#atozchallenge news -- Here's Who's Been Helping Out

         Oops!  What day is it?   I guess I totally lost track of time!

Here are some great bloggers who have been helping promote the April Challenge:


Jen from We're Living a Full Life put in a push for A-to-Z'ing in April.

I encourage you out there to follow Angela from Whole Foods Living.  She's coming back for a another year, but still doesn't have as many followers as she should have.  You might get some good eating advice while you're there.

With the help of Jimi Hendrix, Bill at Images By Bil paid homage to the April Challenge.  Go over and check out his cool artwork--Jimi Hendrix is the subject of one of them.

An outstanding promo post was delivered by Jolie at Precious Monsters.   She covers a lot of bases in this post so please go to it, read it, and then tweet it, send it to friends, and spread it around.  Jolie is one our A to Z staffers.

Our own A to Z co-host Nicole Ayers offered some excellent Challenge advice in a guest post at Write Non-fiction Now!     Especially if you're still trying to come up with an idea for April posts or are afraid to sign up because you can't think of a theme, check this out.

She may be a newcomer to the Challenge, but Shirlene from Just Good Stories promoted the A to Z like a vet.   Go to her blog and help fuel her enthusiasm.

Thank you Colin D. Smith for the mention and the fascinating Challenge analysis.  That should be of some help to bloggers looking for Challenge advice.

Then there's Dennis at LimeBird Writers (now that's a group I can fly with).  He's got his April plans all mapped out as evidenced in his post about the Challenge.


Thanks all!

Oodles of Ideas for Finding Your A-Z Words

Did you know that if you're participating in the 2013 A-Z Challenge, or have participated in any of the past challenges, we'd love to showcase your ideas here at The A-Z Blog? Today's brilliant ideas are brought to you by M.J Joachim who blogs at Lots of Crochet Stitches and FOUR others.  Here's how to find them all: Follow M.J in one stop-shopping!  (I'm not a shopper...I like one stop...)

On your mark!

Ready!

Set!

Go!

And they’re off, all participating in this year’s Scavenger Hunt for Alphabet Words! 

Here are a few clues, to help you on your way!

Online Alphabet Word References

There are oodles of places to find A – Z word lists online. I discovered this last year by Googling, “words that begin with x.”  Wish I’d found this out much earlier in the Challenge, I must say!

The Phrontistery

Scrabble Word Finder

Crossword Solver

Your Dictionary Word Finder

CollinsDictionaries

You can also get a little more specific and look up things like “scientific terms beginning with letter _” or “recipes beginning with letter _.”

Another easy thing to do is type (define:word – whatever the word may be) into Mr. Google’s search engine URL. You can also do this for synonyms, antonyms and homonyms, btw. It will search for sites to help you. Then you can click on the link and open up a virtual Pandora’s Box, containing words with links to new words, with links to new words…and so on, and so on and so on…

Bring it on Home

It takes a keen observer, and it might be an unexpected chance to clean out your garage, but most people have numerous things they’ve collected over the years, many named with at least one letter of the alphabet, some containing multiple words – things like books, movies, records and food & product labels. This sounds like an opportunity, if ever there was one!

Out and About

I might be stating the obvious by mentioning the library here, but what about all those other places you go like restaurants, museums, amusement parks, theaters, retail shops etc. etc. etc.? If you spend any length of time there, you’re bound to find at least a few bits of jargon for posts that might be puzzling you.

Don’t forget the great outdoors, when looking for words to write your posts! Start naming all those trees, plants and shrubs. Break down the animals by species, habits, diets and food chain levels. Not enough for you? How many shades of gray do you see when it rains? Is the sunset pink, orange or mauve? Does the wind shriek, lament or whisper?

It’s a challenge, but it’s not hard…

Not if you know where to look, that is!

