If you were to seek advice on what stops to make on your world tour, you may consider talking to a journalist.
We're the experts; the ones paid to explore the furthest reaches of the globe.
Anthony Lobaido chronicled some of his journies in the article "The world's best destinations."
Credit given where due he didn't rattle off the Great Pyramids, ancient Mayan temples (though a Mayan city was mentioned) or the Grand Canyon.
His list included Victoria Falls in Zambia as well as the neighboring Chobe Game Reserve which has the largest population of elephants in the world.
Other suggestions include an island off the coast of Belieze, followed by a stop to the aforementioned Mayan city in Guatemala.
You may even consider becoming a monk in Thailand for a day. According to the article you can become a monk for as long as you want.
Personally, if you want an off-the-beaten path site, check out the Church of St. Peter & St. Paul in Chaldon, Surrey, UK. Many world travelers I've met in my day feel they've seen fifteen churches, they've seen them all. Frankly, I'm usually inclined to agree. This one, on the other hand is on the opposite end of the spectrum from your Notre Dames, Canterburies and the lot of the world's cathedrals. This obscure little brick hut about fifty-foot square and located more or less in the middle of a field on the very southern edge of what is today greater London.
What makes this hut-like church significant is that it happens to be mentioned in William the Conquerer's Domesday Book. That book was created around 1100. The mural on the back wall is believed to have been painted sometime between 1170 and 1200 by a monk living there at the time.
Even a trip to an unassuming bar in Mojave, California is worth a trip, especially if you're an "air-head." The bar - aptly named A Wing & A Prayer - is covered in aviation memorabilia. It isn't quite the old Ranch that the Edward's test pilots of Tom Wolffe's "The Right Stuff" fame, but it certainly is worth a visit. If you leave time you might be able to sneak out up to Edwards Air Force Base and have a shot at scavangering some bits of aviation history yourself. The desert around the base is littered with bits of almost seventy years years of the most famous aircraft.

The Great Storm

Where were you when the Great Storm of 2006 hit?
I for one, was tucked in my apartment wondering curiously how the rest of the world happened to be fairing.
Thankfully, at the time I was not caught out shopping. I had just returned home from work with the crazy artist lady (that being another story in and of itself.) I had been checking email and surfing the web in my bunker-like apartment knowing rain was on its way. I just didn't know how much rain.
I really hadn't seen it coming; but the deep, burnt orange sky leant two thoughts to my head: "ooh, pretty," and "uh-oh, this'll be interesting..." Between time spent in Minnesota, Kansas, Wisconsin and St Louis I have a pretty good understanding as to what might classify as a "Wrath of God" type storm, and this one certainly had potential that afternoon.
At some point during the storm I got a call from my roommate who happened to be at the Card's game that night. He explained that they were doing their best under a part of the stands at the new stadium downtown. Of course, being a meteorologist at the airport, he was calling the weather as he saw it, and I tried filling him in as best I could from the net. This all thanks to Big Bend losing power in a similar storm a few years back, and the resulting strengthening of the powergrid in the area.
So I hunkered down and decided it was time to sit this one out. The intesity was truly something else. But it didn't truly become clear until the days to follow.
The next morning it became abundantly clear just how much damage had been done. I snuck out for a bit of a drive around the city while hearing reports on KSHE of power outages and downed trees.
It was truly amazing the level of destruction that had happened in that one night. And to think people would be without power for the next four days.
The following day I was headed to Nashville helping a friend move home from school. On our drive out we noticed something certianly odd about the whole situation. Amidst all the destruction, it was nigh impossible to get a drop of gas within fifty miles of the city. My friend's car finally came to rest in a Home Depot parking lot about thrity five miles out. With luck, it happened to be that exit where a gas station was opened. So with a brand new gas can from home depot we put five gallons in her car and headed on in hopes of finding another station along the road.
What seemed terribly odd about the whole experience was while most every house, business and gas station was sans electricity, at every exit along the interstate and in the city, without a doubt, every McDonalds, Burger King, and Dairy Queen was opened for business as usual. Something to be said about this "fast food nation" we live in. Now if only I could get a couple gallons of gas with that Big Mac. Of course that would be the greatest fear of any liberal in this country: McDonalds in the [non-frying type] oil industry.
An amazing storm to experience. It was truly something else.

So I ran across this entirely absurd Newsweek article suggesting that, of all things, the lack of a US-national health system is to blame for the exportation of jobs from this country.

