Web is all gaga about a game being launched by Empire Interactive. According to a number of blog posts and press releases Empire Interactive has signed a deal with American Mensa and British Mensa and they plan to bring out a mensa themed game on an entire range of platforms… console, handheld, PC, and Mac! And this video game would be the first such game approved by Mensa.
On a related note, while browsing the British Mensa website while writing this blog post I came across a whole range of Mensa games. Now that sounds interesting.
Way back many centuries ago – in internet terms, of course – we could choose a password that typically had 3 to 4 characters… and were often the same 4 digits that were the ATM pin code, or the 3-digit code of our favorite number lock.
Then we saw the era of minimum 8-character passwords. We moaned and agonised but the many apps and web services forced us to memorise a longer password.
But hackers and online thugs did not give up. And, now, the rules of the game have changed once again.
We have now entered the era where not only your password must contain 8 or more characters, it MUST contain all of the following:
At least one or more Alphabets
At least one or more Numbers
At least one alphabet should be in upper case, a.k.a Capital letter.
At least one or more special characters like !@#$%^&*(){}. It almost appears like I am suggesting some foul word!!!
I am told, that with a password that may look like Hy76%@W2 the chances of your account at a web based email or social networking service would be hugely minimised.
But please don’t go to sleep with this gospel. Soon, very soon, in internet terms, of course, the theives and thugs and their merry men will crack this too. And, I hate to wonder what will we have to memorise then?
1. No Breakfast People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar
level.
This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing
brain degeneration.
2. Overeating It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental
power.
3. Smoking It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.
4. High Sugar consumption Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients
causing malnutrition and may interfere with brain development.
5. Air Pollution The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our body. Inhaling polluted air
decreases the supply of oxygen to the brain, bringing about a decrease in
brain efficiency.
6. Sleep Deprivation Sleep allows our brain to rest. Long term deprivation from sleep will
accelerate the death of brain cells.
7. Head covered while sleeping Sleeping with the head covered, increases the concentration of carbon
dioxide and decrease concentration of oxygen that may lead to brain
damaging effects.
8. Working your brain during illness Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in
effectiveness of the brain as well as damage the brain.
9. Lacking in stimulating thoughts Thinking is the best way to train our brain, lacking in brain stimulation
thoughts may cause brain shrinkage.
10. Talking Rarely Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain
Four couples (each a boy and a girl) are in a queue at the cinema. Adam is ahead of Blenda, who is not with Colin, who is behind Annie, who is behind Brian, who is not with Denise, who is behind Dave, who is not with Chloe and is ahead of Adam. Can you reconstruct the pairings and order?
Another JK Rowling title? I thought the Harry Potter series was over for good.
But I was so wrong! “The Tales of Beedle the Bard” was the “book” Professor Dumbledore presented to Hermione in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows”. Of course, this “book” had to see the light of the day too. And yes friends, this latest title by J K Rowling has already hit the shelves in the bookstores.
In “Deathly Hallows” this book “The Tales of Beedle the Bard” helped Harry Potter to achieve Voldemont’s defeat. To quote from wikipedia:
The book Hermione receives in Dumbledore’s will is a copy of the original edition of the fictional book.[10] It is described as an ancient-looking small book with its binding “stained and peeling in places”. In the novel it is also said the book has a title on its cover, written in embossed runic symbols.[2]
The book acts as the vehicle for introducing the Deathly Hallows.[6] Above the story “The Tale of the Three Brothers”, Hermione Granger finds a strange symbol which later is revealed by Xenophilius Lovegood to be the symbol of the Hallows. The triangle from the symbol represents the Invisibility Cloak, the circle inside the triangle symbolizes the Resurrection Stone, and the vertical line represents the Elder Wand.[10]
These three objects are also mentioned in the story itself (see below), and are said to belong to the Peverell brothers,[10] who are later revealed as being Harry Potter’s ancestors.[11] Towards the end of the novel, Albus Dumbledore also confirms Harry’s connection to the Peverells, and states that the three brothers might in fact have been the creators of the Hallows.[12]
Whenever I come across something ingenious I often wonder how would this guy score on a Mensa test. Same thought comes to mind when I look at the lego bricks.
Watching my 3-year old come up with amazingly sturdy and evenly balanced designs with these bricks prompted me to google “lego designs”. I wont deny my own passion and love for these bricks. I was delighted with tons of resources.
But my biggest joy came from the horse’s mouth: The official lego website.
Check these links:
Lego Creator is the destination I am talking about. It has an exciting mix of content, from design studio to step-by-step construction method of various designs, videos, blog, downloads and more.
The lego design school where you can learn everything from the very basics to pretty advanced lego construction techniques.
The Lego Digital Designer. A software that you can download from Lego website and create your designs on the PC, and you can even upload them to Lego’s gallery.
Ever wished you could ask someone for help? Now you have two options:
Ask A Designer section for expert replies from the official representatives
The Messageboard provides you a place to hang out and exchange ideas with other Lego buffs.
All in all, this should be a wonderful treat. Even though I have played with Lego since childhood, there are several things I learnt at the Lego school mentioned above.
Gerald Celente has been monitoring and forecasting trends for a long time. Since mid 80s to be precise. I recently received the following text from Asim Basra, a fellow Mensan who works in the banking industry. When I googled about it, I found that it has been echoing across the blogosphere.
The man who predicted the 1987 stock market crash and the fall of the Soviet Union is now forecasting a revolution in America, food riots and tax rebellions – all within four years, while cautioning that putting food on the table will be a more pressing concern than buying Christmas gifts by 2012.
Gerald Celente, the CEO of Trends Research Institute, is renowned for his accuracy in predicting future world and economic events, which will send a chill down your spine considering what he told Fox News this week.
Celente says that by 2012 America will become an undeveloped nation, that there will be a revolution marked by food riots, squatter rebellions, tax revolts and job marches, and that holidays will be more about obtaining food, not gifts.
“We’re going to see the end of the retail Christmas….we’re going to see a fundamental shift take place….putting food on the table is going to be more important then putting gifts under the Christmas tree,” said Celente, adding that the situation would be “worse than the great depression”.
“America’s going to go through a transition the likes of which no one is prepared for,” said Celente, noting that people’s refusal to acknowledge that America was even in a recession highlights how big a problem denial is in being ready for the true scale of the crisis.
Celente, who successfully predicted the 1997 Asian Currency Crisis, the subprime mortgage collapse and the massive devaluation of the U.S. dollar, told UPI in November last year that the following year would be known as “The Panic of 2008,” adding that “giants (would) tumble to their deaths,” which is exactly what we have witnessed with the collapse of Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns and others. He also said that the dollar would eventually be devalued by as much as 90 percent.
The consequence of what we have seen unfold this year would lead to a lowering in living standards, Celente predicted a year ago, which is also being borne out by plummeting retail sales figures.
The prospect of revolution was a concept echoed by a British Ministry of Defence report last year, which predicted that within 30 years, the growing gap between the super rich and the middle class, along with an urban underclass threatening social order would mean, “The world’s middle classes might unite, using access to knowledge, resources and skills to shape transnational processes in their own class interest,” and that, “The middle classes could become a revolutionary class.”
In a separate recent interview, Celente went further on the subject of revolution in America.
“There will be a revolution in this country,” he said. “It’s not going to come yet, but it’s going to come down the line and we’re going to see a third party and this was the catalyst for it: the takeover of Washington, D. C., in broad daylight by Wall Street in this bloodless coup. And it will happen as conditions continue to worsen.”
“The first thing to do is organize with tax revolts. That’s going to be the big one because people can’t afford to pay more school tax, property tax, any kind of tax. You’re going to start seeing those kinds of protests start to develop.”
“It’s going to be very bleak. Very sad. And there is going to be a lot of homeless, the likes of which we have never seen before. Tent cities are already sprouting up around the country and we’re going to see many more.”
“We’re going to start seeing huge areas of vacant real estate and squatters living in them as well. It’s going to be a picture the likes of which Americans are not going to be used to. It’s going to come as a shock and with it, there’s going to be a lot of crime. And the crime is going to be a lot worse than it was before because in the last 1929 Depression, people’s minds weren’t wrecked on all these modern drugs – over-the-counter drugs, or crystal meth or whatever it might be. So, you have a huge underclass of very desperate people with their minds chemically blown beyond anybody’s comprehension.”
But that’s not all. Youtube is loaded with his interviews and appearances in talk shows. One of them, as reported on Daily Newscaster was on Alex Jones Live. Listen to this one.
Simply google “Gerald Celente” and you will be inundated with content he has been forecasting and what the public has been saying.
My question to the world wide Mensa community is this: With all the intelligence and knowledge bestowed upon the members of Mensa, and for that matter, all the others with similar levels of IQ, are we all simply going to watch the world fall into this spiral and philosophize about it, OR, is there anything that can be done and will be done to prevent it, or perhaps at least reduce the impact of this collapse?
I don’t know about you, but my love of the big RR, the angel-mascot car will probably never be taken over by any other car. Its not to say that no other car is as beautiful or as “wow”, but Rolls Royce is something special, very unique, in a class of its own.
And, then, to suddenly come face-to-face with a mint condition 1922 model was a real heart-stopper. Enjoy this collection, friends:
Rolls Royce Mascot
This beauty is currently owned by the Hashoo Group, or most probably by the Pearl Continental, and was on display in the hotel lobby in June, 2008. But the history of this car is far more royal. Its original owner was one of the nawabs, and later it was also honoured to be used by Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah.
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For the photography minded, the collection was shot with the iphone.
Certificate distribution ceremony and general body meeting of the Mensa Lahore City Council was held at the Ritz Cinema at Sukh Chan Wellness Club on Friday, November 28th, 2008.
The meeting was attended by Hasan Zuberi, Mensa Pakistan Chairman, Raza Jaffri, General Secretary, Amir Rana, Treasurer, Usman Zaheer & Ahmad Babar of the Lahore City Council, as well as several other members of the Mensa Management Committee, as the members of the Lahore City Council.
The above pictures were few of those taken during the function. The event was invoked by tilawat, followed by a welcome address by the Lahore City Council. Next in line was a presentation about Mensa, Intelligence and Mensa Pakistan. Two short musical films by Animusic.com were screened at the theatre. This was followed by the distribution of certificates to the qualifiers of the last Mensa test held in Lahore.
The event was followed by snacks and refreshments.
On a recent shopping trip I visited four shops, spending 5$, $10, $15, and $20 but not in that order. The items I bought in the last two shops totalled $30 while those from Lewis Johns and Wellys came to $20. I spent less in S&M, which was not my last shop, than I did in Lewis Johns and $5 more in Nick Harveys than I did in the first shop. How much did I spend in each shop and in what order did I patronize them?
I drive a taxi and yesterday I started with four quick fares, picking up my next customer as the previous one got out. One trip was from Regent’s Station to Waterloo Square. My first fare needed to get to Leicester Circus, where I picked up Amy. I took Barry to Northminster and Chris sat in my cab earler than Delia. Can you reconstruct my first four fares of the day?
Mensa Pakistan website is powered by wordpress, and today, it has been upgraded with the latest release, version 2.7.
The new version sports a snazzy, very professional looking interface. This is the last time (and frankly the first as well) I would use the plugin WordPress Automatic Upgrader, becuase now automatic upgrade has been incorporated in wordpress itself.
Whew! What a relief!
But this is not the only attraction for upgrading to 2.7. To read the full list of exciting new ingredients, read the official blog.
Dilbert? Here on Mensa? Does he have the Mensa certificate?
Well, Dilbert may not have the perfect Mensan IQ but he will sure be in good company at Mensa Pakistan website. So friends, check the latest, as well as tons of Dilbert archives right here on our own website.
A collection of photos taken at the Pakistan Monument, Shakarparian Hills, Islamabad. What a beautiful place. If you have not yet there, I highly recommend that you must make it a point to visit the next time you are in Islamabad. And, as you can see in this slideshow, a visit in the night is an expereince in itself.
What a performance. What a work of art. What a masterpiece music composition. I seriously wonder if this is the work of a Mensa? But, to truly enjoy this work, I highly recommend that you should download Vuze from vuze.com and then download the high definition video through that. It must be enjoyed in its full glory.
Vuze has two videos from Animusic, whereas youtube has a proper “channel” from the creators themselves, although low resolution collection. Of course, the best would be to order the original DVDs from Animusic and enjoy it that way. Animusic is also offering free download of selected works from their website. I am totally in love with their work.
UPDATE: The test will be held on Saturday, 22nd November at 3:00 PM. Other details remain same.
The Mensa IQ test is being held in Karachi 23rd of November. I hope to see you all there.
The location is New Horizons, 49-C, Block 6, PECHS, main Sharae Faisal. Nursery bus stop.
The timings are:
10:00-11:00
11:00-12:00
12:00-1:00
(The sessions are independent, and the whole test is conducted in a single session. Timings are staggered for candidates’ convenience. You are desired to sit in only ONE session.)
The ticket price is Rs 500. Tickets can be purchased on spot.
Early bird offer of Rs 300 for those registering before 20th.
Through a post on mensa-pk yahoo group by Usman Zaheer I learnt about the absolutely wonderful image archive of LIFE magazine all the way from 18th century to present times.
I searched by the keyword “jinnah” and it had 52 entries. Out of them, this 1946 Time magazine cover caught my attention. 16-months before the creation of Pakistan, Time magazine had this illustration of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah on its cover with the sub-title that had said it all. And, today, the anti-Muslim roits by Hindus tell us that they have not forgotten their cow that was eaten the Moslem tiger 61 years ago.
Overall, the quality of images in the archive is crisp and worth collecting. The subject, the framing, the lighting, all in all, they are masterpeices that we can learn alot from to improve our photographic skills. Mensa’s Photography SIG members must spend time on this collection.
I remember some of our Mensans had interest in producing short films. One effort, rather “creative” one, that comes to mind was probably named “Black” or “Blank”.
Recently I set up a google alert for the keyword “mensa”. The intention was to receive a comprehensive alert of whats new related to Mensa… well, Mensa as we know it.
I must admit I was ignorant. The alerts started rolling in promptly. After all, its a google service! But, surprisingly, there were sites with the word “mensa” being used without any relevance to the Mensa I was expecting. Today, while surfing the net I came across this entry in wikipedia. And, suddenly it dawned on me that this is rather diversely used term with very different meanings and connotations.
KARACHI General Body Meeting & Certificate distribution on Saturday 22 November 2008
followed by an informative session on : Personal Safety & Security
The session will touch upon personal safety both at home and the workplace/school and will guide you on living a safe and secure life.
You’ll learn how to respond in times of emergencies both man made and natural.
The audience will be shown how simple changes in their daily routines could bring about awareness of saftey for all.
About the Presenter: A resident of Karachi, Pakistan with over 10 years of professional experience in Safety & Security industry, Mr. Norbert Almeida has has worked with the national Seurity & Safety appratus and has liased with the international security organisations.
He is currently associated with a leading Multi-National Company and is responsible for their internal & corporate security and is also a volunteer with a NGO that deals with Search, Rescue & Disaster Relief Management.
Mr. Almeida has attended trainigs in Pakistan, UK, Norway, UAE, Philipines & France.
For VENUE & PROGRAMME Details, please contact and Confirm your attendance latest by; 1st half – Friday, 21 November 2008
Ok the game is on… Morning Scrabble – Keep it going!!!
I received it as an email-based game but I think it can be equally interesting via the Comments box. Change one letter of the bottom word posted and let’s see who gets stuck and can’t continue!
Rules: You cannot add letters. You cannot use foreign languages. You can only change one letter. You can not repeat a word already posted earlier. Add your entry in the comment box and also add what city and country you are from!
