Sri Lankan Invents A Super Video Search

It was always difficult to search for videos using famous search engines like Google and Yahoo because they are optimized to search text documents rather than videos. The only way of recognizing videos in Google and Yahoo is to analyze the text tags associated with those videos and it is not always effective as searching text documents.

What if a search engine had speech recognition so it can analyze the words spoken inside a video?Thats what this Sri Lankan, Suranga Chandratillake, a co-founder of Blinkx,who lives in USA had done.Blinkx’s speech-recognition technology employs neural networks and machine learning using “hidden Markov models,” a method of statistical analysis in which the hidden characteristics of a thing are guessed from what is known.

According to him in the future 98% of the searches in the internet will be for videos.I tried searching videos using his search engine and its quite impressive.For me its better than Google or Yahoo video search.So meet the next generation of search engines click on this link www.Blinkx.com.This could be the Next Google (if google doesn't acquire Blinkx) because its on the way of becoming a multi billion dollar company and i congratulate him as a Sri Lankan.

Blood Is Not Red !

This fish was discovered recently by scientist in Antarctica.The amazing thing about this fiish is that it doesn't have any red blood cells or hemoglobin Which helps to make the blood flow freely.It has changed itself to fight the freezing temperatures around him.How amazing,I'm sure there is life on Mars ,at least as bacteria .

I've met lots of people who opposes Evolution saying there is not enough evidence to support it but when you count the number of evidence to support the evolution & evidence against it ,latter is quite low.I think the oceans has the highest biodiversity in this planet and its vibrant with life that nobody has ever seen before , 90 % of the oceans are yet to be explored.I wont be surprised if someone finds a mermaid or a dinosaur in those depths.

Britney Shaves her head & Start Hitting Paparazzi

I think those guys should give her a break,i mean she's in a very depressed state now,She's supposed to be in rehab, why people still trouble her.Leave her alone guys.Next big news we hear would be she's shooting them with a AK47.She's got feelings too & she needs her privacy more than before...........

Are you ready?

Today a student of mine asked me my age,I told her that I'm 28.She was surprised(I suppose she thought i was younger),she told me her father is 28 & mother is 30.I couldn't believe it, her age was 17, that means her mother was 13 when she was born.But here in Seychelles many youths share the same story.Many doesn't have a father, some even don't know who he is.Seychelles men are very experienced in running away when his girlfriend gets pregnant(except those who work with me) & they rarely get married.I saw sadness in her eyes,i asked her why,"I've got some problems at home",she said.I felt sorry for her,Its not always easy when your mother and father is so young,then i thought "what if i have 17 years old daughter",man,That would be terrible,No wonder she's having problems.

After this conversation i started thinking of my age,in another 12 years I'm going to be forty.This thought gave me shock because when i think about how soon i become 28 ,within half of that time I'm going to be 40,thats unfair,totally unfair.You know,40 means old (No offense guys,It happens),i mean within another 10 years i'll be 50.I would be ugly,nobody will look at me,I wouldn't even be able to hike,how can i be happy after 50?.I should start finding ways to become happy when i'm old.Don't tell me about happyness is a state of mind carp,It doesn't work,eveybody knows it.

Green Lizard

Green Lizard, originally uploaded by poojitha.

This gecko is not a normal house type gecko,It live in forests or bushes,Well, its color tells the story.Some times they sneak in to our house looking for easy prey.I captured this guy on my camera while hiking in a small island called La Digue.The distinctive Seychelles green gecko is a bright lime-green with a scaly skin that appears to be almost iridescent. Their eyes are also vividly colored, and they have no eyelids.The green gecko is, unusually, active during the day, most gecko species are nocturnal. Geckos are the only type of lizard that can produce sounds other than hisses. They are able to click, bark and squeak and croak.This one rests on a banana tree

Silence

Once four monks decided to meditate for one week without talking to anyone.First day in the night they lit a candle and continued to meditate,suddenly the candle blew out,the first monk said "Oh,no candle went out",Second monk said "we are not supposed to talk",Third monk said "why did you break the silence",Fourth one said "I'm the only one who didn't speak".