Fareed Zakaria, the author of this splendidly misinformed kernel of knowledge, suggests that due to the lack of socialized healthcare, American companies are forced to spend thousands more dollars per worker than our neighbors to the north.

I do give Mr. Zakaria credit; he does choose possibly the best industry for his case. If you compare “the big three” of the auto industry with those of Japan, clearly, our system is flawed. Overspending on healthcare is rampant in our country. And of course, if and when (let’s face it, it’s only a matter of time) China and India start producing cars for export, their healthcare will be even cheaper!

Of course China and India’s healthcare will be cheaper, because there is no investment in it. India is by and large a third world country, so is China.

How about we sit down and compare the actual quality of health care, Mr. Zakaria? Maybe our highly expensive privatized healthcare system won’t look so bad. Maybe what should be considered is that in England -- whose socialized health is the shining example—the only way to get speedy treatment is to turn up on your death bed. It’ll get you seen. Just hope you get there quick enough.

Possibly also to be considered is the amount of abuse of the National Health System. In many instances, people will call an ambulance for a stubbed toe. They’re paying for it, so why not use it, right?

Yes, we still have our fair share of people turning up to the emergency room with a paper cut, but triage works well for these problems.

What strikes me is that as soon as Mr. Zakaria gets done bashing privatized health, he turns to the jugular of Medicare’s prescription-drug benefit. He argues it is a money pit that gives the elderly a “free-ride” on the drugs they need. Isn’t this what you were just arguing for?

Do I admit to being a scholar of medical systems? No. I’ve just had the opportunity to hear from others the comparative joys and horrors of both privatized and socialized health.

I leave it up to you: the reader; and suggest you give this song from two NHS doctors a listen: http://www.union.ic.ac.uk/medic/fitness/tracks/Paracetamoxyfrusebendroneomycin.mp3

Isla Mujeres -- a small, unassuming island just off the coast of the Yucatan Penninsula -- may become home to 12 new aircraft for the Mexican Navy. Early last year it was announced the Mexican Navy would be considering purchasing 12 Russian-built Sukhoi Su-27 Flankers. These aircraft would be used as anti-terrorism and anti-pirating roles in protecting Mexican oil interests in the gulf.

Surviving in Space

“NASA had already learned that too much supervision can be a problem as well. Every day on a Skylab mission that ended in 1974, mission control sent the three astronauts a six-foot-long sheet of instructions. “Our system was designed to squeeze every minute out of an astronaut’s day,” said the lead flight director. The ground even began scheduling experiments during the crew’s mealtimes.

Finally, the astronauts rebelled. In a stinging rebuke to the ground, commander Gerlad P Carr announced that the crew was on strike. They were going to relax and do as they pleased. They were going to look out the window, take pictures they wanted to take. Stunned, controllers got the message and finally concluded that astronaut time off was ‘mandatory’ and ‘inviolate.’”

One of the inherent difficulties of astronauts spending long periods in space – as discussed in Michael Long’s article “Survivng in Space” – is that they need their own time. While these characters are “the best of the best,” they have passed every physical, physiological, and psychological exam put forth by NASA’s doctors; they can and will inevitably suffer from the stress of work.

Long’s article focused on the difficulties NASA faced before they could consider launching a manned-mission to Mars. The mission, which could easily take three years, poses many dangers to the astronauts. The difficulties faced with confining a small number of people for three years together aside, on an individual level, there are risks to the human body.

One astronaut, David A. Wolf, spent four and a half months in space and, upon return, had lost 40 percent of his muscle mass, 12 percent of his bone, and 23 pounds. But this is also in stark comparison to the Russian cosmonaut Yuri V. Romanenko who, after spending 329 days in orbit and a brief nagging by reporters of his condition, performed a one-armed handstand.

While the American’s and Russian’s state of fitness differed considerably following their time in space, the problems Wolf faced are more a constant problem, even for shorter periods.

“Deprived of gravity information, a confused brain engenders visual illusions. Body fluids surge to chest and head. Neck veins bulge. Faces puff. The heart enlarges a bit, as do other organs. Sensing too much fluid, the body begins to excrete it, including calcium, electrolytes, and blood plasma. The production of red blood cells decreases, rendering astronauts slightly anemic. With the loss of fluid, legs shrink. Spinal discs expand, and so does the astronaut—a six-footer can soon measure six-foot-two and suffer a backache.”