Saturday, February 26, 2011

Cheetahbot gonna get you!!!!

"


Perhaps you thought the four-legged BigDog robot wasn’t eerily lifelike enough. That’ll change soon. BigDog’s makers are working on a new quadruped that moves faster than any human and is agile enough to “chase and evade.”
Boston Dynamics, maker of the Army’s robotic mule BigDog announced today that Darpa has awarded it a contract to build a much faster and more fearsome animal-like robot, Cheetah.
As the name implies, Cheetah is designed to be a four-legged robot with a flexible spine and articulated head (and potentially a tail) that runs faster than the fastest human. In addition to raw speed, Cheetah’s makers promise that it will have the agility to make tight turns so that it can “zigzag to chase and evade” and be able to stop on a dime.

Cheetah builds off work on the company’s previous four legged animal bot, BigDog.  It was built as a kind of unmanned pack mule, designed to carry equipment for troops on the battlefield. The robotic donkey could carry 300 lbs. over 13 miles on flat ground, take a swift kick and keep on moving. It’s creepy, lifelike movement can be seen on a number of videos online, climbing over hills and snow and hiking alongside soldiers, using GPS coordinates as its waypoints.
Aside from its unspecified military applications, Cheetah’s makers see it galloping to the rescue and building a brave new future in the fields of “emergency response, firefighting, advanced agriculture and vehicular travel.”
Think that’s creepy? Wait till you see its humanoid, Terminator look-alike buddy.
Meet Atlas, Cheetah’s humanoid pal. Atlas is supposed to look more or less like the T-800 series of Terminators, minus the head. Its designers say it’ll be able to walk like a human over rough terrain, crawling on its hands and knees when necessary and turning itself sideways to slip through any narrow passages it encounters. Headless, with a torso and two arms, it’s a step up from Boston Dynamics’ other biped, the lower-body-bot Petman.
Petman was built to test out chemical weapons protective suits for the Army by “walking, crawling and doing a variety of suit-stressing calisthenics” and “simulat[ing] human physiology.” Designers made it capable of walking heel-to-toe at 3.2 miles per hour and staying upright even after it gets pushed.
As the new models go into development, let’s hope Cheetah never develops a taste for human flesh and that Atlas doesn’t have any hard feelings about its predecessor being a poison-gas guinea pig for the Army.
Images: Boston Dynamics"

Original source: http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/02/darpas-cheetah-bot-designed-to-chase-human-prey/


I found this while strolling through the internet. I have to say that this would be very scary to me, though what it could be used for if it works is astounding. The world ends it would pay to have one of these!!!

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

How to make vegetable oils soap

Instructions.

Things You'll Need:


Coconut Oil
Distilled Waters
Non-virgin Olive (not Virgin) Oil
Vegetable Oils
Lye
Measuring Cups And Spoons

Soap Making 101

1.1
Dissolve 12 oz. lye in 32 oz. softened water(purified water) in a plastic or glass bowl. If at all possible, do this outside or under an exhaust fan. You can buy lye at your local wal-mart.

2.2
Add the lye to the water, not vice versa. Pour the lye slowly and in a steady stream, and stir constantly with a plastic spoon.

3.3
Set the mixture aside to cool as it will heat up due to a chemical reaction between the lye and water. The mixture will also heat up considerably due to the lye reacting with fats in the oils when mixed later. This is called saponification.

4.4
Melt 24 oz. coconut oil and 38 oz. solid vegetable shortening in a stainless steel pot.

5.5
Add 25 oz. olive oil (not virgin) and any fragrance oils you want to use. Other oils can be used besides olive. Heat the oils between 110 to 150 degrees, do not allow to boil.

6.6
Allow the oils to cool.

7.7
Grease the soap mold with Crisco.

8.8
When both the oil and lye mixtures have cooled to room temperature, slowly combine them, adding the lye to the oils.

9.9
Stir slowly and constantly. If you see bubbles, stir more slowly.

10.10
Drizzle the soap into the pot once in a while. When it keeps its shape momentarily before sinking into the rest of the mix (tracing), it's time to add whatever extras you want.

