Are you tired of of waiting for your 100 of your friends, customers, or colleagues to reply to your e-mail in regards to an upcoming event? Do you wish there was an easier way to plan an event, collect feedback, or replace paper forms? If you answered yes to any of these questions, I would suggest you start using Google Forms.
Google Forms allows you to easily gather information from a large group of people without sending multiple e-mails, making a lot of phone calls, or texting back and forth, by using the form template on Google Docs to create free online polls and surveys. It allows you to list the questions you want answered using text, paragraph text, multiple choice, check boxes, lists, scales or grids. (Other free online polls and surveys generally do not allow this many question types.)
Google Forms is better than any other online web polling services for a variety of reasons. You can create however many polls and surveys you want for free and anyone can fill out your survey. People can send in their responses through their mobile phone. Analyzing data is now much easier because all the votes and responses are automatically calculated in an Excel spreadsheet. You can choose to get email notifications as soon as someone responds to your poll or survey. There are more question types than any other free online web polling services. You can ask a different set of questions based on the user’s previous responses. Google can record the email addresses of the people who fill out your poll or survey.
Google Forms is easy for anyone to use, including those who are not necessarily computer savvy like me.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Improbable Theories about the Mystery of the Bermuda Triangle
Although there are many logical theories that could explain the number of disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle, there are also many theories that are more than a little far-fetched. Probably, the most far-fetched is aliens. The reason for this theory is that this area has one of the highest numbers of UFO sightings.
Many people believe that magnetic abnormalities are to blame for the disappearances. Rob MacGregor and Bruce Gernon appear to have found a strange cloud hovering over the shores of Miami. When the flew over it, the cloud began spreading out and matching their speed. The cloud then formed a tunnel with walls that spun in counterclockwise direction. This cloud cause the navigational instruments, compass, and the clock to go haywire. When they emerged from the cloud, they were almost directly over Miami. The strangest thing about this flight, is that it took only 47 minutes and should have taken 75 minutes. Gernon believed that all of this was caused by an electronic fog.
Almost every story regarding the Bermuda Triangle involves compass malfunction. The Bermuda Triangle is one of the two places on earth where a compass points true north, rather than magnetic north.
Another far-fetched theory involves Blue Holes. These are water-filled caves in the bottom of the ocean that are blue in colour. Many believe “blue holes” are passage ways for UFO’s.
http://www.trueghosttales.com/paranormal/facts-myths-about-the-bermuda-triangle/
http://bermudatrianglefacts.com/
http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/bermuda-triangle5.htm
Other people believe the lost city of Atlantis is in the Bermuda Triangle. In 1968, researchers found stones that appeared to have been shaped and placed near “Blimini Road,” as a wall. In 1970, Dr. Ray Brown claimed to have found an underwater pyramid. In the pyramid, Brown saw a metallic rod. Below the rod was a stand with bronze hands holding a sphere. Brown believes the fractured lines may be electrical in nature. In an altered state, these energy crystals send out rays that either make ships and planes disintegrate or mess up the navigational systems on ships and planes.
Many people believe that magnetic abnormalities are to blame for the disappearances. Rob MacGregor and Bruce Gernon appear to have found a strange cloud hovering over the shores of Miami. When the flew over it, the cloud began spreading out and matching their speed. The cloud then formed a tunnel with walls that spun in counterclockwise direction. This cloud cause the navigational instruments, compass, and the clock to go haywire. When they emerged from the cloud, they were almost directly over Miami. The strangest thing about this flight, is that it took only 47 minutes and should have taken 75 minutes. Gernon believed that all of this was caused by an electronic fog.
Almost every story regarding the Bermuda Triangle involves compass malfunction. The Bermuda Triangle is one of the two places on earth where a compass points true north, rather than magnetic north.
Another far-fetched theory involves Blue Holes. These are water-filled caves in the bottom of the ocean that are blue in colour. Many believe “blue holes” are passage ways for UFO’s.
