Earthquake in the Mediterranean Sea close to Turkey
Last update: January 8, 2013 at 3:29 pm by By Ashish Khanal
Update 14:49 UTC : USGS theoretical calculations are reporting a max. MMI of VII near the epicenter, but probably less on the islands. So far only a MMI V to VI has been seen which is a good sign. MMI V to MMVI (moderate to strong shaking) will lead to eventually minor damage like cracks in walls.
Update 14:46 UTC : The island of Lemnos, Greece is closest to the epicenter, but this does not mean that the strongest shaking will have been felt at Lemnos. It depends also of the propagation of the earthquake wave. Too soon to find out, but if people living at Lemnos or close to the epicenter (radius of 40 to km) can tell us how the earthquake was felt, a lot will be clarified.
Update 14:34 UTC : ER calls this earthquake moderately dangerous for the islands in the direct area of the epicenter. Not strong enough for a tsunami. The earthquake was felt as far as Istanbul and Sofia
Update 14:25 UTC : The earthquake struck in Mediterranean waters. Very close to Myrina island.
Update : the first preliminary reports are mentioning a M5.9 earthquake off the Turkey coast probably felt in many countries
Based on an increasing number of visitors joining us from Bulgaria, we believe that an earthquake was felt. When you are one of the people who experienced this earthquake, please fill in the form behind “I Felt A (not Listed) Earthquake”. Thank you.
Listen to the earthquake – Soundquakes by flyrok.org
Most important Earthquake Data:
Magnitude : Mw 5.7
UTC Time : 2013-01-08 14:16:09 UTC
Local time at epicenter : 2013-01-08 16:16:09 UTC+02:00 at epicenter
Depth (Hypocenter) : 9.9 km
Geo-location(s) :
Approx. 25 km from Lemnos, Greece
47km (29mi) WSW of Bozcaada, Turkey
67km (42mi) WSW of Ezine, Turkey
80km (50mi) NW of Mitilini, Greece
89km (55mi) SW of Canakkale, Turkey
246km (153mi) NE of Athens, Greece
for more informaitoin, go to: http://earthquake-report.com/2013/01/08/strong-earthquake-in-the-eastern-mediterranean-sea-close-to-lemnos-and-the-turkish-coast-greece-turkey-bulgaria/
Magnetic shell provides unprecedented control of magnetic fields January 4, 2013 by Lisa Zyga feature
The newly designed magnetic shell can either expel or concentrate magnetic energy.
A general property of magnetic fields is that they decay with the distance from their magnetic source. But in a new study, physicists have shown that surrounding a magnetic source with a magnetic shell can enhance the magnetic field as it moves away from the source, allowing magnetic energy to be transferred to a distant location through empty space. By reversing this technique, the scientists showed that the transferred magnetic energy can be captured by a second magnetic shell located some distance away from the first shell. The second shell can then concentrate the captured magnetic energy into a small interior region. The achievement represents an unprecedented ability to transport and concentrate magnetic energy, and could have applications in the wireless transmission of energy, medical techniques, and other areas.
The physicists, Carles Navau, Jordi Prat-Camps, and Alvaro Sanchez at the Autonomous University of Barcelona in Spain, have published their results on their new method of magnetic energy distribution and concentration in a recent issue of Physical Review Letters. “We have tried with this work to open new ways of shaping magnetic fields in space,” Sanchez told Phys.org. “Since magnetic fields are so crucial for so many technologies (e.g., almost 100% of the energy generated uses magnetic fields), finding these new possibilities may bring benefits.” The basis of the technique lies in transformation optics, a field that deals with the control of electromagnetic waves and involves metamaterials and invisibility cloaks. While researchers have usually focused on using transformation optics ideas to control light, here the researchers applied the same ideas to control magnetic fields by designing a magnetic shell with specific electromagnetic properties. The shell can be used to control magnetic fields in two ways, depending on its location relative to a magnetic source. When a magnetic source is placed inside the shell, the shell expels the magnetic energy outside. When the shell is placed near a magnetic source located outside the shell, the shell harvests and concentrates the magnetic energy from the source into a hole in the shell’s center. Magnetic shell provides unprecedented control of magnetic fields Enlarge
In both cases, the shell works by dividing the space into an exterior and interior zone and then transferring the magnetic energy completely into one domain or the other. This method differs from the way that superconductors and ferromagnets distribute magnetic energy, where the energy always returns to the domain where the magnetic sources are. Although no material exists that can perfectly meet the requirements for the magnetic shell’s properties, the physicists showed that they could closely approximate these properties by using wedges of alternating superconducting and ferromagnetic materials.
