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Funny SMS Jokes and Why Not

☻Born Free. . . . .Taxed to Death.

☻Conserve toilet paper, use both sides.

☻I get enough exercise just pushing my luck!

☻Sorry, I don’t date outside my species.

☻Hard work has a future payoff. Laziness pays off NOW!

☻First the engagement ring, then the wedding ring, then the suffering.

☻Always remember you’re unique, just like everyone else.

☻Dad, what vagina looks like? Before sex: a pink rose with soft lovely pelats and perfum aroma. And after sex? boy, have you ever seen a bulldog eating mayonnaise!

☻Kiss my ass, and do it fast,suck my dick and do it quick.

☻Bad sex is better then a good day in school.

☻Never let a man’s mind wander, it’s too little to be out on it’s own!!!!

☻Sex is like programing; One mistake, and YOU WILL HAVE TO SUPPORT IT FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE…

☻Their are moments in life when you really miss someone. And you wish you could just pluck them from your dreams……

☻My girl and me, we are so perfect, she loves me, and I love myself too…

☻Hi, do you want to have my children? No.?? …Okay, then can we just practice?

☻I took an IQ test and the results were negative.

☻Jesus loves you… everyone else thinks your an asshole…

☻If you wanna be a hipi, put you flower in your pipi…

☻Don`t drink water, because fish fuck in it!

☻Hi! Please stand by while this program enlarges your penis………………………ERROR: Your penis was not found! Sorry…………..

☻Never let a man’s mind wander, it’s too little to be out on it’s own!!!!

☻It is good for girl to meet boy in park, but better for boy to park meat in girl.

☻News: 3 Chimps escaped from the zoo… 1 was caught watching tv… another playing football and the third one was caught reading this txt message

☻God made man and then rested. God made women and then no one rested

☻The longest sentence known to man: “I do.”

☻CNN News. Bush orders 15,000 FBI trained dogs to track down Osama. FBI awaiting further orders as one of the dogs is reading this

☻Crime doesn’t pay…Does that mean my job is a crime?

Enjoy Fireworks and Perform Puja Online > Cyber-Diwali

Finally, the lesson seems to have sunk into lay Indians: Louder is not better when it comes to celebrating the Festival of Lights. The courts moved the government to put in place strict noise and safety standards — and tightened purses this year seem to have played their part in muting both inclination and ability to ‘burn’ money in costly, noisy fireworks.

That is not to say we can’t enjoy a complete Diwali experience — complete with colourful fireworks and lighted lamps — thanks to improved Internet technology.

Webdunia, India’s first multilingual portal has created a special Diwali page called “Online Aatishbaaji” (fireworks) where one can use the mouse to ignite a “rassi” (or thread bound) bomb, let off rockets, or set of an ‘anaar’ or ‘flower pot.’ For those who want to perform a very realistic puja online, Webdunia has created a Lakshmi Puja site where you can perform ‘aarti,’ make an offering of flowers or fruits — all with keyboard and mouse, to the background of a melodious bhajan.


The primary Hindi page to access these is http://www.hindi.webdunia.com/index.htmbut one can find links to do this in any of 11 other Indian languages. The Lakshmi puja application can also be accessed by mobile phone owners who have a GPRS connection to the Web, by going to http://wap.webdunia.com/.

These language sites also have a selection of e-greetings you can use — but if your friends appreciate a bit of culture with the Diwali message, the best place to look is the IndiaVideo portal, an ambitious Web encyclopedia on Indian culture, created by the Thiruvananthapuram-based Invis Multimedia, in association with UNESCO.

You will find short video clips of all important Indian dance forms, many by leading artistes, which you can paste into your e-greetings. Invis Managing Director M.R. Hari says the site has been extremely popular since it went live last year, attracting about 2,000 downloads every day — and Google has rated it at page rank 6 among websites monitored by it. ( http://www.indiavideo.org/greetings/diwali/)

Was the Taj Mahal a Vedic Temple?

The following is an interesting topic or rather controversy raised following the research done by Prof.P. N. Oak which provided evidences that Taj was a Hindu temple.V shall here post the contents of an e-mail explaining the same...

