocalized sounds. In the case of domestic cats, purring can be noticed especially when a female cat is nursing her babies or when humans interact with cat through feeding, stroking or petting.
We usually assume that the purring of a cat is a sign of increased pleasure and contentment. But we may not always be right because we may be judging things from our human perspective. In fact, although cats most often use purring to communicate with their kittens, to express their gratitude or sense of well-being towards their owners, cats may also purr when they feel pressured or stressed. This may happen also during a ugg boots outlet veterinarian visit or when the animal is recovering from an injury, from an illness or a surgery. As we can see, not all the purring cats are pleased or happy with their current situation. The question why cats purr is still under debate, and researchers are still investigating the issue.
Another purring-related issue is how cats manage to produce these sounds. Thus, scientists have proved that cats can produce the purring sounds by laryngeal and diaphragmatic muscles’ intermittent signaling. Both during their inhalation and exhalation, cats have a consistent purring frequency between 25-150 Hertz. The results of several investigations have attested that sound frequencies of this range can in fact improve the density of bones and they can enhance the healing processes.
Thus, cat’s purring frequencies are strongly related to the capacity of healing muscles and bones. And because of that, this feline inborn quality may prove to be of use to us humans. Especially ugg boots for sale United Kingdom if we come to think of astronauts and their muscle atrophy and bone density loss problems when exposed to long periods of zero gravity exposure. In that situation, astronauts’ muscular-skeletal systems are deprived of the normally experienced physical activity stresses, including the routine of sitting or standing, which demand human strength for controlling one’s posture.
Cats are adapted to preserve and re-charge their energy through long periods of sleep and rest. Because of that, purring may in fact be a mechanism that requires low energy to stimulate bones and muscles. Because they are so durable, cats are said to have "nine lives" (or in Romanian culture, the saying is "a cat has seven lives"). There even is a veterinarian legend saying that cats have the power to reassemble all their bones if they are left in the same room with all other body parts. The roots of this cat mythology may be found in cat’s act of purring.
Also, as compared to other domesticated animal species and pets, uggs outlet the domestication of cats happened quite recently. Due to this late domestication, cats have less bone and muscle abnormalities than dogs, which have been more strongly selected by humans. Cat’s purring may in fact help them ease the osteoporotic or dysplastic conditions that are quite common of the dog species. And although we may feel tempted to consider that cats purr when they are happy and healthy, it’s perhaps closer to the truth to acknowledge the fact that cats may be purring in order to communicate and heal themselves.
At any rate, cats and their purring may indeed have a therapeutic effect on humans, helping them heal faster and better. We could mention in this respect Aaron Katcher, an American psychiatrist who in 1982 proved in front of the camera how petting a cat can help release anxiety, arterial pressure, i.e. it can diminish the risk of heart stroke. Dennis R. Ownby, who is responsible with the allergological and immunological section of the University of Georgia, US, concluded after a 7 years study that daily interaction with cats humans get exposed to some molecules which are reputed for the efficient protection of the immune system. Cats are also said to have antidepressant ugg outlet effect on us humans but they don’t send us any positive energy, all they do is liberate humans from their negative energies, anxieties and stress. They are a kind of emotional sponges, absorbing our bad vibes, in a way, without replacing them however with good vibes
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| Un cinéma grec d'un nouveau genre, insufflé par la crise |
[05 Oct 2011|11:45am] |
Alors que la Grèce est malmenée depuis plusieurs années par la crise de la dette, de jeunes réalisateurs helléniques ont réussi à redonner, grâce à leur films, un nouvel éclat à leur pays sur la scène internationale. Par FRANCE 24 (texte) S’agit-il d’une nouvelle vague du cinéma grec ? Qualifiées de bizarres ou radicales, plusieurs productions helléniques s’illustrent depuis plus d'un an dans les grands festivals du 7e art. C'est notamment le cas d’"Alps", de Giorgos Lanthimos, qui vient de rafler le Prix du meilleur scénario à la Mostra de Venise début septembre. L'histoire, racontée avec un mélange de ridicule et de tragique, est celle d’une société secrète - appelée Alps - qui propose de remplacer des personnes décédées par des comédiens.
Déjà en 2009 Lanthimos avait séduit la critique avec "Canine", qui avait remporté le Prix Un certain Regard au festival de Cannes et la Louve d’ugg pas chere Or au festival du nouveau film à Montréal, et avait aussi été sélectionné pour l’Oscar du meilleur film étranger. Le réalisateur y propose un portrait surréaliste d’une famille grecque dans laquelle les trois adolescents restent cloîtrés chez eux sans avoir accès au monde extérieur. Résultat : les jeunes croient que les chats sont des assassins, prennent les petites fleurs jaunes pour des zombies et l’inceste pour une distraction quotidienne.
Manque de moyens
Une autre production grecque, "Attenberg" de Athina Rachel Tsangari (par ailleurs co-productrice de "Alps"), à l’affiche en France cette semaine, peut également se targuer d’avoir fait vibrer la Mostra de Venise. En 2010, Ariane Labed, actrice principale du film, y a remporté la coupe Volpi pour la meilleure interprétation féminine (elle a aussi reçu le même prix au Festival d'Angers 2011). "Attenberg" met en scène une jeune fille (Marina, interprétée par Ariane Labed) accro aux documentaires animaliers qui vit dans une zone industrielle déprimante d'Athènes et peine à établir des relations avec les autres, notamment avec son père malade.
Ces œuvres primées sont le fruit d'une nouvelle génération de réalisateurs qui doivent faire face aux aléas de la crise grecque qui plombe le pays depuis 2008. Si Lanthimos réfute l'idée d'un nouveau cinéma ugg pas chere grec, il estime néanmoins que "les réalisateurs grecs partagent un point commun, le manque de moyens", indique-t-il dans un entretien accordé au "Guardian" le mois dernier. "Nous devons nous débrouiller avec peu de budget et faire de petits films".
La bande-annonce d'"Attenberg"
Pour pallier ce manque de fonds, Lanthimos et Tsangari ont chacun produit le travail de l'autre. "Je l'aide pour son film, elle m'aide pour le mien", explique-t-il dans le quotidien britannique. "C'est le seul moyen de faire des films aujourd'hui. Il n'y a pas vraiment de producteurs en Grèce et il n'y a plus d'argent public. La plupart du temps, nous ne savons pas comment nous allons nous en sortir, c'est un cauchemar. Mais au moins, c'est fait avec amour."
"Ils font des films à tout petit budget, mais ils ont de grandes idées", indique à l'AFP Yannis Zoumboulakis, critique cinéma au quotidien "To Vima". "Ils ont ugg pas cher arrêté de chercher des subventions qui étaient l'alpha et l'omega du cinéma grec auparavant."
Rupture
L’émergence du nouveau cinéma grec est née en 2008 avec "L'Académie de Platon" de Philippos Tsitos (une comédie amère sur un buraliste grec qui redoute de découvrir qu’il a des origines albanaises), suivi de "Canine" de Lanthimos, selon Yiannis Zoumboulakis. Ce manque de moyens les a contraints à développer un cinéma d’un nouveau genre, rompant ainsi avec les réalisateurs des années 1980-1990 qui sont peu sorti de l’ombre de l’œuvre de Theo Angelopoulos, 76 ans, Palme d'Or à Cannes en 1998.
Mais les récompenses obtenues n'ont pas été synonyme de jackpot pour autant. "Je pensais que le succès de "Canine" allait améliorer les choses, mais je ne le pense plus", a commenté Lanthimos. "Je ne sais pas encore combien de temps les gens ici vont se sacrifier pour l'art."
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