For practical purposes, this approximation is sufficient to work for a variety of potential applications, in which the magnetic shell’s two functions (transferring and concentrating) can be used together or independently. For instance, by surrounding two magnetic dipoles with their own shells, the magnetic coupling between them can be enhanced, which could be used to improve the efficiency of wireless power transmission between a source and a receiver. With its ability to concentrate nearby magnetic fields, a single magnetic shell could also be used to increase the sensitivity of magnetic sensors. The scientists demonstrated that a magnetic sensor placed inside the shell can detect a much larger magnetic flux from an external magnetic source than it would when using a typical concentration strategy involving superconductors. Magnetic sensors are often used in consumer electronics, factory automation, navigation, and many other areas. The magnetic shell could also have medical applications, such as for biosensors that measure the brain’s response in magnetoencephalography, a technique used for mapping brain activity. The physicists also showed that the shells can be used to surround multiple magnetic sources arranged in a circle, allowing them to concentrate magnetic energy in the center of the circle. This arrangement could be used in transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a technique used to treat psychiatric disorders. While TMS generally targets regions near the brain’s surface, the magnetic shells could help extend the reach of magnetic fields to deeper targets. Magnetic energy also plays a vital role in power applications, such as in power plants, magnetic memories, and motors. All of these applications require magnetic energy to be spatially distributed or concentrated in a certain way. By enabling the control of magnetic energy in new ways, the magnetic shells could improve these applications and others due to their many possible configurations. “We are presently working on extending these ideas of applying transformation optics to the magnetic case into different directions, and see how future designs can be implemented in practice (in the present case, we suggested superconductors and ferromagnetic materials as a practical implementation of the magnetic shell),” Sanchez said. More information: Carles Navau, et al. “Magnetic Energy Harvesting and Concentration at a Distance by Transformation Optics.” PRL 109, 263903 (2012). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.109.263903
So often we are not sure of what to do or even how to figure out what to do. Here is a song, drawn through both Gordon and myself as an improvisation during a live concert. This song’s text calls upon Mary, an aspect of the Divine Feminine, for guidance to bring us clear vision so that we might know our next step. Having this clarity of sight, we are able to align ourselves with the wisdom of Sophia, another aspect of Divine Feminine.
Clarity of Vision is usually associated with the Third Eye or 6th chakra. Here it is the basis upon which inspiration takes place. Rather than creating only an ability to see, this song helps the listener move through into acting upon their vision.
My blessings to all
Norma Gentile
Sound shaman, is a natural intuitive and channel for Mary, Archangel Michael and the Hathors. She trained as both a professional singer and energy worker. She maintains a private healing practice, offering sessions in English and Spanish, as well as singing healing concerts and teaching workshops. Her CD of live sound healings, Songs of Spirit, is available in the Maat Shop. Norma’s CD Songs of Spirit, is available in the Ma’at Shop or together with her other recordings at www.healingchants.com
The theme for this week is Community. There will be hints and even very obvious sightings of what community means for you, what it is for you. This is not a time in which these things will pass you by. There is a coming together that is part of the energy of the year, and it is starting now, only to grow stronger as the year progresses.
You can find yourself this week some what befuddled and confused by things happening around you. There is an air of unreality that will pervade the early part of the week, only to dissipate later on into a sense of reality right in your face. Along with these things, the energies will e growing as the week progresses. This can lead to a desire to withdraw from everything that is around you, from everyone. It will seem that things are just not related to each other, as though long term relationships are some what pointless, and as though stiff is meaningless. Hold on. This is just an indication that your perception is changing. This week, because the way the energies are clashing, it will be difficult to gain focus. This is not a week for worrying about things, even though it seems that stuff is getting out of hand. This is a week for letting the patterns meld into the larger picture. This is not a time for reaction, rather it is a time for stepping back and observing. Much can be learned through this. The end of the week will bring a feeling of lightness and a sense of accomplishment. Hurray! Oh, and there will be more of synchronicity happening this week. Be aware of when things repeat. There is a message in it.
On the larger scale, the relative quietude of the earth in terms of quakes and rifts will begin again this week. There will be attempts to gloss over the importance of all of this, but t will not be successful. The shift has truly begun, and Gaia is making herself felt. She allowed a respite over the holidays as she adapted to many of the new energies coming in, and now she is expressing her reactions through all the elements. The animals, the birds, the creatures of the sea have awakened. They have moved to a new level of spirit, of energy, of manifestation. Look to what is going on in the natural world. There are messages that are being spoken. Take time this week to move out into Nature, and do not be surprised if old paths seem new. There will be some more upheavals in governments this week as factions begin to make a play for more power. This is not a time to buy into what is being said in the media, rather look beyond the words, investigate in other areas. The governments will be reacting to some of the earth movements and they are feeling themselves out of power in relation to the earth in general. Financial markets will be hit by some unexpected announcements this week. There is also a sense that there will be a large catastrophic event that can effect what is going on there. More and more people will begin to make themselves heard, asking for, even demanding change as things get out of control, particularly in the Middle East. There can be sadness associated with this. There is the sense of problems with travel and travel plans. The Sun will begin a new phase this week, something totally unexpected, as though its spin has changed. Meanwhile there will be signs in the skies of visitors from beyond. This week, the theme of the unexpected begins. This year is one that holds many, many surprises and anomalies. You will see evidence of them this week. The nighttime sky will be different, as the galactic energy exerts its force.
