MaryAnn Bernal's Blog, page 315

The Phil Naessens Show: Who has the Best Starting Pitching in the Major Leagues Part 2?

http://phillipnaessens.wordpress.com/2014/02/19/the-phil-naessens-show-who-has-the-best-starting-pitching-in-the-major-leagues-part-2/


 On this edition of the Phil Naessens Show Alex Hall joins Phil to discuss Joe Savery signing with the Oakland A’s and the guys take a closer look at potential starters Drew Pomeranz and Josh Lindblom and much more. Mark Berman joins Phil to discuss the New York Mets Ike Davis, Lucas Duda and much more Mets talk. Rush Olson joins Phil to finish yesterdays discussion on which teams have the best starting pitching in the Major Leagues plus much more baseball talk.

I got Aretha Franklin - which Classic Diva are you? Take the test!

You got: Aretha Franklin            You’re extremely proud, and demand the respect of everyone around you. This can be a little unnecessary, as people are usually in awe of you and your all-around excellenceYou got: Celine DionGareth Cattermole / Getty Images You have a big, melodramatic personality, and a delightfully campy sensibility. You always do everything your way, and never ever care if some people think you’re kinda dorky. Your life is pretty awesome.You got: Tina TurnerKeystone/Hulton Archive You are as fierce as it gets. You’ve overcome some rough stuff in your life, but absolutely nothing can keep you down. You have a huge personality, but you’re also remarkably grounded.   Click on the link to take the test
http://www.buzzfeed.com/perpetua/which-classic-diva-are-you 

Amazon Review of The Briton and the Dane Timeline by Mary Ann Bernal

A wonderful read, February 20, 2014
By ElisabethThis review is from: The Briton and the Dane: Timeline (Kindle Edition) I loved Timeline. Gwyneth was not new to me I have followed her life already in Mary Ann Bernal’s Trilogy The Briton and the Dane (Which I can also highly recommend) But in Timeline Dr Franger takes us back on a journey to the Anglo Saxon time in England and Gwyneth comes alive in front of your eyes. This book has everything a good Historical novel should have, intrigue, betrayal, danger and of course love. Mary Ann Bernal’s love for that period is obvious. Her extensive research combined with her passion makes her books compelling reading. I highly recommend this book.   http://www.amazon.com/The-Briton-Dane-Mary-Bernal/dp/1494864622/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1392940533&sr=1-1

History Trivia - Norway gives Orkney and Shetland islands to Scotland in lieu of a dowry for Margaret of Denmark

February 20

1071 William FitzOsbern, a staunch support of William the Conqueror, died.

1472 Norway gave Orkney and Shetland islands to Scotland in lieu of a dowry for Margaret of Denmark.

1513 Pope Julius II died and was buried in a tomb sculptured by Michelangelo.

1547 Edward VI of England was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey.

1673 First recorded wine auction held in London.

Have you checked out the hot list on Polka Dot Banner?

Visit this week's Hot List of books, all with freshly updated profiles at www.polkadotbanner.com

Featured authors:

Mary Ann Bernal
http://www.polkadotbanner.com/index.php/find-books/view-books-amp-desc/userprofile/maryannbernal
Mark Barry
http://www.polkadotbanner.com/index.php/find-books/view-books-amp-desc/userprofile/markbarry

New Paul W.S. Anderson film 'Pompeii' explores famous disaster - and it is on my "MUST SEE" list

By Meaghan MurphyPublished February 13, 2014FoxNews.com Corvus (Kiefer Sutherland) in the TriStar Pictures film "Pompeii." (Constantin Film International) Milo (Kit Harington) with Cassia (Emily Browning) in the TriStar Pictures film "Pompeii." (Constantin Film International) Kit Harington in the gladiator ring in Londinium on the set of the TriStar Pictures film "Pompeii." (Constantin Film International) Milo (Kit Harington) in the TriStar Pictures film "Pompeii." (Constantin Film International)
Next Slide Previous Slide Director Paul W.S. Anderson has a lifelong fascination with the killer volcano that inspired his new film, “Pompeii.”
Anderson became interested in the history of the Roman Empire when he was growing up in northern England, near the ruins of Hadrian’s Wall -- a 73-mile frontier built in 122 AD to protect Roman Britain from the Picts of Scotland.
“The idea of a city that was lost in time for 1,700 years and then rediscovered -- it just fascinated me,” Anderson said of his obsession with Pompeii, the port city in Italy’s Bay of Naples that was destroyed by a cataclysmic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. “I’ve been actively trying to make the movie for six years now.”
Vesuvius erupted with such force that its top lost more than 2,000 feet, and a mile-wide lava flow rushed down toward Pompeii at almost 80 miles per hour, destroying the city in just 12 hours.
“What happens is that there is a lot of gas in the magma as it’s coming up, and the magma is very viscous, so that gas can’t get out easily. So the pressure builds and builds until it just explodes, and all the magma turns to ash and small bits,” Rosaly Lopes of NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab explained.
“It’s very scary! It goes up, as the movie showed, in an eruption column, but that eruption column can become so dense that it collapses. Once it collapses, that flow comes downwards.”
But the ash and mud that covered Pompeii also preserved the bodies of its population.

'The Pompeians were technologically the most advanced -- but in the face of nature, it didn’t mean anything.'

- Director Paul W.S. Anderson“What you’re looking at are not petrified bodies -- they are literally plaster casts,” said Sarah Yeomans, a professor and archaeologist at West Virginia University. “Archeologically speaking, these casts are phenomenal, because you can get a sense of the clothing. That helps us pinpoint their social class, their possible role in that society.
“It’s a treasure trove for archaeologists.”
Anderson’s film meticulously follows the last hours of the people of what he calls “The Las Vegas of the Roman Empire.”
“It’s all super-accurate,” he said. “It’s relatively easy to be accurate with Pompeii, because the city’s so well-preserved. The villa we built is all based on real Pompeian design, whether it’s the tiled floor or the color that the walls are painted. But also, a lot of the wall paintings were of everyday life, so you saw exactly what people looked like and what a Pompeian street was like. So we based a lot of our research on Pompeii itself.”
“Pompeii” also took full advantage of being filmed in 3D.
“This was the kind of movie that 3D was built for,” Anderson said. “I didn’t want it to be a movie like ‘300’ or the ‘Immortals.’ They’re both very stylish films, but they’re not real; they operate in a kind of comic book world.
“And ‘Pompeii’ is a real, historical disaster, and I wanted it to look real. So the visual effects have to be to a much higher standard. We were in production on some of the visual effects before we even started principal photography. There was a lot of pre-planning.”
While Anderson’s film is based on an ancient tragedy, the director warned that a similar disaster is lurking here in America.
“There’s a super-volcano in Yellowstone Park,” he said. “When it blows, it’ll take out the whole of the United States of America.”
But don’t pack your bags just yet.
“Yellowstone has had much bigger eruptions than Vesuvius in the past, but it hasn’t erupted for hundreds of thousands of years,” Lopes said. “That doesn’t mean that it’s likely to erupt again tomorrow. Yellowstone is very well monitored because if it does erupt, like it did a long time ago, it could be catastrophic. Potentially, it’s a very dangerous volcano -- more dangerous than Vesuvius.”
In any case, technology is no match for Mother Nature, Anderson said.
“I think one of the things I like about the movie is just how it reminds you that the Romans thought they had the best civilization -- and they did. They were technologically the most advanced -- but in the face of nature, it didn’t mean anything."
"And we’re very technologically advanced now -- almost as much as the Romans. We have underfloor heating, just like they did. We have plumbing. But in the face of a natural disaster, it just doesn’t mean anything.”
http://www.foxnews.com/science/2014/02/13/how-accurate-is-paul-anderson-epic-film-pompeii/
 

Journey to Freedom featured on ebookSoda

http://www.ebooksoda.com/ebook-deals/journey-to-freedom-by-k-meador

Journey to Freedomby K. Meador Atmospheric historical fictionSet amid the tumultuous backdrop of the American Civil War, Journey to Freedom chronicles the harrowing misadventures of two star-crossed lovers through nineteenth century America, battling violence, prejudice, and the inherent struggles of their time.Get it now$4.99  (£3.14) Amazon Kindle UK Amazon Kindle US

"Wearing his new racing cap, Mr Chuckles enjoys this week's favourite reading, Ngaire Elder's "Dragon's Star".

Have you picked up your copy yet?


Plans for Cecilia Spark in the future:
Ms. Elder plans to continue with her series, even though she is not sure where the next adventure will take Cecilia and the gang. But it will certainly be filled with the usual spills and thrills that fans of Cecilia Spark expect.

Contact
http://www.ceciliaspark.com/

http://adventuresofceciliaspark.blogspot.co.uk/

The Phil Naessens Show: Who has the Best Starting Pitching in the Major Leagues Part 1

http://phillipnaessens.wordpress.com/2014/02/18/who-has-the-best-starting-pitching-in-the-major-leagues-part-1/


 On this edition of the Phil Naessens Show Aaron Stampler joins Phil to discuss Beno Udrih possibly being traded to the San Antonio Spurs, Carmelo Anthony claiming he would remain in New York for less money and new instant replay procedures plus much more. Rush Olson joins Phil to discuss who has the best starting pitching in the Major Leagues and Zeb Benbrook joins Phil to review the 2014 NBA All Star Weekend held in New Orleans and much more NBA and MLB sports talk.

History Trivia - Christian Roman emperor Constantius II closes all pagan temples.

February 19

197 Roman Emperor Septimius Severus defeated usurper Clodius Albinus in the Battle of Lugdunum, the bloodiest battle between Roman armies.

 356 The Christian Roman emperor Constantius II issued a decree closing all pagan temples.

607 Boniface III was elected Pope.

1408 The revolt of Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland, against King Henry IV, ended with his defeat and death at Bramham Moor.

1473 Nicolau Copernicus, the father of modern astronomy, was born.