An amazing photo documentary

Here is a short video of some incredible photos that show how resourceful, diverse, and wonderful  we humans are.

“From mountain tops to ocean depths – stunning images from the BBC landmark series.”  http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/news/world-12618167

The best and worst places to live

CNN Go has published a lit of the most livable cities in the world (along with the 1o worst). The top 10 are mainly in Canada or Australia (except for two in Europe and one in New Zealand, but none in the U.S); the 10 worst are mainly  in Africa or the middle-east. Makes one wonder, why is that?

The world’s top liveable cities:

1. Melbourne, Australia

2. Vienna, Austria

3. Vancouver, Canada

4. Toronto, Canada

5. Calgary, Canada

6. Sydney, Australia

7. Helsinki, Finland

8. Perth, Australia

9. Adelaide, Australia

10. Auckland, New Zealand

And the worst cities on the planet:

131: Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

132: Tehran, Iran

133: Douala, Cameroon

134: Karachi, Pakistan

135: Tripoli, Libya

136: Algiers, Algeria

137: Lagos, Nigeria

138: Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

139: Dhaka, Bangladesh

140: Harare, Zimbabwe

One More Step Toward Positive Personal Identification – US Begins Issuing Electronic Passports

The United States Department of State has begun issuing passports that contain an RFID chip that carries personal information in digital form. Other countries have done the same.  The  implementation of this technology is accompanied by a new Visa Waiver Program that bypasses the visa application process. Below is the official description of the e-passport from the State Department website.  read the rest  of the story here.  -t.h.g.

What is an Electronic Passport?

An Electronic Passport is the same as a traditional passport with the addition of a small integrated circuit (or “chip”) embedded in the back cover.  The chip stores:

• The same data visually displayed on the data page of the passport;
• A biometric identifier in the form of a digital image of the passport photograph, which will facilitate the use of face recognition technology at ports-of-entry;
• The unique chip identification number; and
• A digital signature to protect the stored data from alteration.