11.11
Stir your botanicals, grains and coloring into a cup of soap taken from the mix.

12.12
Combine that back into the original mixture.

13.13
Pour the soap into the mold.

14.14
Wrap the mold in a towel and leave it undisturbed for 18 hours. The soap mixture will heat up and then cool down. Avoid uncovering it until it's cooled.

15.15
Allow the soap to sit in the uncovered mold for another 12 hours.

16.16
Loosen the sides by wiggling the mold a little.

17.17
Turn the mold over onto a clean counter.

18.18
Cut the soap into bars with a knife. Some people use a miter box to make square corners.

19.19
Allow the bars to cure for three to four weeks before using. Smaller bars cure faster than larger ones.

Additives

20.1
Mix candle coloring into the oil solution. If it's wax-based, melt it first in a couple of tablespoons of oil and then add it to the rest of the oil mix.

21.2
Realize that you can also use crayons for coloring. Experiment with colors. Note that purples are very difficult to keep true.

22.3
Use 1 tsp. per pound of soap of the following ingredients: cocoa powder for brown, cayenne pepper for pink-peach, liquid chlorophyll for light green, turmeric for yellow, paprika for peach and titanium dioxide for white.

23.4
Use 1 oz. essential oil to scent a 4-lb. batch of soap.

24.5
Know that 2 tsp. ground cloves makes a great-smelling soap. Try grated orange or lemon peel or ginger, too.

25.6
Use rose water instead of regular water for rose soap.

26.7
Oatmeal makes a great complexion soap. Use 8 oz.

27.8
Add 4 oz. cornmeal for a gritty texture.

28.9
Make soap with 1/2 oz. geranium oil for dry skin.

29.10
Use tea tree oil - 1/2 oz. - for problem skin.

How to make lye and tallow soap

Soap Making Takes Three Basic Steps.

1) Making of the wood ash lye.

2) Rendering or cleaning the fats.

3) Mixing the fats and lye solution together and boiling the mixture to make the soap.

First Let's Make The Lye.

In making soap the first ingredient required was a liquid solution of potash commonly called lye.

The lye solution was obtained by placing wood ashes in a bottomless barrel set on a stone slab with a groove and a lip carved in it. The stone in turn rested on a pile of rocks. To prevent the ashes from getting in the solution a layer of straw and small sticks was placed in the barrel then the ashes were put on top. The lye was produced by slowly pouring water over the ashes until a brownish liquid oozed
out the bottom of the barrel. This solution of potash lye was collected by allowing it to flow into the groove around the stone slab and drip down into a clay vessel at the lip of the groove.



Some colonists used an ash hopper for the making of lye instead of the barrel method. The ash hopper, was kept in a shed to protect the ashes from being leached unintentionally by a rain fall. Ashes were added periodically and water was poured over at intervals to insure a continuous supply of lye. The lye dripped into
a collecting vessel located beneath the hopper.

Now The Fats Are Prepared.

The preparation of the fats or grease to be used in forming the soap was the next step. This consists of cleaning the fats and grease of all other impurities contained in them.

The cleaning of fats is called rendering and is the smelliest part of the soap making operation. Animal fat, when removed from the animals during butchering, must be rendered before soap of any satisfactory quality can be made from it. This rendering removes all meat tissues that still remain in the fat sections. Fat obtained from cattle is called tallow while fat obtained from pigs is called lard.

If soap was being made from grease saved from cooking fires, it was also rendered to remove all impurities that had collected in it. The waste cooking grease being saved over a period of time without the benefits of refrigeration usually became rancid, This cleaning step was very important to make the grease sweeter. It would result in a better smelling soap. The soap made from rancid fats or grease would work just as well as soap made from sweet and clean fats but not be as pleasant to have around and use.