Sunday, January 6: Deep Straw Yellow
Three Kings Day and the end to the Holiday Season. And it is time. it is time for moving on. 2012 ended with a popping out of old stuff. The Holiday Season was the time to begin to integrate into the new. You are feeling this today. You are sensing that there has been a change in things, likewise a change in you. You are looking at things rom a new place. There is nostalgia for what went before, and these can be some moments of melancholy, but as they pass, you will realize that you have gone forward. There is support for you when you desire it. Be open to the signs around you. The world of Nature is in love with you. Truly. Today you will see hints of that. The sense of the oneness of all is beginning to blossom, even now, in the depths of the winter.
Monday, January 7: Cherry Yellow
The current energy favors getting things done, and that includes all those little niggling things that you have been putting off. Once you get them out of the way, you will find yourself more open to entertain and begin new projects. There is a feeling that your focus is shifting, and you will be finding in yourself hints of things that you are truly wanting to do and to be. There can be some merriment associated with this, so when it comes, let yourself go. You have been hiding behind something for quite some time now, and today you begin to move forward and into your own light. Be aware of what others are saying, particularly in reference to how you are changing. In their words, you can get a better sense of what is going on with you. Sometimes we need the mirror of others to realize how far we have come.
(NOTE: The daily updates are always available at Chromo Lady on Facebook.)
VERY SPOTTED SUN: Solar activity is still relatively low, but the appearance of the sun suggests the quiet might not last. Over the weekend, a profusion of new sunspot groups peppered the solar disk with dark cores–each one a potential source of eruptions. NOAA forecasters estimate a 35% chance of M-class flares and a 5% chance of X-flares during the next 24 hours. Solar flare alerts:text, voice.
There are so many spots on the sun, even a jumbo jet cannot hide them:
Raffaello Lena took the picture on January 5 not far from the international airport in Rome, Italy. “An animation of the flyby is available here,” he says.
Snow in Mexico and Southwest Texas, Record Heat in Australia
El Paso, Texas picked up 3.0” of snow (officially at the NWS office) on Thursday and Friday this week and heavy snow fell in the city of Chihuahua, Mexico about 200 miles south of El Paso. How unusual is this?
The answer is that it is not unusual to see snowfall in Chihuahua (or El Paso). The city of Chihuahua (pop. 840,000) rests at an altitude of 4,600’ (1,400 meters) and is one of Mexico’s coldest cities during the winter. About 2” of snow fell there on Thursday and the temperature fell to 32°F (0°C) during the duration of the snowfall between 2p.m.-6p.m. On average Chihuahua can expect one or two days of measureable snow every winter. It’s greatest snowfall on record is apparently 40 cm (about 16”) at some undisclosed date in the past.
A deep snow (about 6-8”) blanketed Chihuahua, Mexico on Christmas Eve, 2004. Such events are not as uncommon as one might suppose. Photographer unknown.
Mexico’s coldest temperature on record was also recorded in the Chihuahua State at the village of Valerio when a reading of -28.5°C (-19.3°F) was measured on January 30, 1949.
A map shows Mexico’s absolute minimum temperatures for the POR of 1941-1977 in C°. Note the large area of below zero F° (-18°C or lower) isotherms that reach far south of the border and into the Chihuahua region. The map has an apparent error so far as the -14°C isothermal line is concerned. Map from the Mexican Meteorlogical Department.
El Paso, Texas normally sees a few snowfalls every winter as well, even though it is a bit lower than Chihuahua at 3,700’ (1,140 m) but, of course, much further north. El Paso’s greatest snowfall on record was 22.4” on December 13-15, 1987 (about the same as Chicago’s record!) of which 16.8” fell in one 24-hour period. During the great cold wave of January 1962 the temperature fell to an all-time record low of -8°F (-22.2°C) on January 11th.
Some elevated suburbs of El Paso received as much as 8” from the recent storm. Ironically, the official 3” at the NWS office means that the city has now had three times more snowfall this season than Chicago, which continues its record-breaking streak of snowless weather.