These are some of the more implausible explanations for the disappearances and accidents in the Bermuda Triangle.
http://www.trueghosttales.com/paranormal/facts-myths-about-the-bermuda-triangle/
http://bermudatrianglefacts.com/
http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/bermuda-triangle5.htm
Logical Theories about the Mystery of the Bermuda Triangle
There are many logical theories that could explain the number of disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle. Probably, the most logical is that it is an area in which a very high percentage of amateur pilots and sailors travel. Obviously, the more boats and planes that travel in any given area, the more accidents and disappearances there will be. To go a step further, more boats are also going to mean more pirates. Perhaps some of the disappearances were simply due to piracy.
Another plausible reason for the accidents and disappearances is that the Bermuda Triangle is subject to violent and unexpected storms. These are usually very short, but very volatile. In fact, they are so short, that they can be undetected by satellite surveillance. The area also has a higher than average rate of waterspouts. A waterspout is a tornado at sea that pulls water from the sea thousands of feet into the sky. The area also has a lot of seismic activity which could lead to underwater earthquakes.
The Bermuda Triangle is located in the Gulf Stream. The Gulf Stream has been reported to move faster than 5 miles per hour in some areas. This doesn’t seem fast, but it could throw an inexperienced sailor hundreds of miles off course if they don’t know how to compensate for the current. This extremely fast current could also hide evidence of a shipwreck by moving the debris hundreds of miles away.
Scientists have discovered large concentrations of crystalline methane hydrate deposits in the area. This gas is caused by decomposing sea organisms which settle on the ocean floor. This produces methane gas. If a methane gas pocket ruptures, the water beneath a ship could become much less dense, the ship could sink and sediment could quickly cover it – essentially, the ship would disappear. These explosions are so powerful that even a plane flying overhead could catch fire.
These are some of the more plausible explanations for the disappearances and accidents in the Bermuda Triangle.
http://www.neatorama.com/2010/08/08/bermuda-triangle-mystery-solved/
http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/bermuda-triangle8.htm
http://bermudatrianglefacts.com/
Another plausible reason for the accidents and disappearances is that the Bermuda Triangle is subject to violent and unexpected storms. These are usually very short, but very volatile. In fact, they are so short, that they can be undetected by satellite surveillance. The area also has a higher than average rate of waterspouts. A waterspout is a tornado at sea that pulls water from the sea thousands of feet into the sky. The area also has a lot of seismic activity which could lead to underwater earthquakes.
The Bermuda Triangle is located in the Gulf Stream. The Gulf Stream has been reported to move faster than 5 miles per hour in some areas. This doesn’t seem fast, but it could throw an inexperienced sailor hundreds of miles off course if they don’t know how to compensate for the current. This extremely fast current could also hide evidence of a shipwreck by moving the debris hundreds of miles away.
Scientists have discovered large concentrations of crystalline methane hydrate deposits in the area. This gas is caused by decomposing sea organisms which settle on the ocean floor. This produces methane gas. If a methane gas pocket ruptures, the water beneath a ship could become much less dense, the ship could sink and sediment could quickly cover it – essentially, the ship would disappear. These explosions are so powerful that even a plane flying overhead could catch fire.
These are some of the more plausible explanations for the disappearances and accidents in the Bermuda Triangle.
http://www.neatorama.com/2010/08/08/bermuda-triangle-mystery-solved/
http://adventure.howstuffworks.com/bermuda-triangle8.htm
http://bermudatrianglefacts.com/
History of the Bermuda Triangle
The Bermuda Triangle (Devil’s Triangle) is located in the Atlantic Ocean between Bermuda, Florida, and Puerto Rico. This area is known for strange disappearances of ships and planes that have occurred and are still occurring today.
The first person to record strange activity in this area was actually Christopher Columbus in 1493, who noticed that his compass readings were not working properly and that there were very shallow areas in the ocean with no land close by.
In 1952, George X. Sands wrote an article about the loss of several planes and ships including the loss of Flight 19 which disappeared on December 5, 1945. In 1964, Vincent H. Gaddis wrote an article claiming that the disappearances of several ships and planes that had disappeared in The Bermuda Triangle were part of a strange pattern.
