The Treaty of Rome (1957) declared a common European market as a European objective with the aim of increasing economic prosperity and contributing to "an ever closer union among the peoples of Europe".
The Single European Act (1986) and the Treaty on European Union (1992) have built on this, introducing Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and laying the foundations for our single currency.
The third stage of EMU began on 1 January 1999, when the exchange rates of the participating currencies were irrevocably set.
The new coins � 50 billion of them � have one side common to all 12 countries and a reverse side specific to each country, while the 14.5 billion banknotes look the same throughout the euro area.
Milled edges have been introduced to make it easier - especially for those with impaired sight - to recognise different values. Sophisticated bi-metal technology has been incorporated into the EUR 1 and EUR 2 coins which, together with lettering around the edge of the EUR 2 coin, prevents counterfeiting.
Storm Glass (barometer)
In 1832, after the death of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, an odd pear shaped glass was found in his
bedroom. Von Goethe's glass was flat on 1 side, but convex on the other. Upon examination of Goethe's
scientific recordings & notes, it was discovered that this glass, was meant to be a weatherglass, which,
when half filled with water, was then capable of indicating the changes in air pressure. This early
barometer is attractive as well as it is reliable. If the atmospheric pressure is high, signifying good
weather, then the fluid in the indicator glass tube is pushed downwards. When bad weather is imminent,
the fluid rises up the indicator tube.
Called the "Poor Man's Barometer" this decorative hand blown glass instrument forecasts the weather, just by using atmospheric pressure. By the late 17th century, most square riggers carried a Weather Glass next to the chart room table.
An early glass barometer, dating back to the 17th century, is one of the few antique scientific instruments still popular today. The hand-blown glass accurately forecasts weather hours in advance. Fill with colored water and check the weather by looking at the level of the liquid in the spout. A high water level in the spout indicates a low pressure area: approaching storm. A low level indicated high pressure: nice, fair weather.
Architectural items
Eagle Street Opera House
While searching for the perfect building for their store, a couple in Marshall, Michigan, purchases a three-story building and decides to make it their home, too. When they get to the third floor of the building, they realize it used to be the Eagle Street Opera House. It is scattered with various reminders of the opera days.
Suzanne and Charles Aitken
Homeowners, Town & Country House
151 W. Michigan Ave.
Marshall, MI 49068 If Walls Could Talk ... : Episode WCT-313
Feng Shui
Chinese geomancy (or Feng Shui) is not the product of any religious belief system. Rather, it is based on a set of calculations. The qualified practitioner examines the four aspects of Building, Environment, Time, and most importantly, People. The origins of Feng Shui, which, in Chinese, are the ideograms for 'wind' and 'water' (Two of the most fundamental forms of life�s energy. The wind disperses energy and water contains it) , go back at least 7,000 years and possibly even further.
At the most basic level, Feng Shui (pronounced fung shway) is the interaction of people and their environments. Feng Shui makes you aware of how your surroundings affect you. It provides tools and methods to change your surroundings to achieve specific results, and increase your overall well being, happiness, and success. Feng Shui is often described as the ancient Chinese art of placement. Using the principles of Feng Shui, you can arrange furnishings to create a balanced and comfortable environment, which will in turn promote a balanced life.
Some items used:
The Ba Gua is a powerful form of protection for your home. The trigrams are arranged in the potent heavenly sequence to protect you and your family from evil forces. The Ba Gua should never be placed inside the home - it is meant for external use only.One form of the Ba Gua has the added benefit of a concave mirror in the center. If your home is being 'Attacked' by negative chi from sharp, pointed objects, a tree or t-junction, the concave mirror will turn the offending object upsidedown further reducing the strength of the unwanted energy.
Symbolising protection, determination, courage and good fortune, the Chinese view the dragon as one of the most potent and auspicious animals. When facing the road, place the dragon on the left side.
Guard your home with a pair of temple lions, symbolic of great courage and strength of character. Representing defence and protection they often seen guarding entrances and gateways to buildings. Place the lion with a ball under its paw to the left of the front door (when facing the road), and the other to the right - balancing yin and yang.
The Five Bats Blessing - This symbol represents the five blessings of longevity,wealth, health, virtue and natural death. It may be hung anywhere and is considered particularly beneficial in the bedroom or kitchen.
Secret Passages
http://www.ventanapictures.com/latest_news.htm
Oil Tycoon E.W. Marland build a European Castle on the Prairie and carries out illegal activities in his hidden, secret passages, before he loses everything. Oklahoma mansion built by the oil tycoon E. W. Marland, where false fronts conceal hidden staircases, secret rooms and other places that came in handy during Prohibition!
Sicilian Baldasare, "the Human Mole," digs for 40 years of his life in Fresno, California. Utilizing only primitive tools and his imagination, he creates another world below ground spanning over 7
acres.
Levi Coffin constructed secret hideaways in his brick home in Indiana. 2,000 runaway slaves took refuge there Over twenty years, earning Levi the title of "President of the Underground Railroad."
Louisiana mansion that is a veritable monument to the paranoia of its original owner, timber magnate William Sullivan.
Sleeper McCann house in Gloucester, Massachusetts, is a practical joker's dream, riddled with hidden rooms and concealed halls that the original owner used to befuddle his guests.
Trinity Western University business professor Kenley Snider and the mammoth bomb-shelter he single-handedly built beneath his Blaine, Washington rancher is the grand-daddy of all "you-have-to-see-it-to-believe-it" stories. What was once a clandestine effort became very public last year after Donna Snyder, Kenley�s widow, opened the hatches of the shelter for the world to see via a segment on Secret Passages (a show that runs on the History Channel) and profiles by local TV news outlets. The televised tours served the dual purpose of providing a historical record and advertising the house, which was then listed on the online auction site eBay, but sold via a local realtor for $250,000 USD.
Sundials
Sundials measure time as it is. Noon is when the when the sun is highest in the sky (when it crosses the meridian). Watches measure time as we would like it to be, with noon tomorrow exactly 24 hours, 0 minutes and 0 seconds away from noon today.
Types of Dials
altitude ~: {or elevation ~} any dial which uses the sun's altitude, rather than its azimuth, for indicating the time. Usually does not need to be aligned N-S. Examples are ring dials, flag dials, and shepherds' dials. Altitude dials were also often incorporated in quadrants and folding rules.
analemmatic ~: (pron. ana-lem-mat-ic) dials consisting of hour points, (rather than lines) laid round an ellipse, and a movable gnomon perpendicular to the dial plane.
antiboreum: an ancient form of dial in which a partial-sphere is hollowed into a stone, and a ray of sunlight enters the partial-sphere through a south-facing pinhole through the stone.
armillary: (pron. ar-mil-ar-y) (or armillary dial; some authors also use the term armillary sphere) a form of equinoctial sundial which comprises, as a minimum, two circular bands plus a rod through the poles representing the Earth's axis and acting as the gnomon. One band represents the equator (carrying the hour scale) and the other the local meridian.
ceiling ~{also known as a mirror ~ or reflected ~}: a dial marked on a ceiling where the time and date are indicated by a beam of sunlight reflected from a small horizontal mirror placed on a windowsill.