"The Moghul Emperor Shah Jahan in the memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal built the Taj Mahal. It was built in 22 years (1631 to 1653) by 20,000 artisans brought to India from all over the world! . Many people believe Ustad Isa of Iran designed it." This is what your guide probably told you if you ever visited the Taj Mahal" but what about the following....

No one has ever challenged it except Prof. P. N. Oak, who believes the whole world has been duped. In his book Taj Mahal: The True Story, Oak says the Taj Mahal is not Queen Mumtaz's tomb but an ancient Hindu temple palace of Lord Shiva (then known as Tejo Mahalaya). In the course of his research Oak discovered that the Shiva temple palace was usurped by Shah Jahan from then Maharaja of Jaipur, Jai Singh. In his own court chronicle, Badshahnama, Shah Jahan admits that an exceptionally beautiful grand mansion in Agra was taken from Jai SIngh for Mumtaz's burial. The ex-Maharaja of Jaipur still retains in his secret collection two orders from Shah Jahan for surrendering the Taj building. Using captured temples and mansions, as a burial place ! for dead courtiers and royalty was a common practice among Muslim rulers. For example, Humayun,Akbar, Etmud-ud-Daula and Safdarjung are all buried in such mansions. Oak's inquiries began with the name of Taj Mahal. He says the term "Mahal" has never been used for a building in any Muslim countries from Afghanisthan to Algeria. "The unusual explanation that the term Taj Mahal derives from Mumtaz Mahal was illogical in atleast two respects. Firstly, her name was never Mumtaz Mahal but Mumtaz-ul-Zamani," he writes. Secondly, one cannot omit the first three letters 'Mum' from a woman's name to derive the remainder as the name for the building."Taj Mahal, he claims, is a corrupt version of Tejo Mahalaya, or Lord Shiva's Palace. Oak also says the love story of Mumtaz and Shah Jahan is a fairy tale created by court sycophants, blundering historians and sloppy archaeologists. Not a single royal chronicle of Shah Jahan's time corroborates the love story. Furthermore, Oak cites several documents suggesting the Taj Mahal predates Shah Jahan's era, and was a temple dedicated to Shiva, worshipped by Rajputs of Agra city. For example, Prof. Marvin Miller of New York took a few samples from the riverside doorway of the Taj. Carbon dating tests revealed that the door was 300 years older than Shah Jahan. European traveler Johan Albert Mandelslo,who visited Agra in 1638 (only seven years after Mumtaz's death), describes the life of the city in his memoirs. But he makes no reference to the Taj Mahal being built. The writings of Peter Mundy, an English visitor to Agrawithin a year of Mumtaz's death, also suggest the Taj was a noteworthy building well before Shah Jahan's time. Oak now hopes that the government should open the sealed rooms so that more research can be done under the UN supervision and let international experts investigate the hidden truth which he claims to have discovered and he adds some photographic proofs supporting the same [...] visit stephen knapp's home page for visual proofs n much more

Blue:1st.World, Red: 2nd.World, Green: 3rd. World.

The concept of Worlds within the world came up for discussion in 1950's after the World War II when large number of countries became independent from the clutches of their exploiters. The three world model was first used by the geographer Ingolf Vogeler.
The First World are the developed, capitalist, industrial countries, roughly a Bloc of countries aligned to the United States after World WarII, with more or less common political and economic interests. These countries , denoted by Blue colour in the above world map, are US, Canada, Western Europe, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Austrlia, NewZealand.

The Second World was the Communist world led by the USSR. Though, at present, there is no official second world still there are countries like China, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Cuba run by the communist Government. The countries denoted by red in the map were the second world.

The Third World, the technologically less advanced, uderdeveloped or developing nations,

denoted by green colour in the map are the nations of Asia, Africa, Ocenia and Latin America. These nations are Characterized as poor and dependent on the economies of the rich countries. The expression third world was used at the 1955 conference of Afro-Asian countries held in Bundung, Indonesia. In 1956 a group of social scientiss assciated with Sauvy's National Institute of Demographic studies, in Paris, published a book, Le Tiers-Monde. three years later, the French Econmist Francois Perroux launched a new journal on problems of underdeveloped countries. the term was frequently used in the French media to tefer to the underveveloped countries of Asia, Africa, Ocenia and Latin America.