* We only see others Faults not Ours, if we observe the society you'll see this clearly.Those who criticize others are the once who commit the most mistakes

The Present Moment

Japanese warrior was captured by his enemies and thrown into prison. That night he was unable to sleep because he feared that the next day he would be interrogated, tortured, and executed. Then the words of his Zen master came to him, "Tomorrow is not real. It is an illusion. The only reality is now." Heeding these words, the warrior became peaceful and fell asleep.

There was a time when i worried about the future,and past but later i realized its pointless to worry because past is already dead and gone, you can't change it even if you want to,future is so uncertain ,that its just an illusion(pointless than past).But if you make present moment happy and worth while it will be your past eventually,This story tell us this "If you want to love love now,if you want to be happy be happy now".This zen story elaborate what i wanted to say.

Monk & the Pretty Girl

Once a zen master was crossing a river by a boat with his servant.A young beautiful girl was trying to board the vessel without getting wet.Zen master gently lift her to the boat while his servant was watching . Buddhist monks are not allowed associate themselves with women too much.When they reached the monastery the servant seems to be troubled,master asked why?."You carried a young beautiful girl today,I think its not good for a Zen master to do that",servant replied."I left the girl near the river you are the one who is still carrying her" master replied.

* the name of the zen master i don't remember,Hope you don't mind

Mind That Defeated Fire

On June 11, 1963, Thich Quang Duc, a Buddhist monk from the Linh-Mu Pagoda in Hue, Vietnam, burned himself to death at a busy intersection in downtown Saigon (now Nguyen Dinh Chieu and Cach Mang Thang Tam Street), Vietnam. Eye witness accounts state that Thich Quang Duc and at least two fellow monks arrived at the intersection by car, Thich Quang Duc got out of the car, assumed the traditional lotus position and the accompanying monks helped him pour gasoline over himself. He ignited the gasoline by lighting a match and burned to death in a matter of minutes. David Halberstam, a reporter for the New York Times covering the war in Vietnam, gave the following account:

I was to see that sight again, but once was enough. Flames were coming from a human being; his body was slowly withering and shriveling up, his head blackening and charring. In the air was the smell of burning human flesh; human beings burn surprisingly quickly. Behind me I could hear the sobbing of the Vietnamese who were now gathering. I was too shocked to cry, too confused to take notes or ask questions, too bewildered to even think…. As he burned he never moved a muscle, never uttered a sound, his outward composure in sharp contrast to the wailing people around him.

Thich Quang Duc had prepared himself for his self-immolation through several weeks of meditation and had explained his motivation in letters to members of his Buddhist community as well as to the government of South Vietnam in the weeks prior to his self-immolation. In these letters he described his desire to bring attention to the repressive policies of the Catholic Diem regime that controlled the South Vietnamese government at the time. Prior to the self-immolation, the South Vietnamese Buddhists had made the following requests to the Diem regime, asking it to:

*1* Lift its ban on flying the traditional Buddhist flag

*2* Grant Buddhism the same rights as Catholicism

*3* Stop detaining Buddhists

*4* Give Buddhist monks and nuns the right to practice and spread their religion

*5* Pay fair compensations to the victim’s families and punish those responsible for their deaths.

When these requests were not addressed by the Deim regime, Thich Quang Duc carried out his self-immolation. Following his death, Thich Quang Duc was cremated and legend has it that his heart would not burn. As a result, his heart is considered Holy and is in the custody of the Reserve Bank of Vietnam.

learn photography?

Do you want to learn photography? I found a website that will teach you not only the basics of photography, but also some advance topics. This online photography course covers topics such as composition, aperture, shutter speed, lens, films, filters, effects, lighting and other important things you need to know. This 10-Lesson course was prepared by Jodie Coston and sponsored by morguefile.

click here to enter

Evolution of dance

This YouTube video is so funny and creative, i think it was viewed by 41,812,375 people ,enjoy

The giant squid which lights up before attack

I saw this article about this giant squid species which uses sudden flash of light to stun its prey before capture.scientific name of the squid is Taningia danae(measure over 2m (7ft)).The actual size of the giant squid varies according to different speculations.Until recent years it was difficult to believed stories of giant squids destroying ships ,in the old days, but it seems that there is a truth in it.It says that giant squids sometimes eats blue whales,there were reports of dead blue whales having sucker marks of giant squids.

hiking

Morn Blank mountain, originally uploaded by poojitha.