WORD:
Pray
Bray – Marion Herts.UK 18/08/08
Tray – Jenny, Essex UK 18/7/08
Tram – Marian, Essex UK 18/07/08
Trap – Wendy Pike, 18/7/08
Trip – Fiona Baxter, Essex 19/08/08
Grip – Cheryl Hadley,=2 0Essex , UK 20/08/08
Grid – Chris Baker, Scotland 20/08/08
Grin – Lyn Wood , Barbados 21.08.08
Gran – John Coombes – England 21..08.08
Bran – Wendy Morris, Kent, 24.8.08
Rant – Val Parker England 27.08.08
Pant – Janet Gilboy, South Australia 27/8/08
Pint – Adriana White, Hervey Bay Queensland Australia
Punt – Issy Major Craignish Qld. Australia
Puny – Maureen Tarrant – Pt Elliot South Australia 29/08/08
Punk – Derek Napier – Goolwa Beach South Austraila 01/09/08
Pink – Shirley Everson – Canterbury UK
Sink – Helen Foad Herne Bay Kent
Link – Sue Sullivan Herne Bay Kent . 2 Sept 08
Line – Denise Helvin Essex 2nd September 08
Lint – Sam Nash Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex 02/09/08
Tint – Kathie Hazelwood – Orpington , Kent 03/09/08
Tent – Jocelyn Mayes – Sevenoaks , Kent 3/9/08
Rent – Laura Baker – Fairseat , Kent 3/9/08
Dent – Gina Turner – Bromley Kent 3/9/08
Bent – Paula Sams – West Wickham , Kent 3/9/08
Sent – Alison Randall – Borough Green, Kent 6/9/08
Went – Joanne Fenlon – Southport UK – 06/09/08
Want – Christa Beyer-Kay Southport UK – 06/09/08
Wart – Georgia -Lee , South Grafton AU -07/09/08
Fart – Susan Elizabeth South Grafton AU -07/09/2008
Cart- Charm Lawrence Brisbane Au- 08/09/2008
Tart – Angela Clark Maryborough AU – 08/09/2008
Dart – Faye Clark Brisbane Qld Australia 08/09/08
Dirt – Melissa Skehan Brisbane Qld Australia 8/09/09
Girt – (b y sea) Annie Brisbane Qld Aust 09/09/08
Gift – Rob Nielsen Brisbane Qld Aust 09/09/08
Rift – Peter Bassett Brisbane Qld Aust 09/09/08
Rife – Elaine Scott Brisbane Qld Aust 09/09/08
Life – Kaye Best Qld Aust 10/9/08
Wife – Margret McGregor WA Aust 11/9/08
Waif – Tonya Boon WA Aust 11/09/08
Wait – Julie Hussey WA Aust 11/9/08
Bait – Bobbbie Hall WA Aust 11/09/08
Gait – Janet Skillin, Glasgow, Scotland 15/09/08
Gain – Morag Williams, Coulsdon, Surrey 15/09/08
Pain – Dominie Carr, Woodmansterne, Surrey 16/9/08
Vain – Roger Beard, Carshalton Surrey 16/09/2008
Rain – Maureen Gallagher, Worcester Park, Surrey 17/9/08
Raid – Cathy White, Mitcham, Surrey, 18/9/0
paid – jean dodd wimbledon london 24/09/08
Laid – Caroline Jones, Carshalton, Surrey 25/09/08
Maid – Jo Jones, Carshalton, Surrey 26/09/08
Said – sue Co rnish, Sutton , Surrey 26/09/08
Sand – Lynn Sanders, Wallington Surrey 26/9/08
Hand – Helena Hawkins, Bracknell, Berkshire. 27/09/08
Hang – Bobbie Doran, Caversham, Berks 30.9.08
Hung – Claire Hurst, Caversham, Berks 1.10.08
Lung – Sue Potts, Sandhurst, Berks 1.10.08
Bung – Jon Carthy, Northfleet, Kent 01/10/08
Bang – Eunice Stevenson, Tadley Hampshire 1/10/08
Sang – Carol, Hampshire, UK 1/10/08
Sing – Sue Hillyard,Hampshire, UK 3/10/08
Sine – Julia Mahoney, Wellington, NZ, 04/10/08
Fine – Anne Owen, Hampshire, UK, 04/10/08