Four poorest of the poor countries of the World

A close study of GDP and GNP/Capita of
the different poorest of the poor countries of
the world reveals that the rank of the
countries in regard to their economic status
is not only changing from year to year but also
changing due to the change of the methods
of measurement.We consider in details
the relavancy of the above statement
with the help of the following countries.
1.Ethiopia, 2. Dem.Rep. of Congo, 3. Burundi, 4. Guinea-Bissau
Year of Measurement : 2003
GNP/ capita
Rank (Atlas Method) - 208/ 207/206/ 205
gnp/capita 90/100/100/140
Rank ( PPP ,, ) - 201 /204/205/203
gnp/capita 720/640/620/600
Year of Measurement : 2005
GDP (billion $) =11.1/6.89/.72/.28
Rank = 99/117/186/203
GDP = 11.1

What can we do to curb GLOBAL WARMING?

Can We Stop Global Warming?

Though scientists warn that global warming will likely continue for centuries because of the long natural processes involved, there are a few things we can do to decrease the effects. Basically, they all boil down to this: Don't use as much of the stuff that creates greenhouse gases. On a local level, you can help by using less energy. The electricity that operates many of the devices in our homes comes from a power plant, and most power plants burn fossil fuels to generate that power. Turn off lights when they're not in use. Take shorter showers to use less hot water. Use a fan instead of an air conditioner on a warm day.

Hydrogen-powered cars, the increased use of solar cells, and hydro-electric power plants are possible ways to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases.

Here are some other specific ways you can help decrease greenhouse-gas emissions:

• Make sure your car is properly tuned up. This allows it to run more efficiently and generate fewer harmful gases.
• Walk or ride your bike if possible, or carpool on your way to work. Cars burn fossil fuel, so smaller, more fuel-efficient cars emit less CO2, particularly hybrid cars.
• Turn lights and other appliances off when you're not using them. Even though a light bulb doesn't generate greenhouse gas, the power plant that generates the electricity used by the light bulb probably does. Switch from incandescent light bulbs tofluorescent bulbs, which use less energy and last longer.
• Recycle. Garbage that doesn't get recycled ends up in a landfill, generating methane. Recycled goods also require less energy to produce than products made from scratch.
• Plant trees and other plants where you can. Plants take carbon dioxide out of the air and release oxygen.
• Don't burn garbage. This releases carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons into the atmosphere.

To really stem the emission of greenhouse gases, we need to develop non-fossil fuel energy sources. Hydro-electric power, solar power, hydrogen engines and fuel cells could all create big cuts in greenhouse gases if they were to become more common.

At the international level, the Kyoto treaty was written to reduce CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. Thirty-five industrialized nations have committed to reducing their output of those gases to varying degrees. Unfortunately, the United States, the world's primary producer of greenhouse gases, did not sign the treaty.

An inconvenient truth:
Al Gore's book and documentary "An Inconvenient Truth" got a lot of people talking about global warming.

In March, 2007, former Vice President Al Gore testified in front of Congress and urged them to make some very challenging changes in national policy. These include:

• Freeze carbon production at the current level and create programs to reduce carbon production by 90 percent by 2050
• Shift taxation from employment and production to a taxation upon pollution
• Create an international treaty that would effectively comply with the Kyoto treaty without carrying the same perceived political baggage
• Halt the construction of all new coal-based power facilities unless they comply with restrictions on carbon production
• Increase emission standards across the board for both the automobile industry and power facilities
• Ban incandescent light bulbs

Gore admits that the decision to enact these and other proposed responses to global warming can be difficult. He also says that climate change is not just a crisis, but the most important crisis mankind has ever faced.

more>>>Earth Day Special

Google-Apple Cloud Computer

In his new book "The Big Switch: Rewiring the World, from Edison to Google," computer industry writer and former executive editor of the Harvard Business Review Nicholas G. Carr discusses the changes he sees in the future of computing. One of the more dramatic changes is a shift to cloud computing -- where applications and files are stored on a large, centralized supercomputer or network. The end user accesses his or her files using computers that are more streamlined but less sophisticated than today's typical machines.