In 1975, Lawrence David Kusche wrote a book called The Bermuda Triangle Mystery: Solved. He argued that the number of ships and airplanes reported missing in the area were no larger than in other parts of the ocean. Further, he argued that the number of disappearances of planes and ships in the Bermuda Triangle had been exaggerated. In fact, in 1992, the massive insurance company, Lloyd’s of London, determined that the number of ships sinking in the area was not exceptionally large. But the myths and fears surrounding the Bermuda Triangle still persist today.
http://www.unexplainedstuff.com/Places-of-Mystery-and-Power/The-Bermuda-Triangle.html
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/carribeanweb/factfile/Unique-facts-Caribbean9.htm
http://www.bermuda-triangle.org/html/triangle_history.html
The first person to record strange activity in this area was actually Christopher Columbus in 1493, who noticed that his compass readings were not working properly and that there were very shallow areas in the ocean with no land close by.
In 1952, George X. Sands wrote an article about the loss of several planes and ships including the loss of Flight 19 which disappeared on December 5, 1945. In 1964, Vincent H. Gaddis wrote an article claiming that the disappearances of several ships and planes that had disappeared in The Bermuda Triangle were part of a strange pattern.
In 1975, Lawrence David Kusche wrote a book called The Bermuda Triangle Mystery: Solved. He argued that the number of ships and airplanes reported missing in the area were no larger than in other parts of the ocean. Further, he argued that the number of disappearances of planes and ships in the Bermuda Triangle had been exaggerated. In fact, in 1992, the massive insurance company, Lloyd’s of London, determined that the number of ships sinking in the area was not exceptionally large. But the myths and fears surrounding the Bermuda Triangle still persist today.
http://www.unexplainedstuff.com/Places-of-Mystery-and-Power/The-Bermuda-Triangle.html
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/carribeanweb/factfile/Unique-facts-Caribbean9.htm
http://www.bermuda-triangle.org/html/triangle_history.html
Thursday, June 2, 2011
The Mysterious Disappearance of Flight 19
Flight 19 is one of the most famous Bermuda Triangle incidents of all time. On December 5, 1945, five TBM Avenger torpedo bombers disappeared during a navigation and combat training flight.
It is a bright, sunny day over Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Five experienced pilots have carefully checked their Avenger torpedo bombers and are ready to take off on a routine two-hour navigation and combat training flight. Two hours later, the control tower at Fort Lauderdale receives a frantic call from the flight leader saying that they do not know where they are because they cannot see land. After ten minutes of no contact with Flight 19, the control tower receives another hysterical call saying, “We can’t tell where we are...everything is...can’t make out anything.” A few minutes later, the tower receives the final words ever heard from Flight 19, “It looks like we are entering white water... We’re completely lost.”
Within minutes, the control tower sent out a rescue plane to search for Flight 19. Ten minutes after departure, the men on the rescue plane checked in with the control tower and were never heard from again. After five days and 700,000 square kilometers, not a single piece of wreckage was found.
Over the last twenty-five years, more than 75 planes have disappeared and 1,000 ships have been lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A2309852
http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq15-2.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_19
It is a bright, sunny day over Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Five experienced pilots have carefully checked their Avenger torpedo bombers and are ready to take off on a routine two-hour navigation and combat training flight. Two hours later, the control tower at Fort Lauderdale receives a frantic call from the flight leader saying that they do not know where they are because they cannot see land. After ten minutes of no contact with Flight 19, the control tower receives another hysterical call saying, “We can’t tell where we are...everything is...can’t make out anything.” A few minutes later, the tower receives the final words ever heard from Flight 19, “It looks like we are entering white water... We’re completely lost.”
Within minutes, the control tower sent out a rescue plane to search for Flight 19. Ten minutes after departure, the men on the rescue plane checked in with the control tower and were never heard from again. After five days and 700,000 square kilometers, not a single piece of wreckage was found.
Over the last twenty-five years, more than 75 planes have disappeared and 1,000 ships have been lost in the Bermuda Triangle.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A2309852
http://www.history.navy.mil/faqs/faq15-2.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flight_19
Can Large Concentrations of Crystalline Methane Hydrate Really Sink Ships?
