Opal Myth

Opal Myth is an aspiring polymath's experiment in organizing multiple and varied interests and pursuits in one place using Drupal.

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10 hours 1 min ago

June 9, 2008

14:09

This just in from Grow Clean Air:

Listen to this snippet on Grow Clean Air.

In this brief (2 min 42 sec) Ben Henneke (Clean Air Action) and Vannesa Henneke (I4EI) explain some of the things that make the TIST Program unique.

Three main points are highlighted:

1) TIST is perhaps the most effective carbon project in the world thanks to its revolutionary model for collecting data and presenting it transparently online.

2) TIST is perhaps the only carbon project in the world where you can actually see results as they happen. It is certainly the most transparent program currently in operation.

3) The Small Groups involved in the TIST Program verifiably receive the benefits (local and monetary) for their work.

Offset your carbon footprint at Grow Clean Air.

June 6, 2008

20:25

Hot off the press! -->

Welcome to the Ninth Edition of The Free Language Letter.

30 new free resources for 14 languages (4 new!) have been added to the site. There are now 343 resources available for 34 languages.

Quick View of What's Inside
  • New! English Overview Page
  • New Languages! Hebrew, Irish, Luxembourgish and Norwegian
  • New resources for Arabic, English, French, German, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Irish, Luxembourgish, Mandarin Chinese, Norwegian, Polish, Russian and Spanish
  • List of new web feeds including news and podcasts
  • Online Translation Resources and Mozilla Firefox Addons
  • Featured Resource: The New BBC Languages
  • Language Factoid
New! English Overview Page

The latest language to get a shiny new overview page is English. An overview page is basically a single spot where all the resources for a given language are brought together for users to quickly navigate.

English is an Indo-European, West Germanic language originating in England, and is the first language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and the Anglophone Caribbean. It is used extensively as a second language and as an official language throughout the world, especially in Commonwealth countries and in many international organizations.

Visit the English Overview Page and continue reading.

New Languages! Hebrew, Irish, Luxembourgish and Norwegian

Since the last newsletter, four new languages have been added to the site: Hebrew, Irish Gaelic, Luxembourgish and Norwegian.

Arabic

Omniglot.com Abjad Consonant Alphabet about Arabic Script with Images, Example Text and Audio

English

Yolango.com Yolango Learn English Watching Web Videos w/Tags, Categories, Scenarios, Play Activites, Transcripts, Tools
Simple English Wikipedia Free and Open Encyclopedia for Learning and Teaching through Topics Written in Basic English
Deutsche Welle Miro Player for Instant Access to DW's Audio and Video Content in German, English and More
Verbbusters.com Verb Busters Free English Irregular Verbs Quizzes/Tests with High Regard for Privacy
JustVocabulary.com Just Vocabulary Podcast with ESL, TOEFL, SAT and GRE English Words Audio for iPod

French

FrenchPod.com FrenchPod Praxis French Lessons Podcast with Free Educational Resources and MP3 Audio
Loquella.com Loquella Listen, Read and Speak French Using a Free Online Language Tool and the FSI Language Method

German

BBC Languages German
Deutsche Welle Miro Player for Instant Access to DW's Audio and Video Content in German, English and More
OneMinuteLanguages.com One Minute Languages German Podcast Introduction to Basic Greetings and Key Travel Phrases

Hebrew

HebrewPocasts.com Learn to Speak Hebrew at your Leisure with Free MP3 Audio Podcast Downloads
LearnHebrewPod.com Learn Hebrew Podcast with Free MP3 Audio Lessons for Conversational, Listening and Written Practice
FSI-Language-Courses.com US Foreign Service Institute Hebrew Free Audio Lessons Downloads

Hindi

Namaste Dosti: The Learn Hindi Podcast for Grammar and Vocabulary for Beginners
FSI-Language-Courses.com US Foreign Service Institute Download Free Hindi Textbook/e-book

Italian

ItalianLingQ.com Italian LingQ Podcast with iTunes MP3 Audio using Linguist Method by Steve Kaufmann

Irish

OneMinuteLanguages.com One Minute Languages Irish Podcast Introduction to Basic Greetings and Key Travel Phrases

Luxembourgish

OneMinuteLanguages.com One Minute Languages Luxembourgish Podcast Introduction to Basic Greetings and Key Travel Phrases

Mandarin Chinese

BBCChinese.com BBC News in Mandarin Chinese
BBC Languages Mandarin Chinese
Loquella.com Loquella Listen, Read and Speak Chinese Using a Free Online Language Tool and the FSI Language Method
ChineseLingQ.com Mandarin Chinese LingQ Podcast with iTunes MP3 Audio using Linguist Method by Steve Kaufmann

Norwegian

OneMinuteLanguages.com One Minute Languages Norwegian Podcast Introduction to Basic Greetings and Key Travel Phrases

Polish

OneMinuteLanguages.com One Minute Languages Polish Podcast Introduction to Basic Greetings and Key Travel Phrases

Russian

OneMinuteLanguages.com One Minute Languages Russian Podcast Introduction to Basic Greetings and Key Travel Phrases

Spanish

Loquella.com Loquella Listen, Read and Speak Spanish Using a Free Online Language Tool and the FSI Language Method

Online Translation

FreeLanguage.com.ua List of Free Online Translators/Translation Websites for Multiple Languages

Mozilla Firefox Web Browser Addons

addons.mozilla.org Experimental and Stable Mozilla Firefox Addons Extensions for Language Support

Commercial Products

earworms MBT Rapid Language line of learn to music audio courses have become a hit!

earwormslearning.com Earworms MBT Rapid Language Learning Products Accelerate Study through Music and Science

Recent News and Podcast Feeds

Below are the most recently added web feeds that Free Language syndicates.