Nicholas Carr, seen here at a Sun Network Conference in 2003, believes that tech giants Apple and Google may be on the verge of creating a cloud computer.

The idea of cloud computing certainly isn't new. Oracle's Larry Ellison launched the New Internet Computer (NIC) company in 2000 to lead the industry forward to that goal. The concept is very simple:

"On your desk, you would have a very low-cost computer with just a processor, a keyboard and a monitor. There would be no hard drive or CD/DVD drive. It would be hooked up to the Internet and would link to a central supercomputer, which would host all of your programs and files."

A Googol of Power

A googol is the name for a one followed by 100 zeros. Google's name comes from its founders' desire to keep track of the vast amounts of information on the Internet. As the company grew, it began offering more services than just Web searches. Through in-house innovations and acquisitions of other companies, Google created what is now Google Docs, a Web-based suite of applications that includes word processing, a spreadsheet and a presentation program. With Gmail, that puts Google in direct competition with Microsoft for the corporate desktop. And unlike Office, Google Docs is completely free.

manufacturer to partner with. Google's machine, really a These hosted services are the kinds of applications that would be at the core of a cloud computer, just one reason it would be feasible for Google to be the perfect back-end for a hardwarenetwork of machines, offers amazing computing power. It also offers redundancy. Google already stores multiple backups of its information on its equipment, and if one part of one machine breaks, it can be swapped out without any loss of information.


Advantages

• Using a cloud computer stored on Google's massive infrastructure would free you from having to take your files with you -- no thumb drives, laptop hard drives, CDs, DVDs or other removable media.

• You could work on your projects from home, from work and on your mobile computer while on the go.

• With a cloud computer, you probably wouldn't have to pay for software. Using applications hosted on the server, your local machine would have all the software it needs to work without having to store it locally.

• You wouldn't have to update your software to the next version -- and everyone would use the same software on the cloud. There should be no compatibility issues.

In 2006, Google built two giant computing centers in The Dalles, Ore. Each is the size of a football field and needs massive amounts of cooling for the computers inside.

Disadvantages

But what happens to those frequent flyers who need to work as they travel? A cloud computer would require an Internet connection, and today's airliners don't offer that ability, though some carriers have plans to offer in-flight access. You'd be stuck reading or watching the in-flight movie. You'd also have to be comfortable with letting Google, or whomever else, keep your documents online. Many corporations don't allow their documents past their firewalls. Would these companies change their minds if the majority of business was done on a cloud-computing model?

One of the biggest problems involved with creating a cloud computer is the amount of electricity
required to make it work. Google built its data center in The Dalles, Ore., because of the high-speed Internet access powered by fiber optic lines and the nearby The Dalles One of the biggest problems involved with creating a cloud computer is the amount of electricityDam .

Google needs large amounts of electricity to power the cooling equipment necessary to keep thousands of servers running. In fact, the two football-field-sized buildings each have two cooling plants four stories tall.

If Google can't handle the processing power needed to offer the world a computing cloud, it certainly is well on its way to building it.


Other Players:

• Microsoft, Amazon and IBM are some of those known to be considering cloud offerings.Yahoo brings a robust Web mail network and photo site Flickr to the table.With its Office suite already entrenched in the desktops of offices across the country, a Microsoft cloud could enter the race as a contender.

• Another potential competitor could be Amazon.com. Already one of the world's largest online retailers, the company has interests in other areas as well. Amazon Web Services is a suite of cloud resources aimed at small developers who need a place to work online

• In November 2007, IBM announced its Blue Cloud initiative, offering a package of hardware and software to allow its customers to create their own internal clouds

• Many companies are offering hardware designed to operate on cloud networks, including Hewlett Packard, Dell and Clear Cube.