Fire – Patricia Cowmeadow – Hampshire UK, 5/10/08
Dire – Jane C. – Egham UK 6/10/08
Wire – Carol – Egham UK
Were – Nicki, Feltham, UK 10/10/08
Here – Laura, Sunbury UK 10/10/08
Mere – Thea, Sandhurst 10/10/08
Mare – Julie-Ann, Ascot 10.10.08
Care – Jacky, UK.10/10/08
Card – Mo, UK 10/10/08
Cord – Janice, Ascot, UK 10/10/08
Core – Carol, UK 10/10/08
Lore – Pam, Ascot UK 10/10
Lure – Sharon, Bracknell 10/10
Cure – Katie, Bracknell 10/10
Cute – Sally, Guernsey C I. 13/10
Mute – Alex, Guernsey C.I. 13/10
Mule – Simon, Guernsey C.I. 15/10
Mole – Michelle, Buffalo NY, USA 15/10
Hole – Sam, Guernsey CI 16/10/08
Role – Kerri, Guernsey 16/10/08
Pole – Karen jersey 16/10/08
Pile – Jeanette jersey 16.10.08
Leap – sue s jersey 16.10.08
Heap – Tish Jersey CI 22/10/08
Pear – Terina Jersey CI 23/10/08
Ears – Michele Brodie CI 23/10/08
Hare – Malieka Samson CI 23.10.08
Dare – Sarah Kinnard Jersey CI – 23/10/08
Rare – Fiona Moore, Jersey CI – 24/10/08.
Fare – Maria Smith,Jesey CI 27/10/2008
fate – maxine lindsay castleford
Fade – Tracey Russell Jersey 28-10-2008
made – Ann House Jersey 28-10-2008
Daze – Paul & Co. Jersey 29-10-2008
Maze – Sophie. Jersey 30/10/08
haze – cilla jersey 30/10/08
hazy – Claire Wood,Southampton-31/10/08
lazy – Emma Collins, southampton-31/10/08
laze – Alison Simonsen – Southampton 1/11/08
Gaze – Pen Rulton – Pangbourne 03/11/08
gate – Gill Pennells- Windsor 04/11/08
rate – Sheila Mellors – Bracknell 04/11/08
late – Debbie Webster – Reading 05/11/08
hate – Annette Russell – Reading 05/11/08
hath – Kate Haines – Reading 05/11/08
bath – Alison O’Neill – London 05/11/08
oath – Ann Hindle – Johannesburg, South Africa 05/11/08
Rath – Beth Vermeulen-Johannesburg, South Africa 11.11.08
Rats – Mary Ann Greathead SA 11.11.08
Bats – Petra Kerkstra Jhb, SA 11.11.08
Bars – Madhav Joshi, Nairobi, Kenya 12.11.08
Cars – Elizabeth Manak, Santa Fe, New Mexico 12-Nov-08
Cats – Jawed Naqvi, New Delhi 12-Nov-08
Hats – Zubeida Mustafa Karachi, Pakistan 13-Nov-08
Heat – Shamima Hasan St. Albans UK 13-Nov-08
Seat – Raza Jaffri, Lahore, Pakistan 15-Nov-08
The legend of Washington Post’s Mensa Invitational continues to circulate on the internet, according to ESPN’s Page 2. In this article, the Page 2 folks have come up with a hilarious twist of the Mensa Invitational adapted for the sports world.
When I originally took this snap I thought the rider was a mechanic or some sort of support staff riding the traffic sergeant’s bike. But later when I uploaded the picture to the PC I noticed that the rider was wearing the traffic warden’s uniform trouser. But these things are besides the point.
My motivation for clicking were the absence of helmet – something considered mandatory in Lahore – and the black bag dangerously blocking the rider’s front view. I wonder what would another traffic warden do if he sees this rider “breaking the law”!!! Would he intercept this guy and hand him the traffic violation fine?
