..is a non-fiction book written by Ernest Hemingway about the ceremony and traditions of Spanish bullfighting, published in 1932. The book provides a look at the history and what Hemingway considers the magnificence of bullfighting. It also contains a deeper contemplation on the nature of fear and courage.
Why bullfighting?
Because this is "the only place where you could see life and death, i. e., violent death now that the wars were over, was in the bull ring and I wanted very much to go to Spain where I could study it. I was trying to learn to write, commencing with the simplest things, and one of the simplest things of all and the most fundamental is violent death."
Still considered one of the best books ever written about bullfighting, "Death in the Afternoon" is an impassioned look at the sport by one of its true aficionados. It reflects Hemingway's conviction that bullfighting was more than mere sport and reveals a rich source of inspiration for his art. The unrivaled drama of bullfighting, with its rigorous combination of athleticism and artistry, and its requisite display of grace under pressure, ignited Hemingway's imagination. Here he describes and explains the technical aspects of this dangerous ritual and "the emotional and spiritual intensity and pure classic beauty that can be produced by a man, an animal, and a piece of scarlet serge draped on a stick." Seen through his eyes, bullfighting becomes a richly choreographed ballet, with performers who range from awkward amateurs to masters of great elegance and cunning.
A fascinating look at the history and grandeur of bullfighting, "Death in the Afternoon" is also a deeper contemplation of the nature of cowardice and bravery, sport and tragedy, and is enlivened throughout by Hemingway's sharp commentary on life and literature.
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American author and journalist. His economical and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the mid-1950s, and won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1954. He published seven novels, six short story collections, and two non-fiction works. Three novels, four collections of short stories, and three non-fiction works were published posthumously. Many of these are considered classics of American literature.
It's been eight years and nine days since Microsoft showed the world the Xbox 360 on May 12th, 2005. Today, we see what's next. The Xbox One.
Microsoft can only hope it's half as right as it was last time around. The 360 was built to last. That eight-year stretch of dominance makes it the oldest of the current generation of systems, and the last to be cast off in favor of a new system. Over that time the Xbox has picked up new features, like the Kinect motion sensor and ever more media streaming capabilities, but its core has remained the same.
My first thought, honestly, is how boxy it is. In 2010, Microsoft released a “slim” version of the Xbox 360 that was literally streamlined, with a curvilinear X-shaped form that made its predecessor feel clumsy in comparison. The Xbox One is a bit bigger than the 360 and as rectangular as it gets. It’s not without its flourishes, though. It’s a deep, glossy black that the industrial design team calls liquid black. The top of the console is subdivided into two 16:9 rectangles, derived from the traditional aspect ratio of widescreen televisions—one is solid and glossy, the other a matte panel that’s entirely vented to help as much air pass through the system as possible. The front is nearly without embellishment; even the optical disc drive slot blends into the frontpiece of the box.
All-in-One Entertainment
We're underway, and the intro video for the new Xbox has users saying that the new Xbox is going to "recognize my name, my voice, my movies" and know what you like. That's a big cue that this generation is going to focus heavily on entertainment. Don Mattrick, President of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft, says that Xbox 360 is leading the industry in entertainment, because gamers are quick to adopt new tech.
The focus for the next gen is going to focus on different types of content, and use new tech, like cloud interfacing and streaming. It's the all-in-one home entertainment system.
New Controls
The console turns on just from you saying "Xbox on". It will launch into what you were doing last. This passive listening is a huge deal for natural interface. It seems incredibly responsive in the demo, but for now it's unclear if this is an actual demo or if it's being simulated.
It also integrates right into your TV. "Xbox, watch TV" drops you right into a live television feed. The amazing part of this is that you can switch quickly from movies, TV, games, a browser or anything else, just by saying "Xbox, go to", or even just "Go to movies".
Two at Once
You can also use Windows 8's snap mode (with one app "snapped" to the side of the screen" to run another app on the side of the screen while your movie, or TV or game is playing. This is kind of an amazing addition, not just for browsing movies while watching one, like an onscreen IMDB, which is what the demo is showing, but you can also, say, snap a walkthrough for a game you're playing.
Oh, and Skype! You can use Skype while watching a movie or playing a game, too.
New Kinect
The new Kinect has a 1080p sensor, and captures videos at 60fps and far finer detection. It detects the twist of a wrist, or how balanced you are. it can read your heartbeat while watching you exercise. This is next level stuff. The sensor field is expanded by 60 percent, and uses a modulated IR beam, and uses "time-of-flight" tech to measure the time it takes photos to travel back to the Kinect. Microsoft claims it works in complete darkness.
The controller has a ton of new features, too, like the ability for designers to send feedback right into the triggers.
SmartGlass also gets a ton of upgrades, because it's going to be treated as a native part of the platform, and not just an add-on, as it previously was.
Xbox Live is getting a massive overhaul as well. It currently runs on 15,000 servers, but it's going to go to 300,000 this year. Insane. You'll be able to access your movies, music, games, and saves from anywhere. The Xbox One is NOT always online. But developers will be able to use Microsoft's Azure computing (perform rendering tasks remotely), which would require even single player games to be online if those are used. Those aren't mandatory, but Microsoft hopes developers use them.
EA Partnership
EA's making an effort to use the new innovations from Microsoft and Xbox Live especially with a roster of new titles. FIFA 14, Madden 25, NBA Live 14, and UFC will all launch in the next 12 months, and EA promises that they will all change the way you play. They'll be powered by a new game engine called EA Sports Ignite, unveiled today.
EA Sports Ignite is supposed to make decision making and contextual contact more realistic. It will supposedly have 10 times more animation detail, called "True Player Motion", and the crowds are 3D, with dynamic sidelines. Basically, everything's going to look even more realistic.
Oh, and FIFA 14's Ultimate Team mode, the most popular mode, is exclusive to the new Xbox.
Here you have some trailers and teasers of what you are about to see on this new-gen console:
It looks good,waiting for the Sony team to respond at this in a few weeks at the E3 convention!
..the weekend is almoust here,the sun is shining,so i decided to present you a very good,easy to make dessert..so on the shopping list,here is what you need: vanilla ice cream,some corn flakes(mine are with honey) 1/2kg of strawberries,biscuits,and a chocolate bar(i used lion)
..first thing to do after you have all the ingredients,is to put 1/2 kg of icecream and almous 1/2 kg of the strawberries in the blender,mix them until there aren't any solid parts,and put it all in a plastic casserol and into the freezer for a few hours,until it is in a more solid stage.
After the mix is gets more solid,prepare everything so you cand do this fast,we don't want the ice cream to melt! ps: I picked from the garden and a few mint leaves.
put everything in layers,1 the icecream and strawberry mix,2 some corn flakes,3 the chocolate bar,break it into small pieces ,4 vanilla ice cream, 5 cramble some biscuits , 6 a few full strawberry with 1 or 2 leaves of mint cutted in small pieces..repeat the layers until the glass gets full..and on top,combine the 2 icecreams for a cooler look!
Here you have it!and trust me,everyone will love it!it is sweet,it is crunchy,it has caramel from the lion bar,it is bitter from the strawberrys,and refreshing from the mint! ;)
