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vihu
~ ideal career: writer-musician-physician-scientist-entrepreneur
~ admires novelists who create believable worlds with science, history, and culture, and strong, complex characters
~ respects people who seek to balance the intransigence of morality and compassion for humanity
~ enjoys observing people and animals, in literature as well as real-life situations
~ tries to understand different perspectives, cultures, etc.
~ loves to learn, and appreciates things that make her think.
This erratic notepad is a perfectionist's exercise in spontaneity, and a collection of miscellaneous items of interest.
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Finally used my sewing machine and turned my daughters artwork into reality
(via helloaimee)
Opalised fossils
Australia is the only place in the world where opalised fossils are found. Fossils are usually formed when plant or animal remains are buried after death, and are slowly encased with sediments and infused with minerals, leaving a rock-like replica of the original organic material. Opalised fossils, however, replace an organism’s organic material with shimmering, solid opal. Excellent detail can be preserved both on the surface and internally, depending on how the opal forms: it’s a hydrous silicon oxide, and begins as a solution of silica in water. If an organism completely rots away, the opal will fill the empty space and create a cast of the external features—but if an organism has left organic material behind, the solution might harden to form a replica of the internal structure too. One of the richest sources of opalised fossils is Lightning Ridge in northwestern New South Wales. The fossils paint a vibrant history of animals who lived there in the Early Cretaceous Period, approximately 110 million years ago—dinosaurs, marine reptiles, fish, early mammals, molluscs, plants… Unfortunately, the opalised fossils are often cut up for jewellery or sold overseas for their beauty and value, but as they’re of significant scientific interest, researchers and paleontologists are working to preserve them.
6 Foreign Expressions You Should Know
1. De Facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means “actual” (if used as an adjective) or “in practice” (if used as an adverb). In legal terms, de facto is commonly used in contrast to de jure, which means “by law.” Something, therefore, can emerge either de facto (by practice) or de jure (by law).
2. Vis-à-Vis
The literal meaning of this French expression is “face to face” (used as an adverb). It is used more widely as a preposition though, meaning “compared with” or “in relation to.”
3. Status quo
This famous Latin expression means “the current or existing state of affairs.” If something changes the status quo, it is changing the way things presently are.
4. Cul-de-sac
This expression was originated in England by French-speaking aristocrats. Literally it means “bottom of a sack,” but generally it refers to a dead-end street. Cul-de-sac can also be used metaphorically to express an action that leads to nowhere or an impasse.
5. Per se
Per se is a Latin expression that means “by itself” or “intrinsically.”
6. Ad hoc
Ad hoc, borrowed from the Latin, can be used both as an adjective, where it means “formed or created with a specific purpose,” and as an adverb, where it means “for the specific purpose or situation.”
by Daniel Scocco
From DailyWritingTips