Scientists have discovered large concentrations of crystalline methane hydrate deposits on the ocean floor. Crystalline methane hydrate deposits are caused by decomposing sea organisms which settle on the ocean floor. This produces methane gas which is accumulated as highly concentrated methane ice, or gas hydrates. The layers of ice then trap the methane gas. However, sometimes these methane gas pockets rupture. If a ship is in the area of the blowout, the water beneath the ship would suddenly become filled with air. Could this sink a ship? Watch this to see what scientists did to answer the question “Can Large Concentrations of Crystalline Methane Hydrate Really Sink Ships?”.
In the video, scientists attempt to duplicate a 500 ft. freighter with a 7000 ton load. They pump 25% air into the water which should represent a large gas eruption. Then they put the boat where they are forcing the air into the water. After a few minutes, they discover the upward force, due to the flow of the water, is keeping the boat buoyant. They then decide to move the boat to the edge of the bubble field where the upward force is weaker. This causes the front of the boat, the lighter end, to rise up and the back (stern), the heavier end, to sink because the front of the boat is in more dense water then the back of the boat. Once the back of the boat fills with water, the whole boat sinks in less than thirty seconds. The scientists in the video did discover that large concentrations of crystalline methane hydrate really can sink ships.
Scientists have also discovered that crystalline methane hydrate can cause a plane to fall from the sky. If the bubbles are dense enough, they could cause the air and methane around the plane to catch fire which would cause the plane’s engines to catch fire and the plane would fall from the sky.
If scientists from all over the world can duplicate the results from this test, to see if crystalline methane hydrate can sink ships, I believe this might just be the answer to the, not so mysterious, Bermuda Triangle mystery.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/06/050615000715.htm
http://salem-news.com/articles/august062010/bermuda-triangle-ta.php
http://www.neatorama.com/2010/08/08/bermuda-triangle-mystery-solved/
http://mysite.du.edu/~jcalvert/econ/hydrates.htm
In the video, scientists attempt to duplicate a 500 ft. freighter with a 7000 ton load. They pump 25% air into the water which should represent a large gas eruption. Then they put the boat where they are forcing the air into the water. After a few minutes, they discover the upward force, due to the flow of the water, is keeping the boat buoyant. They then decide to move the boat to the edge of the bubble field where the upward force is weaker. This causes the front of the boat, the lighter end, to rise up and the back (stern), the heavier end, to sink because the front of the boat is in more dense water then the back of the boat. Once the back of the boat fills with water, the whole boat sinks in less than thirty seconds. The scientists in the video did discover that large concentrations of crystalline methane hydrate really can sink ships.
Scientists have also discovered that crystalline methane hydrate can cause a plane to fall from the sky. If the bubbles are dense enough, they could cause the air and methane around the plane to catch fire which would cause the plane’s engines to catch fire and the plane would fall from the sky.
If scientists from all over the world can duplicate the results from this test, to see if crystalline methane hydrate can sink ships, I believe this might just be the answer to the, not so mysterious, Bermuda Triangle mystery.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/06/050615000715.htm
http://salem-news.com/articles/august062010/bermuda-triangle-ta.php
http://www.neatorama.com/2010/08/08/bermuda-triangle-mystery-solved/
http://mysite.du.edu/~jcalvert/econ/hydrates.htm
Monday, May 30, 2011
Make a Difference
Every year I participate in the Walk for Life for our local Pro-LIfe group. A few weeks ago, I started collecting pledges by phoning my aunts and uncles and asking them for donations. Then, on Saturday, after mass at St. Donatus, I asked fellow parishioners if they would like to donate money for the annual Walk for Life. I received donations from about 20 people and raised $350.
This past Sunday, we gathered with approximately forty people to walk around town to advertise our support for life. We carried signs saying such things as “Choose Life”, “Defend Life”, etc. Once the walk was over, we gathered at the hall for refreshments and a short meeting. After all the pledges were tallied, we raised a total of about $1300.
The funds raised by the Walk for Life support many different causes including the Teen Aid School Program, radio advertisements supporting respect for life from conception to natural death, pregnancy counselling and support for new mothers, and post-abortion counselling for people who have previously had abortions and now regret their decision.
This cause means a lot to me because I believe abortion is murder, and I do not think the baby should suffer because his or her mother is too selfish to bring them into the world. Pope John Paul II once said, "A nation that kills its own children is a nation without hope."
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