To render, fats and waste cooking grease were placed in a large kettle and an equal amount of water was added. Then the kettle was placed over the open fire outdoors. Soap making was an outside activity. The smell from rendering the fats was too strong to wish in anyone's house. The mixture of fats and water were boiled until all the fats had melted. After a longer period of boiling to insure completion of melting the fats. The fire was stopped and into the kettle was placed another amount of water about equal to the first amount of water. The solution was allowed to cool down and left over night. By the next day the fats had solidified and floated to the top forming a layer of clean fat. All the impurities being not as light as the fat remained in water underneath the fat.

You can observe this today in your own kitchen. When a stew or casserole containing meat has been put in the refrigerator, you can see the next day the same fat layer the colonists got on the top of their rendering kettle.

Finally The Soap Making Can Begin.

In another large kettle or pot the fat was placed with the amount of lye solution determined to be the correct amount. This is easier said than done. We will discuss it more later. Then this pot was placed over a fire again outdoors and boiled. This mixture was boiled until the soap was formed. This was determined when the mixture boiled up into a thick frothy mass, and a small amount placed on the tongue caused no noticeable "bite". This boiling process could take up to six to eight hours depending on the amount of the mixture and the strength of the lye.



Soft and Hard Soap

Soap made with wood ash lye does not make a hard soap but only a soft soap. When the fire was put out and the soap mixture was allowed to cool, the next day revealed a brown jelly like substance that felt slippery to the touch, made foam when mixed with water, and cleaned. This is the soft soap the colonists had done all their
hard work to produce. The soft soap was then poured into a wooden barrel and ladled out with a wooden dipper when needed.

To make hard soap, common salt was thrown in at the end of the boiling. If this was done a hard cake of soap formed in a layer at the top of the pot. As common salt was expensive and hard to get, it was not usually wasted to make hard soap. Common salt was more valuable to give to the livestock and the preserving of foods. Soft soap
worked just as well as hard and for these reasons the colonists, making their own soap, did not make hard soap bars.

In towns and cities where there were soap makers making soap for sale, the soap would be converted to the hard soap by the addition of salt. As hard bars it would be easier to store and transport. Hard bars produced by the soap maker were often scented with oils such as lavender, wintergreen, or caraway and were sold as toilet soap to persons living in the cities or towns.

Hard soap was not cut into small bars and wrapped as soap is sold today. Soap made by the soap makers was poured into large wooden frames and removed when cooled and hard.

The amount of soap a customer wanted was cut from the large bar. Soap was sold usually by the pound. Small wrapped bars were not available until the middle of the 19th century.

Another thought to remember is the soap making procedure described is not only how the homesteading colonial women made their soap. Soap making was generally a task the women did. This was essentially the method used by all soap makers of the period. Soap making was always considered one of the most difficult jobs on the farm or homestead.

Difficulties in Making Soap

The hardest part was in determining if the lye was of the correct strength, as we have said. In order to learn this, the soap maker floated either a potato or an egg in the lye. If the object floated with a specified amount of its surface above the lye solution, the lye was declared fit for soap making. Most of the colonists felt that lye of the correct strength would float a potato or an egg with an area the size of a ninepence (about the size of a modern quarter) above the surface. To make a weak lye stronger, the solution could either be boiled down more or the lye solution could be poured through a new batch of ashes. To make a solution weaker, water was added.

How to make simple bows





I will cover 4 simple survival bows you can make from typical materials found in either an urban or rural setting.

