Venice Film Festival 2008

The 65th Venice International Film Festival, organised by the Venice Biennale, will take place at Venice Lido from August 27 - September 6, 2008. Go to www.labiennale.org for further information.

Finding The Van Goghs Under The Van Goghs

Sharon Begley's article on finding the van Goghs under the Van Goghs via sophisticated technology + other viewpoints @ http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/labnotes/archive/2008/07/30/there-s-a-peasant-under-my-van-gogh.aspx was insightful. A real spinoff!

Useful links:
www.hasylab.de
www.desy.de
http://home.tudelft.nl
http://pubs.acs.org/cgi-bin/abstract.cgi/ancham/asap/abs/ac800965g.html
http://pubs.acs.org/isubscribe/journals/ancham/asap/figures/ac-2008-00965g_0001.html

The Treacherous World Of Film Distribution

John Anderson's article on the business of film distribution @ http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/30/movies/30self.html?_r=1&oref=slogin was brilliant and insightful.

Useful links:
www.picturehouse.com
www.bottleshockthemovie.com

Ask An Astrobiologist

Ask an Astrobiologist is a service to answer astrobiology questions from the public, both about the origin and evolution of life on Earth and looking forward to the search for life on other worlds. Go to http://astrobiology.nasa.gov/ask-an-astrobiologist for further information.

Once In A Lifetime Holiday

Here is what Leading Hotels of the World's website says about the incredible journey:

In celebration of our 80th anniversary and the 80th Academy Awards, The Leading Hotels of the World brings you an epic voyage in homage to one of Hollywood’s greatest spectacles, the Oscar®-winning sensation 'Around the World in 80 Days.' True, we have taken a bit of creative license, but how else could we wrap such an amazing journey in such absolute glamour? Traveling in a private jet all the way, you and a companion will see everything in the world worth seeing and do everything in the world worth doing. Best of all, 10% of the USD 1 million price will be donated to the Elton John AIDS Foundation for the global fight against AIDS. So, with that in mind, we invite you to open your hearts and wallets and get ready to set off on the adventure of a lifetime.

Useful link:
www.lhw.com

With a price tag of US$1 million, it must a be once-in-a-lifetime holiday. But if it's partly for a good cause + if you have US$1 million to spare, why not!

An Interesting Diamond Story

According to German scientists Andrei Sommer, Dan Zhu, and Hans-Joerg Fecht at the University of Ulm, diamonds could have played an important role in the origin of life on Earth. Go to http://in.news.yahoo.com/43/20080730/982/tsc-diamonds-not-only-for-ever-they-led_1.html for further information. Interesting theory.

Useful link:
http://pubs.acs.org

Heard On The Street

When times are tough, gold soars.

North Korean Posters

North Korean Posters: The David Heather Collection by Koen De Ceuster + David Heather was interesting. A really lucky entrepreneur. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder!