Dear Readers
A New Year dawns….………………
From Countries to societies to organizations to people,
everyone is gearing up and getting ready to face 2015.
Filled with new possibilities and plans, new desires and dreams, new aims and ambitions, new goals and resolutions but above all else the new year fills in our hearts the hope for a better future.
But what can we expect besides hope?
Filled with new possibilities and plans, new desires and dreams, new aims and ambitions, new goals and resolutions but above all else the new year fills in our hearts the hope for a better future.
But what can we expect besides hope?
The answer to that, my esteemed readers, lies in the scribblings
that have been etched upon the computer screen you view this very instant.
United Nations
Year Designation
The UN has anointed 2015 as the International Year of Light (IYL) and the International Year of Soil (IYS). As it does every year, with such an appointment comes a certain responsibility as this will affect whether we view this year to be a success.
The UN has anointed 2015 as the International Year of Light (IYL) and the International Year of Soil (IYS). As it does every year, with such an appointment comes a certain responsibility as this will affect whether we view this year to be a success.
The International Year of Light will be a commemoration of the achievements and
advances in the field of optics and photonics. Felicitously the opening
ceremony of IYL is to be held in Paris, the City of lights.
The UN intends on creating global awareness about the applications and benefits
of light-based technology to humanity and its contribution to make the world a greener,
cleaner and better place. Exhibitions, grants, sponsorships, campaigns and more
are all being set up to foster creativity, generate ideas, inspire development
and establish a general mindset for the integration of photonics into our lives.
Let’s hope this year of lights will lead to a brighter future. 
Countries and Economies
The Chinese dubbed this the year of the Goat, possibly in
the hopes that they can emulate the innate balance of the goat to stabilize
their economy. In any case, with the ending of its 12th Five Year
Plan (FYP) or Zhōngguó Wǔnián Jìhuà as the Chinese call it, China will shift its growth to a lower gear as structural,
financial and environmental reformations take precedence.
Europe moves on to
another year of struggle, on the rickety uphill path towards financial
recovery. They will not only have to face squalls from outside the continent,
in the form of depleting global demand and withering trade, but also internal political
turmoil and public discontentment , which are as dangerous as the Foehn Winds.
To counter these issues the EU and the European Central Bank (ECB) aim to purchase sovereign bonds in hopes of engendering demand, and they also seek to implement better monetary, fiscal and structural policies.
To counter these issues the EU and the European Central Bank (ECB) aim to purchase sovereign bonds in hopes of engendering demand, and they also seek to implement better monetary, fiscal and structural policies.
The US is also on
unsteady ground especially after the 2014 Congress budget approving bank bail
outs. With a $3.2 Trillion consumer debt outstanding and US households only
just beginning to make more money than they owe, the question remains whether
this was a wise decision. Some experts fear that in 2015 the debt may worsen
due to this and other factors (such as the oil price drop), and may plunge the
US into another relapse of financial crisis. However if maintained properly
i.e. managing risks, reducing subprime loans, etc such a disaster can be
averted.
Science and
Technology
For science and technology, 2015 looks to be a very
promising year.
We start off with NASA’s Space probes “Dawn” and “New
horizons” making their way, respectively, towards the dwarf planet Ceres and the now dwarf
planet Pluto.
Its mission will involve orbiting Ceres in order create a full characteristic profile of the dwarf planet. The mission will give us valuable insights into the early stages of planet formation.
NASA probe New
Horizon’s ETA is set to be in July 2015 and will mark our first close encounter
with the controversial celestial object known as Pluto.
It is equipped to
gather data in the form of photographs, spectroscopic analyses,
dust measurements and radio science investigation data.
True to its name the
NASA probe has set its sights on new horizons, as it hopes to delve further onward,
past Pluto, into the Kuiper belt.
More on the topic of space, Olde Britain will be sending its
first man to space at the end of the year. Major Tim Peake was selected by the
European Space Agency Programme as a candidate despite Britain’s admonishment
of Space endeavours. The
ESA hopes that this will get Britain to let go of its backward ways and inspire
them to participate and embrace Astronomy. A Soyuz capsule will launch Major Tim Peake into the ranks of the Astronauts
and to the ISS where he will be stationed for 6 months.
It was in
1997 that Andy Green set the fastest land speed record of 763 mph, in the
Thrust SSC. The RAF Wing commander will
return once more to top his own World record in a spectacle symbolic of the
statement that you are your greatest competition. The event, set in a desertified
lakebed in the Northern Cape of South Africa, will be streamed live online in
2016. But as much as the driver is important to accomplishing this feat the
vehicle itself, is imperative.
Dubbed the Bloodhound SSC this beast of a supersonic car can achieve a terrifying speed of 1000 mph. Forged out of titanium and carbon fibre this machine is streamlined in the shape of a pencil. I’m positive by now every hot blooded male is anxious to know what holy engine powers this godly vessel. Fitted in its bowels is a cutting edge Rolls Royce EJ200 jet engine used in Typhoon Euro fighters capable of producing a staggering 135,000 horsepower.