Hot in Australia
All-time record highs were broken at several Australian sites in Western Australia. Red Rocks Point topped the list off with a 48.6°C (119.5°F) reading on January 3rd. Eucla, which sits right on the coast of the Great Australian Bight, measured a record 48.2°C (118.8°F). Perth had its hottest New Year’s Eve on record (and 3rd warmest December day) when the heat peaked at 42.1°C (107.8°F) on December 31st. Temperatures are forecast to exceed 45°C (113°F) today (January 4th) in portions of South Australia and New South Wales. Australia’s hottest temperature on record is 50.7°C (123.3°F) at Oodnadatta, South Australia on January 2, 1960.
Hobart, Tasmania broke its all-time heat record on Friday with a 41.8°C (107.2°F) reading. The previous record was 40.8°C (105.4°F) set in January 1976. The POR for this site in Hobart is 126 years old.
A wild fire swept through the town of Dunalley in southeast Tasmania briefly heating the weather site’s thermometer to 59.9°C (140°F) at one point Friday afternoon (at 4:22 p.m.). Winds were gusting to 82 km/h at the time.
KUDOS:Howard Rainford for Australian temperatures.
Calcium deficiency is a common nutritional concern, but how many folks consider the vital importance of magnesium in human health and disease?
New research published in the journal BMC Bioinformatics indicates that magnesium’s role in human health and disease is far more significant and complicated than previously imagined.
While it is well known that all living things require magnesium, and that it is found in over 300 enzymes in the human body, including those enzymes utilizing or synthesizing ATP (the molecular unit of currency for energy transfer), the new studied titled, “3,751 magnesium binding sites have been detected on human proteins,” indicates that a deficiency of magnesium may profoundly affect a far wider range of biological structures than previously understood.[i]
The proteome, or entire set of proteins expressed by the human genome, contains well over 100,000 distinct protein structures, despite the fact that there are believed to be only 20,300 protein-coding genes in the human genome.
The discovery of the “magneseome,” as its being called, adds additional complexity to the picture, indicating that the presence or absence of adequate levels of this basic mineral may epigenetically alter the expression and behavior of the proteins in our body, thereby altering the course of both health and disease.
Research relevant to magnesium has been accumulating for the past 40 years at a steady rate of approximately 2,000 new studies a year. Our database project has indexed well over 100 health benefits of magnesium thus far. For the sake of brevity, we will address seven key therapeutic applications for magnesium as follows:
Fibromyalgia: Not only is magnesium deficiency common in those diagnosed with fibromyalgia,[ii] [iii] but relatively low doses of magnesium (50 mg), combined with malic acid in the form of magnesium malate, has been clinically demonstrated to improve pain and tenderness in those to which it was administered.[iv]
Atrial Fibrillation: A number of studies now exist showing that magnesium supplementation reduce atrial fibrillation, either by itself, or in combination with conventional drug agents.[v]
Diabetes, Type 2: Magnesium deficiency is common in type 2 diabetics, at an incidence of 13.5 to 47.7% according to a 2007 study.[vi] Research has also shown that type 2 diabetics with peripheral neuropathy and coronary artery disease have lower intracellular magnesium levels.[vii] Oral magnesium supplementation has been shown to reduce plasma fasting glucose and raising HDL cholesterol in patients with type 2 diabetes.[viii] It has also been shown to improve insulin sensitivity and metabolic control in type 2 diabetic subjects.[ix]
Premenstrual Syndrome: Magnesium deficiency has been observed in women affected by premenstrual syndrome.[x] It is no surprise therefore that it has been found to alleviate premenstrual symptoms of fluid retention,[xi] as well as broadly reducing associated symptoms by approximately 34% in women, aged 18-45, given 250 mg tablets for a 3-month observational period.[xii] When combined with B6, magnesium supplementation has been found to improve anxiety-related premenstrual symptoms.[xiii]
Cardiovascular Disease and Mortality: Low serum magnesium concentrations predict cardiovascular and all-cause mortality.[xiv] There are a wide range of ways that magnesium may confer its protective effects. It may act like a calcium channel blocker,[xv] it is hypotensive,[xvi] it is antispasmodic (which may protect against coronary artery spasm),[xvii] and anti-thrombotic.[xviii] Also, the heart muscle cells are exceedingly dense in mitochondria (as high as 100 times more per cell than skeletal muscle), the “powerhouses” of the cell,” which require adequate magnesium to produce ATP via the citric acid cycle.