For those (Boring people) who doesn't like hiking i would like to say,You must try it.I started hiking when i was small.I lived in a small village in Sri Lanka.It was totally wonderful place with mountains,streams & rivers giving us lots of strange environments to explore.Mountain climbing is my favorite,It gives you a goal hard to reach ,with satisfaction when you reach it.I climbed this mountain called Morn Blank in Seychelles,the trek was about 3 hours with steep rocks to climb.We were out of breath when we reached the top but as you can see, it was worth to the last drop of sweat.The crystal blue sea,Dark green foliage,heavenly white beaches,with cool breezed tingling your skin.I love it.........

Photograph by Nick Caloyianis A diver films a Greenland shark beneath the Arctic ice."'It rose up and hovered near me in an almost vertical position...When I saw its mouth starting to open, I got concerned.' But there is no record of Greenland sharks ever attacking humans, and a nudge with a strobe light sent this one into retreat."(Text from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Greenland Sharks," September 1998, National Geographic magazine)

What is Egotism

Once a king approached a zen master and asked "What is egotism according to Buddhism?",After hearing this zen master in a mocking tone "You are our emperor and you don't know what is egotism,what a stupid question is that?". This unexpected response made the emperor angry and sullen.Zen master smiled and said "This , my lord is egotism".

Me & my Wife

Me & my Wife, originally uploaded by poojitha.

The view point is used for para gliding as well, since its directly above the sea.We could see many smaller islands around mahe like Surf,St Ann,Long ,Round and Mayonee island.You can see all the islands i mentioned in the background.

Chameleon

chamelion, originally uploaded by poojitha.

Yesterday i went to this place where you can have a great view of Seychelles islands.This is 4 th time i visited that place. On the way i found this cute Chameleons which was hanging on a small tree.Chameleons can rotate their eyes in 360, both eyes works independently.This guy was worried a bit,all those weird looking animals going around and taking pictures,so he decided to stumble hastily in to the jungle.

'Doomsday' vault design unveiled

The final design for a "doomsday" vault that will house seeds from all known varieties of food crops has been unveiled by the Norwegian government.The Svalbard International Seed Vault will be built into a mountainside on a remote island near the North Pole.The vault aims to safeguard the world's agriculture from future catastrophes, such as nuclear war, asteroid strikes and climate change.Construction begins in March, and the seed bank is scheduled to open in 2008. The Norwegian government is paying the $5m (£2.5m) construction costs of the vault, which will have enough space to house three million seed samples.

Jumbo Parliment in Guiness Records?

Sri Lanka parliament recently increased in ministers to 54 making a huge logistical problems to parliamentary staff to find meeting places and vehicles.Total number of ministers, non-cabinet ministers and deputy ministers to a staggering 108.This seems to be a record but Guiness world records has announced that they dont have a category created for jumbo parliament but glad to do it if some one do a formal request.So i decided to do it,this foolish decisions which eats lots of poor peoples money in Sri Lanka should not be forgotten.If you want do a formal request you can also go to this website and request it.

http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/

Quick Success

A student who wanted to study martial arts went to a Zen master and said,"I'll be a devoted student how long will it take me to master it?"."Ten years" master replied."What ?ten years i cant wait that long,I'll learn day and night every day,10 hours per day if you want,then how long will it take?" student asked.Master thought for some time,"20 years",he replied.

I'm getting Famous

Well, it seems to me that my blog is being viewed by lots of people,Traffic is increasing exponentially.To day when i saw the web traffic graph i was impressed.

There was this famous leader in India called Mahatma Gandhi,he became an icon of the world for what he told and did.He played a main role in liberating India from The British colonial rule.He always used non violence to solve problems.His ideas greatly helped to form India's success today.

• Seven Blunders of the World according to Gandhi

1. Wealth without work
2. Pleasure without conscience
3. Knowledge without character
4. Commerce without morality
5. Science without humanity
6. Worship without sacrifice
7. Politics without principle

Dreams Can Come True

This incident actually happened to me few years ago when i was in Sri Lanka.My father used to work in a distant place from my home so he had wake up in the morning about 4 a.m to go to work. Normally when he leaves the house around 4.30 a.m ,i wake up as a result of all the activity in the house (he make sure to come in to my room in search of something).This day i woke up briefly and heard him leave, then i went back to sleep.Around 6 am i had this dream of my father traveling in a bus near the window and suddenly the bus crashing in to something.I saw his head bang in to the window and i knew that was an accident then i woke up,i was not shocked or anything.Around 7 a.m i got this call from my father that he was in hospital after an accident and he injured his head .His head got injured exactly as the way i saw it in the dream and the time i saw the dream and the time of accident was same.