In its Blue Cloud initiative, IBM wants to network its massive computers, like this one at a research center in Jülich, Germany, to create a powerful cloud.

"At the MacWorld San Francisco trade show, Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the closest thing it has to a cloud computing device: the MacBook Air. It's less than an inch thick at its largest; Jobs pulled the demonstration model from a manila mailing envelope during the product announcement. It weighs only three pounds. To get it so thin, Apple engineers sacrificed an optical drive and some of its connections, including Ethernet. The battery had to be incorporated in a way that prevents users from replacing it themselves. Unlike a true thin client, the MacBook Air has a hard drive, which can be either a traditional drive or a solid-state drive. "

Further info:

Understanding Cloud Computing

Consumer cloud computing - Box.net, Amazon, EMC, Google

IBM Introduces Ready-to-Use Cloud Computing

Zimdesk: Complete Cloud Computing System

OpenNEbula Virtual Infrastructure Engine - (Open Source, Apache2 license)

Virtual Workspace Service - cloud and grid virtualization software (Open Source, Apache2 license)

How do i become an Astronaut?

If you are looking for a career that combines cool technology, interesting science and great adventure, you could hardly make a better choice than becoming an astronaut. And there is potential for growth in the field. With the construction of the International Space Station, there will be a permanent human presence in outer space and a need for astronauts. But becoming an astronaut in the U.S. space program is not easy, and the process can take several years.

There are three types of astronauts in the U.S. space program:

• Commander/pilot
• Mission specialist
• Payload specialist

The commander is responsible for the mission, the crew and the vehicle. The pilot assists the commander in operating the vehicle and deploying satellites. The mission specialistworks with the commander and pilots in shuttle operations, performs spacewalks and conducts experiments. The payload specialist performs specialized duties as the mission requires. Payload specialists are people other than NASA personnel, and some are foreign nationals.

The basic qualifications for becoming an astronaut include:

• U.S. citizenship (for pilots and mission specialists)
• Bachelor's degree (engineering, biological sciences, physical sciences, mathematics) from an accredited college or university
• Three years of related experience after obtaining the bachelor's degree - A master's degree equals one year of experience, and a doctorate equals three years.
• Passing a NASA space physical examination - Pilots need to pass a Class I physical; mission/payload specialists must pass Class II. Both are similar to civilian and military flight examinations.
• More than 1,000 hours experience as pilot-in-command of a jet aircraft (pilots only)
• Height of 64 to 76 inches (162.5 cm to 193 cm) for pilots, 58.5 to 76 inches (148.5 cm to 193 cm) for mission/payload specialists

To apply for an astronaut position, you fill out the appropriate forms and submit them to NASA, which accepts applications continuously. You can download the forms here. NASA then screens the applications, and you may be asked to go for a weeklong session where you will participate in personal interviews, medical tests and orientations. Your screening performance will be evaluated, and if you are lucky, you may be accepted as an astronaut candidate. NASA announces candidates every two years, selecting about a hundred men and women out of thousands of applicants.

If you are selected, you will report to NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, for training and evaluations, which last two years. During the training period, you will take classes in basic science (math, astronomy, physics, geology, meteorology, oceanography), technology (navigation, orbital mechanics, materials processing), and space shuttlesystems. You will also be trained in land and sea survival techniques, SCUBA, microgravity, high- and low-pressure environments, and spacesuits. You must pass a swimming test (swim three lengths of a 25-meter pool in flight suit and tennis shoes, and tread water for 10 minutes). If you are a pilot, you will train in NASA's T-38 jet aircraft and shuttle training aircraft at least 15 hours each month. Mission specialists fly four hours each month.

At the end of the two-year training period, you may be selected to become an astronaut. As an astronaut, you will continue classroom training on the various aspects of space shuttle operations that you started as an astronaut candidate. You will begin training on each individual system in the shuttle with the help of an instructor. After that, you will train in simulators for pre-launch, launch, orbit, entry and landing. Depending upon whether you are a pilot or mission specialist, you will learn how to use the shuttle's robotic arm to manipulate cargo. You will continue generic training until you are selected for a flight.