Migraine Disorders: Blood magnesium levels have been found to be significantly lower in those who suffer from migraine attacks.[xix] [xx] A recent Journal of Neural Transmission article titled, “Why all migraine patients should be treated with magnesium,” pointed out that routine blood tests do not accurately convey the true body magnesium stores since less than 2% is in the measurable, extracellular space, “67% is in the bone and 31% is located intracellularly.”[xxi] The authors argued that since “routine blood tests are not indicative of magnesium status, empiric treatment with at least oral magnesium is warranted in all migraine sufferers.” Indeed, oral magnesium supplementation has been found to reduce the number of headache days in children experiencing frequent migranous headaches, [xxii] and when combined with l-carnitine, is effective at reducing migraine frequency in adults, as well.[xxiii]
Aging: While natural aging is a healthy process, accelerated aging has been noted to be a feature of magnesium deficiency,[xxiv] especially evident in the context of long space-flight missions where low magnesium levels are associated with cardiovascular aging over 10 times faster than occurs on earth.[xxv] Magnesium supplementation has been shown to reverse age-related neuroendocrine and sleep EEG changes in humans.[xxvi] One of the possible mechanisms behind magnesium deficiency associated aging is that magnesium is needed to stabilize DNA and promotes DNA replication. It is also involved in healing up of the ends of the chromosomes after they are divided in mitosis.[xxvii]
Best Sources of Magnesium In The Diet
The best source of magnesium is from food, and one way to identify magnesium-containing foods are those which are green, i.e. chlorophyll rich. Chlorophyll, which enable plants to capture solar energy and convert it into metabolic energy, has a magnesium atom at its center. Without magnesium, in fact, plants could not utilize the sun’s light energy.
Magnesium, however, in its elemental form is colorless, and many foods that are not green contain it as well. The point is that when found complexed with food cofactors, it is absorbed and utilized more efficiently than in its elemental form, say, extracted from limestone in the form of magnesium oxide.
The following foods contain exceptionally high amounts of magnesium. The portions described are 100 grams, or a little over three ounces.
Fortunately, for those who need higher doses, or are not inclined to consume magnesium rich foods, there are supplemental forms commonly available on the market. Keep in mind, for those who wish to take advantage of the side benefit of magnesium therapy, namely, its stool softening and laxative properties, magnesium citrate or oxide will provide this additional feature.
For those looking to maximize absorption and bioavailability magnesium glycinate is ideal, as glycine is the smallest amino acid commonly found chelated to magnesium, and therefore highly absorbable.
What is Qi and why has Western science failed to explain away this phenomenon?
Modern acupuncture research has tried to understand Qi but instead of coming away with one unifying theory, or perhaps even a way to flat out disprove its existence, science has posited several possibilities as to the biological manifestation or physiological occurrence that the Chinese refer to as Qi. What follows is my interpretation of Qi as it pertains to acupuncture as well as the practice of Qigong, a form of moving meditation that translates into “life energy cultivation”.
Chinese Medicine is really abstract, full of flowery imagery and concepts that are foreign to most of us in the West. In that sense, it’s quite different from Western medicine which is steeped in reductionism or the idea of breaking the body down into small isolated pieces in order to understand each component; this often leads to forsaking the forest for the trees. Perhaps this explains why biomedicine has such a disconnect between the mind and body. There are specialists for just about every area and function of the human body and yet, only a select few physicians are able to see the way these disparate systems interrelate or connect. Conversely, Chinese medicine views the human being as an integrated whole, a divine cohesive unit that must be treated as such in both life and in medicine.
Is Qi really as esoteric as it sounds? Not really. I’ll give you some Western biomedical explanations of how it works. For starters, Qi is, for all intents and purposes, “matter on the verge of becoming energy or energy on the verge of materializing” (Kaptchuk, Web That Has No Weaver). Let’s put that into more Western terms: potential and kinetic energy. Everything in this world has either potential or kinetic energy and according to physics and the law of conservation, energy cannot be naturally created, only transferred from one state to another. With that in mind, Qi can be viewed as the manifestation of energy in a state of flux – somewhere between potential and kinetic. This is why, when we cut someone open, we can’t see their Qi, yet it’s something that everyone can feel in themselves (with training).
I practice Qigong regularly and am able to feel Qi movement in my body. I even notice differences from session to session, based on what’s going on with me at a given time, physically as well as emotionally. Qigong is essentially exercise, but instead of just building the muscles, it builds the mind as well; something modern science is just now beginning to understand with it’s extensive studies of neuroplasticity and meditation. Keeping in mind that the body and mind are to be viewed as one, Qigong requires relaxation, breath work and an open yet disciplined state of consciousness. The mind guides and the Qi follows. If the mind isn’t open during practice, results are tempered. The stronger your mind, the easier it becomes to cultivate and guide the Qi. This doesn’t mean the smarter you are, the easier it becomes, but rather the more relaxed and receptive your mind is, the easier it will be to experience results. As traditional societies have known for quite some time with their own cultivation practices (i.e. Ayurvedic, Shamanic or Native American), the building and cultivation of ones self can only be truly achieved through meditation or meditative-like practices. The stresses of modern life such as smart phones and all of the other non-stop stimuli inundating our brains make such development and practice that much more important – and simultaneously, that much more difficult for the average person.