Wow, that was some really great advice! Now we have no excuses for Q, Z, X or whatever may be stumping us on a particular day. We appreciate you sharing this with us!
~ Tina (contact me, see contact tab, if you have ideas you'd like to share at this blog)

Photo credit:  Scrabble Game in Progress, thebarrowboy, Creative Commons Attribution; Interior Mall of America, Mono P, Creative Commons Attribution; Animal Diversity, GNU Free Documentation License

©2013 All Rights Reserved

Our Fascinating Moon. Who Knew?

Our Moon. Something that has captured our imaginations and fascinated the minds of mankind for millennia. The moon and its regular cycle of phases have made it a vital cultural influence on language, calendars, art and mythology since ancient times. The moon has inspired stories of werewolves have frightened us and poems of love. Books, movies, and songs have centered around the moon. I Googled the list and it is far too long for me to elaborate here.

Our moon, which does not have a name like other moons, is Earth's only known natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in our solar system. It has a diameter one fourth that of Earth’s, making it the largest satellite relative to its host size. Our moon is in a syncrhonized rotation with Earth. That is why we only see one side of it. Hence, the term The Dark Side of the Moon. Its gravitational pull produces the ocean tides and the minute lengthening of the day.

The Soviets actually reached the moon before us with an unmanned spacecraft in 1959. Since then, NASA’s Apollo program has sent an orbiting mission in 1968, followed by six actual manned landings from 1969-1972. Twelve men have walked on its surface. We brought back lots of rock that helped scientists determine its age: 4.5 billion years old.

The prevailing hypothesis is that the Earth–Moon system formed as a result of a giant impact: a Mars-sized body hit the nearly formed proto-Earth, blasting material into orbit around the proto-Earth, which accreted to form the Moon. It is believed most of the Moon came from the impactor, not from the proto-Earth. Like the earth, the moon has a crust, mantle, and core.


Water cannot exist on the moon as exposure to solar radiation causes water to decompose, a process known as photodissociation. However, comets and hydrogen from solar winds combined with oxygen in lunar rocks could have deposited water ice in permanently shadowed craters. This is of vital importance if we want to set up a permanent base on the moon, a possible stepping stone for reaching Mars.

Although we have recently found proof of frozen ice on the polar regions, the moon does not have wind or erosion. That is why we see crater impacts large and small that pocket its surface over its life. Volcanoes in the past have spewed out basaltic lava. With a decent set of binoculars or a small telescope, you can see fascinating features on its surface on a clear night.

There is no legal ownership of the moon, although the U.S. has planted flags there. There is an Outer Space Treaty (1967) that defines the Moon and all outer space as the "province of all mankind. The moon cannot be used for military purposes and bans weapons of mass destruction.

You can view the moon using Google Earth.
Grail Moon Mission – September11, 2011 (Very Cool Stuff Here)On NASA's third attempt, the dual-spacecraft mission finally lifts off from Cape Canaveral. The twin craft separate and begin their journey to the moon, where they will study its gravitational field. Scientists predict that the mission will provide a map of the lunar gravitational field, data that will allow for the first comprehensive assessment of the moon's crust, mantle and core.

Some scientists say GRAIL is the beginning of a revolution in planetary science. Precision formation flying could allow for numerous spacecraft to create singular technology "platforms" that could see deeper into space and in far greater detail than ever before. Scientists envision a day when they will send swarms of iPod-sized spacecraft into space, a technology that could replace satellites and offer other advances in communications.

Well, how about it? How has our most awesome neighbor inspired you? If you think this post is worthy of Twitter or Facebook, please select the appropriate icon below. Thanks!!!

Stephen Tremp, author of the BREAKTHROUGH series, has a B.A. in information systems and an MBA degree in global management. Stephen has a background in information systems, management, and finance and draws from this varied and complex experiential knowledge to write one-of-a-kind thrillers. 

His novels are enhanced by current events at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and other scientific research facilities around the world. These potential advances have the ability to change the way we perceive our universe and our place in it! You can visit Stephen Tremp at Breakthrough Blogs. BREAKTHROUGH and OPENING can be downloaded: Kindle for $2.99