BBC News in Chinese
Hebrew Podcasts' Podcast
LearnHebrewPod Podcast
Namaste Dosti Podcast
One Minute German Podcast
One Minute Irish Podcast
One Minute Luxembourgish Podcast
One Minute Norwegian Podcast
One Minute Polish Podcast
One Minute Russian Podcast

Featured Resource

The BBC has recently updated its BBC Languages resources! The new look and features are a considerable upgrade, making it easier to see all the resources available and get learning the languages you want to learn.

BBC Languages has always been a great place to access self-contained beginner courses in Chinese, German, Greek, French, Italian and Portuguese. There are also tidbits and goodies in other languages.

Recently, the BBC has revamped it's entire website for more flexibility, personalization and ease of use. In the languages section, this means it's easier than ever to find online courses, grammar info, learning games, dictionaries, self-assessment tests, resources for tutors, info about going abroad, photos, tips, stories, audio, video, related links, local class finder, cool/slang words and phrases, etc. It's all there and packed with good content!

Continue reading about the new BBC Languages.

Language Factoid

Approximately 375 million people speak English as their first language. English today is probably the third largest language by number of native speakers, after Mandarin Chinese and Spanish. However, when combining native and non-native speakers it is probably the most commonly spoken language in the world.

Factoid thanks to Wikipedia.

Slán agat!

Chapman
Free Language
http://freelanguage.org

14:31

Listen to the audio snipcast here.

In this brief (3 min 4 sec) audio snippet, Charlie Williams and Ben Henneke of Clean Air Action explain exactly what happens with the revenue generated through the sale of carbon credits (from TIST reforestation projects in Africa and India) here on Grow Clean Air. This is part of the effort to set a precedent for transparency in the carbon market amongst retailers of carbon credits as well as from the programs that generate these credits.

One of the amazing parts of Clean Air Action's revolutionary carbon model is the concept of the participants in the TIST Program (farmers) being partners in the venture, eventually receiving 70% of the revenue generated from the sale of bona fide credits to the international market!

Visit Grow Clean Air and offset your carbon footprint!

June 2, 2008

22:25

Money Flows is being revisited:

Documenting the Process of Becoming Financially Wealthy Online Using Practical and Spiritual Means

This is happening as a result of the transformation from Conscious Manifestations to unrev.org that is happening with my web entelechy.

Opal Myth has also been revisited to some extent today, with rearrangements of menus and a new interest in using this site for what it was originally planned for:

Opal Myth is an aspiring polymath's experiment in organizing multiple and varied interests and pursuits in one place using Drupal.

This is the new rev of what I have been developing for years now. Follow me in the process of becoming financially wealthy at Money Flows. Follow an arrangement of myriad interests here at Opal Myth. Follow as I simultaneously learn and teach others to unrev. Learn languages free and freestyle while you're at it. Drupalize and feel the small world that comes together at the hearth...

May 16, 2008

12:30

I have been involved with the launch of a Drupal-powered website for a project called Grow Clean Air. This website is the latest incarnation of an effort that has been going on for nearly a decade to simultaneously reduce the global carbon footprint and empower farmers in Africa and India with sustainable agriculture and health practices.

The main things you can do at Grow Clean Air are:

Simultaneously Offset Your Carbon Footprint and Empower Communities in Africa and Asia to Change Their World and Yours
Demand more transparency from the exploding carbon market!
Discover the Facts about the Exploding Carbon Market
Offset your carbon (CO2) footprint by purchasing credits from India and Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda)
Find a List of Recommended Carbon Calculators

Here's a snippet from their site:

Don't simply offset your emissions when, at no extra cost, you can also visibly...

* be active in supporting sustainable community agriculture for developing countries in Africa and Asia
* contribute to the continued development of one of the most unique forestation projects in the world
* show your family and friends the live, up-to-the-minute results of where your intelligent money is working for them and for you
* empower focused and dedicated Small Groups in developing countries to create a brighter future on a local and global scale
* increase food quality standards for tens of thousands of participants in four countries (India, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda)
* feel good every time you read our latest newsletter or visit our site and discover what you have helped build
* do your part to make sure your children's children's children can breathe clean air

We deliver real results to you and the communities we work with, plain and simple.

The TIST Project, which actually empowers people th grow the trees and share the Best Practices in Small Groups, was started by Clean Air Action and is aided by The Institute for Environmental Innovation.

Grow Clean Air makes these credits available online for the consumer market in an effort to increase the overall positive impact of the TIST Program, allowing people around the world to quickly and easily offset their carbon footprint.

Very cool! If this interests you, find out why Grow Clean Air is a step ahead of the rest!

May 2, 2008

22:10

unrev.org just published an article on shark skin spatulas, though they didn't mention whether sharks would be harmed in the process or now. I am left wondering...