Qi has also been described and quantified in the West as our bioelectric charge. Bio-electromagnetism refers to the electrical and magnetic fields produced by living cells, tissues and organisms. During the electro-physiological research of the 1960′s, scientists proved that bones are in fact piezoelectric. This means that under mechanical stress, chemical processes convert energy to electric current. It is understood now however that the human body is constructed of many different electrically conductive materials, and that it forms a living electromagnetic field and circuit. All living things on this planet, large and small have some level of electric and/or magnetic charge. Humans and some plant cells, experience living “electrical events” known as action potentials, or nerve impulses, in which neurons, muscle cells and endocrine cells facilitate inter-cellular communication and activate intra-cellular processes. Electromagnetic energy is continuously being generated in the human body through biochemical reactions such as those we experience in assimilation of our food and air.
In addition, we are constantly being affected by external electromagnetic fields such as those of the Earth, moon and large bodies of water. Anyone who has ever practiced Qigong next to a river or ocean can attest to the difference! Many acupuncturists use magnets or electricity in their treatments for this very reason. Dr. Robert O. Becker, author of The Body Electric, reports in his book that the conductivity of skin is significantly higher at acupuncture points. Dr. Becker’s book, as well as several other reports on the subject, confirm the notion of Qi is indeed both real and scientific.
Most people go about their daily lives with no sense of the Qi within them or around them. However, there are the naturally gifted few that are born with the innate wisdom and sensitivity to be able to see and work with these energetic fields. Again, these people are truly rare today and I believe that most who profess such skills are telling half-truths or flat out lies. That being said however, such individuals certainly exist and there is absolutely an aspect to energetic healing that is beyond the scope of modern medicines capability to explain. For the rest of us normal humans however, it requires extensive training and development of our minds and our nervous system to be able to get in touch with this field, let alone control it or yield it… but it is possible.
The ancient Chinese people had no knowledge of electricity, yet they knew that when an acupuncture needle was inserted into the body at a specific location, some form of energy other than heat was produced. In acupuncture theory, Qi ‘flows’ through the body via channels or meridians that connect our entire structure. These meridians, although not identifiable formations by Western biomedicine, have been mapped, described in detail and utilized by Chinese medical practitioners for thousands of years. Meridians contain ‘gates’ or points along their pathway where manipulation of the energy or Qi that flows through them is possible and particularly effective. By manipulating these points, one can influence the flow of Qi along the meridian in order to help the patient regain health and wellness. That’s the acupuncturists’ job, to transmit the message to the patient’s body in order to allow them to regain balance. The healing isn’t in the needle itself, but rather it’s in the practitioner’s ability to read the patient and transmit the correct message to them at the correct time in order to facilitate that person’s natural ability to heal and self-regulate. In that respect, true wellness is actually up to the patient and their ability to receive that message.
Western medical research has determined that acupuncture points are locations of fascial bundling. Our fascia is a seamless web of connective tissue that covers and connects the muscles, organs, and skeletal structures in our body — it’s absolutely everywhere! While much of the incredible healing power of acupuncture is still being researched, acupuncture points have been found to mostly lie along fascial planes, between muscles or between a muscle and bone or tendon. Fascia envelops the smallest fiber of muscle, every bone and joint and holds us together, in effect, supporting our structure and giving us our shape.
So what does Qi have to do with fascia?
A blockage of Qi can be viewed as an alteration in fascial composition and the majority of acupuncture points correspond to the sites where fascial networks converge. Thus, manipulation of an acupuncture needle produces change that can propagate along the fascial network and communicate with our entire body since everything is connected via this massive web of tissue. Think of fascia like a spider web; when something hits the web, the spider doesn’t have to see it, it just knows exactly where it is because of the vibrations. Similarly, when acupuncture needles enter the fascial web, it propagates a signal to our nervous system and our neurochemistry responds accordingly. A 1995 study by H. Heine, a German MD, documented the existence of perforation points in the fascia. He found that the majority (82%) of these perforations are topographically identical with the 361 classical acupuncture points of Chinese medicine.
I’m going to get a bit more in depth so bear with me if you can, because this is really interesting stuff!