1) Stick bow
Just gather 3 sticks of equal length and relative thickness, less then 2 inches in diameter and 3 to 4 feet in length. Now remove all branches from the sticks. One of the three sticks should be about 2 to 3 inches longer then the rest, should be the thickest of the three is there is one. Now place them together and bind them in the middle with either sinew, paracord, shoe laises, dental floss, cordage from green strips of bark, vines, animal intestines, duck tape ect ect... Then bind them on the ends and between the ends and middle, should be 5 all together. Ensure that the wood is not gray or brittle, use partially but not completely dry sticks. Simple test, if they bend slightly then they are at least partially green, if they SNAP! then they aren't :) Now place slight notches in the middle longest stick sticking out of both ends and tie the bow string on. The bow string can be made out anything with the tinsel strength to do the job, nylon shoe laises tied together, cordage from dental floss, weaved cloth ect ect....

2)Fiber-glass bow
You may have noticed that some people have reflective rods at the border of their yards. These thin white rods the reflectives are on stuck in the ground are made of fiber glass, rubber coated metal or plastic. Fiber glass rods will make a stretching/breaking sound when you bend them. Get three of these and bind them in the middle, the ends and in between just as you would with the sticks or wrap the whole thing in duck tape with thicker binding points. Attach your bow string and your done. If you have more, you can make the bow have more thrust by adding 2 more rods or just use the extra rods as arrows, just attach fins and sharpen the end.

3)PVC bow
This is self explanatory, find a pvc pipe of no more then a 2 inch diameter between 3 to 5 feet long and attach your cordage from one end to the other and your done.

4)Another simple bow is find a 2 inch diameter stick between 4 and 5 feet that is not gray or brittle and connect your cord between both ends.

These all are basic with limited range and a bow strength between 30-50 lbs of force which with a broadhead arrow can take down bigger game such as deer, have fun and be careful.

Remember that on any of these bows you may want to use cordage in the center of your bow to use as your arrow's rest.

To center your bow, just inch your finger down the inside spine of the bow balancing it on your finger. The point where the bow is balanced is the center.

If you use wooden dowel rods or straight dried sticks as your arrows with only a sharpened point, you can strengthen the point of the arrow by slightly burning the tip then filing the charred wood off with a rock. Your arrow tip will be alittle darker brown then the rest of the arrow and it will be harder because it is dryer then the rest. You can use plastic from bottles, feathers, leaves or cardboard to create fins for your arrows.

Morse Code


MORSE CODE


A) 0 =
B) = 0 0 0
C) = 0 = 0
D) = 0 0
E) 0
F) 0 0 = 0
G) = = 0
H) 0 0 0 0
I) 0 0
J) 0 = = =
K) = 0 =
M) = =
L) 0 = 0 0
N) = 0
O) = = =
P) 0 = = 0
Q) = = 0 =
R) 0 = 0
S) 0 0 0
T) =
U) 0 0 =
V) 0 0 0 =
W) 0 = =
X) = 0 0 =
Y) = 0 = =
Z) = = 0 0

0) = = = = =
1) 0 = = = =
2) 0 0 = = =
3) 0 0 0 = =
4) 0 0 0 0 =
5) 0 0 0 0 0
6) = 0 0 0 0
7) = = 0 0 0
8) = = = 0 0
9) = = = = 0

How to tan hides

Before modern technology gave us machines and chemicals to tan animal hides, early civilizations used natural ingredients to preserve animal skins. This traditional way of tanning hides is used today by people who want their animal skins tanned without chemicals.


History

1.Since the Stone Age, animal brains have been used to tan and preserve animal hides. Frontiersmen wore brain-tanned buckskin, as did General George Washington's troops during the Revolutionary War. The work clothes of common laborers in 18th century America wore tanned buckskin as did the fashionable upper class in Europe.

Features

2.First, you must scrape the animal skin to remove all fat and membrane. The brain of the dead animal is removed, heated and blended into a brain-and-water mix called a slurry. After the animal hide is scraped and dried, the slurry is rubbed into the hide and left overnight. The slurry is scraped off the following day.

Effects

3.The brain method of tanning preserves the animal skin and leaves it soft and supple enough to wear as a garment and lasts as long as chemically preserved hides.

Misconceptions

4.Contrary to what many people believe, an animal hide preserved with the brain-tanning method does not have a bad smell.