I don't think dreams can tell us the future ,but i'm sure that the brain can sense brain waves of others ,specially people close to you.When we sleep ,our brain activity drops to states which makes it sensitive to other brain waves.

The first high-speed digital camera that can follow a speeding bullet in mid-flight has been developed for the U.S. Air Force. The system may lead to "active armor" that sees incoming bullets and intercepts them in mid-air. It may also help guide missiles and unmanned vehicles, or manage traffic.

The system mimics the fovea in biological eyes -- the dense region of light receptors at the center of the eye used for detailed vision.

Watch Dog

A blind man walked into a bank with his seeing-eye dog that guided him everywhere. He walked into the center of the bank floor, took the dog by the chain, and started swinging him around his head.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared. The other customers were taken aback and some were very upset at the way the animal was being treated. One of the tellers ran up to the blind man and asked, "Sir, what are you doing!?!"

The man turned toward the teller and said, "Oh, nothing - just looking around."

Oscars 2007: The nominees

Who will win?
79th Academy Awards, to be held at the Kodak Theatre, Los Angeles on 25 February:

Best picture
Babel
The Departed
Letters From Iwo Jima
Little Miss Sunshine
The Queen

Best director
Clint Eastwood, Letters From Iwo Jima
Stephen Frears, The Queen
Paul Greengrass, United 93
Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu, Babel
Martin Scorsese, The Departed

Best actor
Leonardo DiCaprio, Blood Diamond
Ryan Gosling, Half Nelson
Peter O'Toole, Venus
Will Smith, The Pursuit of Happyness
Forest Whitaker, The Last King of Scotland

Best actress
Penelope Cruz, Volver
Judi Dench, Notes on a Scandal
Helen Mirren, The Queen
Meryl Streep, The Devil Wears Prada
Kate Winslet, Little Children

Big

This fish has a keen sense of smell that
it can find its way home from kilometers
away through coral reefs,scientists say,
Cute, i would say.

Escaping Death

This story is an Arabian story i read long time ago.I do not remember the names of the cities or people but the story took my heart.

There was this farmer who lived in a small town called Najaf.One day his servant, Ali came running to him and he was very scared.Farmer asked "whats wrong with you Ali? You seems to be scared to death".Ali said "Yes master thats right".Surprised by this answer, farmer demanded for a clear explanation.shaking with terror servant replied "Master, today i went to the market and suddenly ,i met Death,She made a threatening gesture at me,I'm sure she's going to get me today ,Master,please give me your fastest horse so that i can run away tonight to the farthest town Kabala tonight and escape death" .Farmer understanding the situation and hoping to save his best servants life allowed him to take his best horse and servant fled the town immediately.

Afterwards farmer went to the nearby market to check if his servant was actually true in his description and he found Death still wandering in the market.He cautiously approached death and asked "Few hours ago my servant Ali was scared by you,Did you make a threatening gesture at him?."Not at all,I was only surprised" death replied."Why?" farmer asked death."I'm supposed to meet him tonight at Kabala the furthest town from here,i was wondering what he was doing here in Najaf at this time" Death replied.

Did Duck Defy Death?

This story is amazing,A duck named Perky after being shot by a hunter survived two days in his fridge.Then when vets were doing the operation to restore her damaged wing ,her heart beat stopped and doctors thought she was dead.For their surprise she came to life again after some time.Doctors say her slow metabolism helped her to live in the fridge for 2 days.click here to read the full story .

Pitcher Plant

I saw this plant when i was hiking on a Seychelles mountain.This plant is a carnivorous plant.Unsuspecting insects which rests on the brim of this pitcher like part slips inside,drowns and digested by the juice inside. an efficient way of absorbing nitrates in a rocky environment like this.This plant could be found in many parts of the world.This plant is very sensitive to the changes in the environment.