There is no doubt that the Sonic boom of Andy Green breaking his own world record will echo throughout 2016 but the astounding accomplishment of crafting such a monstrously fast piece of engineering will resonate throughout 2015.
The use of wearable technology will rise
exponentially, enabling the capture of data at a much larger and more personal
level.
This “Big Data” will help programmers code algorithms to better process
data and allow for improved decision making and predicting by computers.
Cognitive computing and artificial
intelligence are taking long strides with enhancements in voice recognition,
translation, GPS/ mapping and travel, problem solving, medical diagnosis,
emotion identification, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Robotics goes hand in hand with these
developments as robots become more and more like their creators, and in 2015,
will enter our household environment. We
might also see FDA approved medical nanotechnology within the year.
After the discovery of the Higgs Boson in 2012, the Large
Hadron Collider laid dormant for 2 long years.
Out of the dozen notable events that are going to occur this
year the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris will be among the most
noteworthy as it will set the tone of how environmentally engaged we are in the
future. The goal of the summit will be to achieve legally binding affirmation
from countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to restrict global
temperature rises. The involvement of the US and China (the biggest greenhouse
gas producers) assures the UN that they won’t suffer the debacle that was the
Copenhagen summit of ‘09 and is quite a positive sign of the summit’s success.
Movies
It would appear that 2015 also bodes well for Hollywood. The
year will see the continuation of several legendary series and the end of a
couple more.
Marvel finishes the second phase of its illustrious cinematic
universe in 2015 with the upcoming Antman movie and the even closer premiere of
Avengers: the Age of Ultron.
2015 marks the conclusion of the grandiose Hunger Games
series with its final installment The Mocking Jay Part 2 which will no doubt
end with a, spoiler alert, glorious bang.
Universal Studios finally reinitiates the fourth official
movie in its blockbuster Jurassic series. Get ready to see your favorite reptiles,
and some new genetically modified lizards, on the big screen, once again in
this larger than life installment titled “Jurassic World”
Speaking of bleak futuristic worlds, the gritty post-apocalyptic
series Mad Max rises from the ashes of yesteryear getting its fourth sequel.
However, Star Wars VII steals most of the thunder and lightning
of 2015 and rightfully so as the continuation comes 10 years after the release
of the last Star Wars chapter, in an episode aptly named the “Force awakens”.
It will follow 30 years after the events that transpired in Star Wars Episode
VI “The Return of the Jedi”, the cast of which will be returning and joining a new
set of actors. Star Wars VII heralds the coming of a third trilogy in the epic
saga.
What to Expect from Me in the Future
Phraseology will be a series of
articles, you could expect every other week; seeking the origins, discovering the
history, unraveling the mystery and dissecting the meaning behind idioms,
phrases, proverbs, expressions and even quotes from every culture and every
country around the globe .
Digging up Diamonds shall be an on an off sequence
of pieces about my random stumblings across gems; be it an underrated game, an unsung
TV serial, or a forgotten flick, that demands to be shared with the world.
I invite you to check
them out when I publish them soon, but till then please pore through my
articles of 2014, the links of which are all below.
Meet Krampus
Dear Readers I’ve had much support from you over the last year and I hope to win your affection this year as well.
Dear Readers I’ve had much support from you over the last year and I hope to win your affection this year as well.
As for my usual parting,
or perhaps welcoming words of wisdom, this time, I say to you……
Stay away from the light and don’t,in any circumstance, soil yourself.
Wishing you all the very best for the New Year
Image sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Year_of_Light#mediaviewer/File:International_Year_of_Light_2015_-_color_logo_2.png
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/year-of-the-goat-royalty-free-illustration/506287255
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceres_%28dwarf_planet%29#mediaviewer/File:Ceres_Cutaway.jpg
http://www.astro.com/mtp/mtp53_e.htm
http://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2010/nov/23/timothy-peake-space-missions
http://www.bloodhoundssc.com/
http://www.myjibo.com/
http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Collider#mediaviewer/File:CMS_Silicon_Tracker_Arty_HiRes.jpg
http://www.wclimate.com/
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/illustration/year-of-the-goat-royalty-free-illustration/506287255
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceres_%28dwarf_planet%29#mediaviewer/File:Ceres_Cutaway.jpg
http://www.astro.com/mtp/mtp53_e.htm
http://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2010/nov/23/timothy-peake-space-missions
http://www.bloodhoundssc.com/
http://www.myjibo.com/
http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Collider#mediaviewer/File:CMS_Silicon_Tracker_Arty_HiRes.jpg
http://www.wclimate.com/
http://marvel.com/images/957402#0-957
http://weheartit.com/entry/147820316/collections
http://www.jurassicworld.com/
https://www.facebook.com/MadMaxMovie/photos_stream
http://www.starwars.com/films/star-wars-episode-vii-the-force-awakens
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