Benefits

5.Chemical tanning methods leave chemical residue in the animal hide that can transfer to your skin. Brain-tanned hides have no such chemical residues. In addition, brain-tanned hides can be washed.

How to harvest yeast

Would you like to make your own yeast? While commercial yeast is readily available, some bakers feel that wild yeast gives their bread a richer flavor. Read on as this article explains how to make yeast. Yeast is a living organism that feeds on natural sugars, producing carbon dioxide to leaven bread. Yeast is also responsible for fermentation, and is used to make wine as well as beer. Wild yeasts are airborne, and can sometimes be "captured" to make your own dry yeast if there is enough yeast in the air. Follow the steps below to get started making yeast.

Step 1: Capture the Yeast

This method is dependent on how much wild yeast is circulating in the air in your kitchen at any given time. Baking frequently adds yeast to the air, so trying to capture the yeast soon after baking bread will help ensure success.

1.Combine in a bowl:
•2 cups of warm water
•1 tablespoon of sugar
•2 cups of flour

2.Cover the bowl with cheesecloth and place in a warm area in your kitchen.

3.Stir the mixture once a day.

4.It will begin to bubble when you have captured yeast.

5.Allow the mixture to continue to sit for 3-4 days after you first notice the bubbles.

Step 2: Dry the Yeast

1.Spread the liquid mixture out on plastic wrap or waxed paper to dry.

2.When it is dry, break the dried yeast into chunks.

3.Grind the chunks into small particles using a the food processor.

4.Freeze the yeast in an airtight container for long term storage.

5.Yeast will become dormant when they do not have warmth and a food source such as sugar.

Step 3: Use the Yeast

This yeast is not as concentrated as commercial yeast. Plan on substituting one cup of homemade yeast for one ounce of commercial yeast.

1.Dissolve one cup of homemade yeast in one cup of whatever liquid your recipe calls for.

2.Make the dough, decreasing the flour used by one cup.

3.Knead and allow to rise as usual; be aware that the dough may take longer to double in size than if you'd used commercial yeast.

4.The yeast is what causes the bread to rise due to the carbon dioxide it gives off inside the dough.

An alternative to yeast

Here's how to make an effective and inexpensive yeast substitute.

Ingredients:

•Baking soda
•Lemon juice

Preparation:

1. Add all ingredients according to the recipe.

2. Then, add in equal parts baking soda and lemon juice to equal the amount of yeast called for in the recipe last.

3. Bake as usual.

How to make bread from wood

There was a time in our nation's history when times were so difficult that people were advised on how they could use wood in place of flour to bake their bread. This actual procedure was first shared through The Emigrant's Handbook (1848).


1.1
Chop fresh (green) beech tree wood into shaving sized pieces. You may substitute other turpentine free wood for the beech tree if you like.

2.2
Boil the beech shavings three or four times, stirring as they boil. This will take a strong hand to do as wet wood shavings are very heavy. Don't make too big a batch at a time unless you have a muscular helper.

3.3
Dry the shavings out. Laying them out flat on a clean surface in the sun is likely the most appropriate way of doing this. Using a cheesecloth or clean white linen would be preferable as you will need to pick them up once dry and they will crumble up.

4.4
Work them around with a firm hand to reduce the wood shavings into a powder, if possible. If you can't get them into powder form, at least break them up as best you can.

5.5
Bake the wood powder/crumbs in your oven 3 or 4 times using a large cookie sheet. The guide does not specify at what degree you would use. Remember, this was in 1848! I would suggest using a very low temperature. You are just encouraging the moisture to become completely evaporated from the wood at this stage.

6.6
Grind the wood powder/crumbs as you would grind corn. This will take on the same smell as corn flour at this point. It is reputed that it also tastes like corn flour. No leaven is required to prevent fermentation but you can use corn flour leaven if you wish.