Astronauts training underwater to build the International Space Station Once you are selected for a flight, you will receive specific training for the mission at least 10 months prior to the flight. This includes training in flight simulators, full-scale mockups of the shuttle and space station, and underwater training for spacewalks. The simulations will prepare you for every type of emergency or contingency imaginable. After your training, you will prepare for your flight with training in the shuttle itself (pilots), meetings and more simulations. After your flight, you will have several days of medical tests and discussions; these are called debriefings. Astronauts are expected to stay with NASA for at least five years after their selection. They are federal civil service employees (GS-11 to GS-14 grade) with equivalent pay based on experience. They are eligible for vacation, medical and life insurance, and retirement benefits.

So, you can see that you will need education, hard work and steadfast dedication to become an astronaut. However, the view is tremendous!

These links will help you learn more:- NASA: Astronaut Selection NASA Astronaut Biographies How to become an Astronaut 101 The Ultimate Field Trip: An Astronaut's View of the Earth So You Want to be an Astronaut Young Astronaut Council Space Flight Questions and Answers Class 1:Flight Physical Examination Class 2:Flight Physical Examination

Astral projection

Astral Projection----Most of the people associate this word with the famous Israeli Psychedelic Trance outfit, and infact am no less either. But when I tried to understand as why their band was named after this word "Astral Projection" I learnt this.....

Astral projection (or astral travel) is a paranormal interpretation of an out-of-body experience achieved either awake or via lucid dreaming or deep meditation.

Overview

The concept of astral projection assumes the existence of another body, separate from the physical body and capable of traveling to non-physical planes of existence. Commonly such planes are called astral, etheric, or spiritual or . Astral projection is often experienced as the spiritastral body leaving the physical body to travel in the spirit world or astral plane.Astral projection is controversial. Skeptics say that there is only anecdotal evidence that anything actually leaves the body.

The Three Schools of thought

Seperation model

The separation model includes a large variety of belief systems, which say that astral projection takes place outside of the physical body. In this model, an astral or etheric body carries the consciousness outside of the physical body. Some, such as those who believe in Theosophy, say that the higher astral planes are reached through the progressive projection of subtler energy bodies from previous projected bodies, much like a Russian doll, while others believe in less complicated systems.The subtle body is attached to the physical body by means of an energetic connection which usually takes the appearance of a silver cord 'plugging' into the chakra system.

Phasing model

According to the phasing model, defined mainly by Robert Monroe, no "movement" actually occurs during astral projection. The astral planes and the physical world are points on the spectrum of consciousness. When a person projects, they actually "phase" into another area of consciousness and the locales it contains. This can be likened to tuning a radio to another station. The phasing model does not say that the mind is dependent on the brain, but only that our concepts of space do not necessarily apply to astral travel.

Skeptical model

This model argues that astral projection is an experience which takes place in the mind/brain of the experiencer. Thus, it is not truly a model of astral projection, but an explanation of astral projection as hallucinatory or imaginational experiences. The exact mechanisms are unknown, but experiences somewhat similar to an Out-of-body experience -though without any experience of astral planes- can be induced with drugs or brain stimulation.

The Projection Types

Astral Projection

In astral projection the traveller finds him- or herself in an apparently real domain, which has no parallel to any physical setting. This is termed by New Agers and occultists among others as the astral plane or "the astral". Environments here may range from populated to unpopulated, artificial to natural to completely abstract environments and from beautific to horrific. Here, normal physical laws often do not apply. The quality of detail ranges from crude to vivid and fascinating. Projectors may gain access to visions of the past or future of Earth, and to the Akashic records. It has been said that space and time do not exist on the astral plane in the same way they do on earth, or that they can be transcended. Many travelers have theorized that people having dreams travel to the astral realms. Travelers have reported seeing dreamers enact dream scenarios on the astral plane, unaware of the more extensive and varied non-physical environment surrounding them. Some also claim common movements in dreams, such as falling or feeling like you are walking through quicksand, is the astral body in action. The astral environment is often divided into levels or planes. There are many different views concerning the overall structure of the astral planes, and many different numbering schemes applied to them. These planes may include heavens and hells, places where people go immediately after death, transcendent environments for those who are "more enlightened," and other less-easily characterized states.