Fascia is densely innervated by mechanoreceptors, also known as golgi bodies. These receptors influence local fluid dynamics of the tissue and their activation triggers the autonomic nervous system to change the local pressure in blood vessels. Strongly stimulated fascial fibers can even influence the extrusion of plasma from blood vessels into the interstitial fluid matrix, thus changing the viscosity of the extracellular environment. The interstitial mechanoreceptors can also trigger an increase in vagal tone or impulses from the vagus nerve, which leads towards more trophotropic tuning of the hypothalamus. In other words, the parasympathetic (rest and digest) aspect of our nervous system increases, our muscles relax, our adrenals close up shop for a while and our body essentially down-regulates into a deeply relaxed state — all from a properly inserted acupuncture needle!
Qi is absolutely real and cannot only be felt but it can be measured. While acupuncture has been the focus of roughly 1,000+ scientific studies around the world over the past five years, Qigong has earned only a fraction of that attention. Interesting considering Qigong practices are thought to pre-date acupuncture, a healing modality dated somewhere between 2,000 and 3,000 years old.
Although the aforementioned studies have shed a great deal of light on the Qi phenomenon, there are still several questions left unanswered. For example, how can the mind generate a force in order to circulate the Qi of the body (as in Qigong)? How are we as humans affected by the electromagnetic fields that surround us in our environments? What about our daily use of electronics; how does that impact us? How do the fields of other people affect us? Why is it that you can be at a party and when someone walks into the room that is upset or angry, even without seeing them, you can sense it in your body? How do we quantify those things?
Nanotechnology is beginning to help us address some of these queries. But the future of Qi research and our exploration of the internal is going to be quite an adventure.
Earthquake overview : A major earthquake has struck off the Alaskan coast with the potential for a tsunami. Finally, no dangerous tsunami was generated but during a couple of hours people had to evacuate to higher grounds in many locations
7.4
First update – Massive earthquake in Alaska
We have just received the report that a massive 7.8 Magnitude quake struck Alaska
More details in a moment
Most important Earthquake Data:
Magnitude : M7.7
UTC Time : 5th January 2013, 08:58:19 UTC
Local time at epicenter : 4th January 2013, 23:58:19 UTC-09:00
Depth (Hypocenter) : 9.9km
Geo-location(s) : 101 km (63 miles) SW (221 degrees) of Edna Bay, AK
102 km (64 miles) W (259 degrees) of Craig, AK
106 km (66 miles) S (182 degrees) of Port Alexander, AK
314km (195mi) WNW of Prince Rupert, Canada
335km (208mi) S of Juneau, Alaska
1032 km (641 miles) NW (315 degrees) of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
ectonic Summary
The January 5, 2013 M 7.5 earthquake off the west coast of southeastern Alaska occurred as a result of shallow strike-slip faulting on or near the plate boundary between the Pacific and North America plates. At the location of this earthquake, the Pacific plate is moving approximately northwestward with respect to the North America plate at a velocity of 51 mm/yr.
This earthquake is likely associated with relative motion across the Queen Charlotte fault system offshore of British Columbia, Canada, which forms the major expression of the Pacific:North America plate boundary in this region. The surrounding area of the plate boundary has hosted 8 earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater over the past 40 years; In 1949, a M 8.1 earthquake occurred close to the Pacific:North America plate boundary approximately 230 km to the south east of the January 5th earthquake, as a result of strike-slip faulting. In October of 2012, a M 7.8 earthquake occurred approximately 330 km to the south east of the January 5th event, slightly inboard of the plate boundary, and was associated with oblique-thrust faulting. The latter earthquake was likely an expression of the oblique component of deformation along this plate boundary system. The January 5th, 2013 earthquake is related to that Haida Gwai earthquake three months previously, and is an expression of deformation along the same plate boundary system.
Update 16:52 UTC : This earthquake was shallow, strike-slip and possible on Queen Charlotte Fault & few 100 km N of Haida Gwaii thrust quake
– We thank our many readers to send us your experiences almost immediately after the shaking stopped and before we got the official seismological data
Update 13:24 UTC : Most of the Pacific West Coast people (USA, Alaska and Canada) have returned to their beds
– Only few of them will feel the many moderate aftershocks which will continue for many days and even weeks
Update 12:31 UTC : Most recent and normally last Tsunami bulletin for Alaska, British Columbia and the West Coast
PUBLIC TSUNAMI MESSAGE NUMBER 4 – NWS WEST COAST/ALASKA TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER PALMER AK
158 AM AKST SAT JAN 5 2013
…THE TSUNAMI WARNING IS CANCELLED…
CANCELLATIONS
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* THE TSUNAMI WARNING IS CANCELED FOR THE COASTAL AREAS OF BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALASKA FROM THE NORTH TIP OF VANCOUVER ISLAND BRITISH COLUMBIA TO CAPE FAIRWEATHER ALASKA/LOCATED 80 MILES SE OF YAKUTAT/
IMPACTS – UPDATED
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* A TSUNAMI WAS GENERATED DURING THIS EVENT BUT NO LONGER POSES A THREAT.