7.7
Use your new wood flour to bake your bread. This wood flour is said to produce a spongy bread and "when much baked with a hard crust, is by no means unpalatable."

How to dry animal hides

Animal skins make great trophies, can be sold for extra cash and can be used to line or make clothing warm and comfortable. When preparing animals skins for tanning, or when simply curing them for use, the most important thing to do is make sure any meat or fat is separated from the skin to reduce the likelihood of the pelt becoming
rancid. The time required to prepare the skin is determined by both the size and thickness of the skin, as well as the humidity and temperature of the air.


1.1
Remove any muscle tissue and fat from the inside of the skin. When scraping the tissue and fats from the skin, be sure not to scrape through the actual skin material, as tears, rips and overly thinned areas will make stretchingthe skin difficult without doing further damage.

2.2
Staple or nail the skin, fur or hair side down, to a level board larger than the skin. Start with one corner of the skin, and stretch the skin taut as you place the next staple or nail through the skin. Each skin's size and shape will determine the number of staples or nails required. Lay the board on a flat surface.

3.3
Pour a 1/8-inch layer of non-iodized salt over the skin to absorb moisture. The entire skin should should be coated with salt when completed. If any salted areas become moistened during the salt layering process, pour more salt over the area.

4.4
Add more salt to areas that become moist as the skin continues to dry. Do not remove the old salt until the skin is completely dry. Monitor the skin twice daily for the first week, and continue to monitor the skin once every other day for the remaining time required.

5.5
Remove the salt when you believe the skin is dry. Pour any loose salt off the skin and lightly scrape the remaining salt from the skin surface. If necessary, repeat the process.

How to make hide glue

Making hide glue

Hide glue is a safe, natural and nontoxic glue. It can be used as a wood glue, making musical instruments, crackling paint as well as many other uses. It is an easy substance to make.


1.1
Boil the distilled water. Add the rawhide scraps (rawhide is skin from cloven animals, ie...deer, pig, horse, cow, goat)reduce the heat and let simmer for 1 1/2 hours.

2.2
Remove the pot from the heat and let it cool for about 5 to 10 minutes.

3.3
Strain the solution through a cloth into the medium-sized bowl.

4.4
Allow the glue to sit at room temperature overnight. Make sure it is in a dry place and away from any sunlight. It will turn into a jellylike substance.

5.5
Turn the bowl upside down onto a piece of plastic wrap. Slice the jelly into 1/4-inch pieces. Allow the jelly to dry(keep it out of sunlight). This can take 3 to 4 days.

6.6
Use the hide glue by warming a few of the pieces. Place the glue into a small ceramic bowl and place the bowl on a stove burner. Use low heat until it is soft. Do not let the glue come to a boil, or it will be ruined.

How to make simple cordage

Simple bow strings are essentially braided cordage--the same process is used to make both rope and Flemish strings. The ability to braid a bow string is a valuable tool for the self-reliant archer, but it can also be used in any number of environments that requires improvised cordage, including camping, survival situations and even craft making. Choose a good quality fiber for making a bow string, such as Dacron, Brownell's B-50 material or artificial sinew.

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Quality string/green bark strips/cloth strips ect...

1
Cut 12 strands of string fiber(dental floss),3 strips of green bark or 3 strips cloth to the desired length. Note that the string will length will be somewhat shorter than the length of the fibers due to the twisting process involved. For a bow string, cut your fibers 5 inches longer than the length of your bow.

2
Grasp the fibers 2 inches from their ends with two fingers on your left hand. Separate the long ends of the fibers into two groups of six fibers.

3
Twist one group of fibers clockwise with your right thumb and forefinger. While holding these twisted fibers, grasp the other group with your free right-hand fingers and pull it counterclockwise under the twisted bundle. Slide your
left-hand fingers up slightly to hold the twist in place.

4
Take the untwisted bundle in your right hand and twist it clockwise as you did in Step 3. Still holding this bundle, reach and pull the other fibers counterclockwise beneath it. Slide your left-hand fingers forward again.