Etheric Projection

Though closely related to astral projection, in etheric projection a projector encounters mainly that which exists physically, moving about in a (usually invisible) etheric body. The term was used as far back as the 1940s, by Dion Fortune in her book Psychic Self Defence. In contrast to astral projection, during this type of experience, there are no fantastical worlds, or self-absorbed encounters; the majority of the experience can -hypothetically- be validated.

The world encountered during etheric projection may seem to be at variance with physicalreality if strict mind control is not maintained. Robert Monroe describes this type of projection as a projection to "Locale I" or the "Here-Now", and describes it as containing people and places that actually exist in the material world.Robert Bruce refers to a similar area as the "Real Time Zone" (RTZ) and describes it as the nonphysical dimension level closest to the physical.

In Western theosophy, each subtle body is functionally distinct. Since the etheric body and astral body are not the same, they cannot represent the same kind of psychic activity.

According to Max Heindel, the etheric "double" serves as a medium between the astral and physical realms. Ether, also called prana, is the "vital force" that empowers the Physical forms in order for change to take place. This means that when one views the physical during an OBE, they are not technically "in" the astral realm at all.

Research

Dr. Robert Crookall published case studies of astral projection in 1960. He divided these into naturally-occurring out-of-the-body experiences (people who nearly died, people who were very ill, people who were exhausted, etc, and people who were quite well) and enforced OBEs, from anaesthesia, suffocation, accidents and hypnosis.

Dr. Charles Tart tentatively concluded that etheric projection may have objective validity. For example, in a 1967 study, a subject was unable to discover a five digit number written down and placed face up in an adjoining room, but did provide some details of the activities of the technician monitoring the experiment. Tart summarizes, "Thus, there is some indication that ESP may have been involved with respect to the technician's activities, but it is not at all conclusive."

Robert Monroe, founder of the Monroe Institute, published several accounts of his experiences of astral projection, including Far Journeys. Monroe developed a method called "Hemi-Sync" to induce mental states that are favorable for projection. Hemisync is a method of altering brain waves using sounds, together with meditative instruction, listened to on headphones. The process is based on a concept called binaural beats.

Bruce Moen began as a student of Robert Monroe, but has developed the process of mentally exploring through 'projection' in such a manner as to frequently override the need for sound wave support such as Hemi-Sync.

Want to try out "The Out Of Body Experience"???

Quiet your mind. Clear your thoughts.

In your mind say:

"I'm going to count down from 3 to 1, visualizing each number on a white orb suspended in the air above my head. When I reach the third and final "1" my body will be deeply relaxed. I will have no awareness of physical sensations. I will not perceive any physical discomfort. My consciousness will be focused on my astral body.

Now visualize a white orb suspended in the air above your head. Mentally focus on the orb I visualize a number "3" on the face of the orb. The numbers can be any color. They may vary with each experience. Visualize the 3 --three times: three number "3's" on the orb. Your body is completely relaxed. You are losing awareness of your physical body.

Then repeat the visualization with three number "2's." You are into greater relaxation. Now visualize the "1's." You are losing awareness of physical sensations. Your consciousness will be in your astral body.

Repeat this using the number "1's" three times. Your consciousness is now in my astral body.

This could involve training of several sessions. You may also find audio tapes that take you down into these altered states as well. You getting better and faster as you go along each time.

There is no set agenda for how often you practice astral projection or any other out-of-body technique. It soon becomes fun. It is like a deep meditation.

Now the key is to remain conscious while my body is asleep. Different thoughts may pull you from your focus as the mind loves to chatter. Just push these thoughts away.

Further Reading

Astral Voyage
Skepdic
Academy Of consciousness
Astral Projection--You can do it!!
Mastering Astral projection in 90 days -- Google books
Astral Pulse
spiritual.com
Out of Body Experience