* SOME AREAS MAY CONTINUE TO SEE SMALL SEA LEVEL CHANGES.
* THE DETERMINATION TO RE-OCCUPY HAZARD ZONES MUST BE MADE BY LOCAL OFFICIALS.
RECOMMENDED ACTIONS – UPDATED
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* DO NOT RE-OCCUPY HAZARD ZONES UNTIL LOCAL EMERGENCY OFFICIALS INDICATE IT IS SAFE TO DO SO.
OBSERVATIONS OF TSUNAMI ACTIVITY – UPDATED
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TIME OBSERVED MAX SITE OF MEASUREMENT TSUNAMI HEIGHT
—————————- ————— ————–
PORT ALEXANDER AK 1026 UTC 01-05 – 00.5FT
SITKA AK 1041 UTC 01-05 – 00.3FT
HEIGHT – OBSERVED MAX TSUNAMI HEIGHT IS THE WATER LEVEL ABOVE THE
TIDE LEVEL AT THE TIME OF MEASUREMENT.
DEEP OCEAN PRESSURE SENSORS DID NOT RECORD A TSUNAMI.
Update 11:01 UTC : GREAT NEWS : ALL WARNINGS and ADVISORIES are now CANCELED
Update 10:44 UTC : Nothing really dramatic has happened and will probably not happen also.
Port Alexander, Alaska, sees 6-inch rise in sea level after magnitude 7.5 earthquake Some warnings remain in effect but maybe downgraded soon : THE COASTAL AREAS OF BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALASKA FROM THE NORTH TIP OF VANCOUVER ISLAND BRITISH COLUMBIA TO CAPE FAIRWEATHER ALASKA/LOCATED 80 MILES SE OF YAKUTAT/
PARTLY GOOD NEWS
A NUMBER OF ADVISORY and WARNING CANCELLATIONS
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* THE TSUNAMI ADVISORY IS CANCELED FOR THE COASTAL AREAS OF BRITISH COLUMBIA FROM THE WASHINGTON-BRITISH COLUMBIA BORDER TO THE NORTH TIP OF VANCOUVER ISLAND BRITISH COLUMBIA
* THE TSUNAMI WARNING IS CANCELED FOR THE COASTAL AREAS OF ALASKA FROM CAPE FAIRWEATHER ALASKA/LOCATED 80 MILES SE OF YAKUTAT/ TO CAPE SUCKLING ALASKA/LOCATED 75 MILES SE OF CORDOVA/
* THE TSUNAMI ADVISORY IS CANCELED FOR THE COASTAL AREAS OF ALASKA FROM CAPE SUCKLING ALASKA/LOCATED 75 MILES SE OF CORDOVA/ TO KENNEDY ENTRANCE ALASKA/LOCATED 40 MILES SW OF HOMER/
Update 10:18 UTC : Some distances from the epicenter to important locations on land
106km (66mi) WSW of Craig, Alaska
304km (189mi) WNW of Prince Rupert, Canada
341km (212mi) S of Juneau, Alaska
404km (251mi) WNW of Terrace, Canada
610km (379mi) S of Whitehorse, Canada
…THE TSUNAMI WARNINGS REMAINS IN EFFECT… …THE TSUNAMI ADVISORIES REMAINS IN EFFECT…
If you are a twitter user, we advise you to subscribe to our @quake_Tracker4or one of the others. It will not only send earthquake notifications, but also I Have Felt It reports and Tsunami alerts
Update 10:08 UTC : Good news for the broader connected Pacific / Statement for the Pacific Tsunami and weather Center :
NO TSUNAMI THREAT EXISTS FOR OTHER COASTAL AREAS IN THE PACIFIC ALTHOUGH SOME OTHER AREAS MAY EXPERIENCE SMALL NON-DESTRUCTIVE SEA LEVEL CHANGES LASTING UP TO SEVERAL HOURS.
Update 10:12 UTC : Tsunami advisory in effect for Prince Rupert. RCMP members going door to door and evacuating residents close to the shore.
Update 10:04 UTC : USGS has now downgraded the Magnitude from 7.7 to 7.5 with a little change in intensities but an important change for an eventual Tsunami potential
Update 09:49 UTC : A visual overview of the Tsunami a warning (red) and Tsunami advisory (orange) locations along the coast. Red means get away from the coast and walk urgently to higher grounds – Orange : be aware of strong waves and potentially higher tides
Update 09:34 UTC : Our main concern goes to the fisheries in case of a widespread tsunami.
for more information, go to: http://earthquake-report.com/2013/01/05/potential-tsunami-from-m7-7-earthquake-off-alaska-warning-in-effect/
Norma Gentile