5
Repeat Steps 3 and 4 until you have braided the desired length of string to be used as rope or latching. Knot off the ends for cordage or tie slip knots to use as a simple bow string.

How to make bowstring from sinew

Bowstrings can be made out of a variety of materials, however one durable and readily available material is sinew.
Sinew is the dried tendons of an animal and is extremely tough with very little stretch. These qualities make sinew
a useful candidate for making a bowstring, as you want as little stretch as possible and durability for repeated shots.
Once you have procured and dried your sinew, follow the steps below to build a long lasting, durable bowstring.


1.1
Cut the piece of sinew to a length twice that of your final bowstring length. Determine the length of your finished
bowstring by subtracting four inches from the total length of the bow. Double this number and that is how much
sinew you will need.

2.2
Soak the sinew in cool water for a few hours to get it pliable enough to work with. Fold the sinew over in the middle
and twist the end 5-6 times. Slide one of the ends of the strands through the small loop you made in the middle of
the sinew to form a large loop in the bowstring.

3.3
Place the stick inside the large loop you just made and then hang the loop from a nail that you pounded into a tree.
Tie the ends of the two strands of sinew to the paint bucket and then twist the string tightly until the entire string is
twisted, but not bunched. Allow the string to dry like this for 2-3 days.

4.4
Rub beeswax on the string after the 2-3 day drying period and remove the paint bucket and stick from the ends.
Your new string is now ready to mount on the bow of your choice.

Note: Another option if you are unable to get ahold of long sinew from large game is to collect sinew from small game.
Scrape off all meat from the tendons and allow to dry. Pound the dried tendons between two rocks and pull apart
the fibers. Soak the fibers in water or moisten by chewing them, either or. Now weave them together like you are
braiding someone's hair. When you have enough, wrap one end over a stick and tie the loose ends over it's self.
Continue to braid until the desired length is achieved then coat the cordage in hide glue. Attach another stick to the
other end and allow to dry.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

1,000+ Views!!!

We have had our 1,000 view come and go. I thank everyone that has come to take a look and I hope that people continue to come and enjoy the blog!!!

Friday, February 11, 2011

A new Day for Egypt

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa/02/11/egypt.protests/index.html
Mubarak has stepped down as president of Egypt. And as the people of Egypt have gained their freedom, what is next for the countries that are protesting their own dictatorships? With hope I will say this, freedom and democracy will spread as a fire. There will be more deaths should the people rise, but it will be worth it if just to have the right to vote for yourself.

Monday, February 7, 2011

The Stand alive again!!

"Stephen King's Post-Apocalyptic Novel 'The Stand' Turned Into Movie
See larger image
After Universal Pictures and NBC Universal Television acquired the rights to Stephen King's "", Warner Bros. and CBS Films are now planning to make a film based on his other novel "". Mosaic and Roy Lee are producing the movie, while Warners will handle worldwide marketing and distribution.

Dubbed an opus from King, "The Stand" is set in a time after a virus wipes out most of the American population. This story of good vs. evil will focus on a group of survivors fighting the Antichrist-like Randall Flagg while it features dozens of characters and overlapping storylines running over many years.

The novel was originally published in 1978 and was re-released in 1990 with King adding and revising portions of the story. It was later brought into small screen by ABC as a six-hour miniseries in 1994, and adapted into a graphic novel by Marvel Comics.

There is no word on the aimed release date for the film, but The Hollywood Reporter says Warner Bros. and CBS Films will "sit down with writers and directors in the coming weeks in an attempt to find the right take on the material.""

http://www.aceshowbiz.com/news/view/00038252.html

I found this in the news bar on the blog. For those of you that loved "The Stand" by Stephen King but never saw the mini series that is shown every once in a while on tv. It seems it going to get new life, where or not it will be any good or not is up to you when it does finally come out. So be sure to take a look at it when it finally does come out.