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Would you go to a movie alone? For some people, the question elicits a quick and easy nod — of course! Why not? For others, panic: The idea of sitting there, all alone, surrounded by people who aren't alone is humiliating.

Everyone has different internal guidelines for solo outings, and these guidelines are often marked by a fair degree of irrationality. I've never been able to work up the nerve to see a movie alone, for example, and yet I've eaten plenty of meals in restaurants without a dining partner — despite the fact that it's a much more visible activity than sitting in a dark theater. And while going to a concert alone makes perfect practical sense — none of my friends are really into Listener, after all — I just don't have it in me. I'd feel awkward standing around during the interminable period between the last opener and the main act, having no one to talk to, surrounded by happily socializing concertgoers.

The giant "supervolcano" that lies beneath Yellowstone National Park is hiding a deep secret: a massive chamber containing enough hot, partly molten rock to fill the Grand Canyon more than 11 times over.

The newfound chamber (see below) sits 12 to 28 miles beneath the supervolcano and is four times bigger than a shallower chamber above it that scientists already knew about.

"For the first time, we have imaged the continuous volcanic plumbing system under Yellowstone," Dr. Hsin-Hua Huang, a postdoctoral researcher in geology and geophysics at the University of Utah and a member of the team of seismologists who discovered the vast chamber, said in a written statement. "That includes the upper crustal magma chamber we have seen previously plus a lower crustal magma reservoir that has never been imaged before and that connects the upper chamber to the Yellowstone hotspot plume below."


This cross-section illustration cutting southwest-northeast under Yellowstone depicts the newfound, blob-shaped magma chamber under the Yellowstone supervolcano.

Rare eruptions. Is all of this magma something to worry about? The researchers said in the statement that the discovery doesn't mean pockets of magma are growing larger -- or that the supervolcano is about to erupt. The chance of a supervolcano eruption happening in any given year is 1 in 700,000, and the last major eruption was 640,000 years ago.

But the discovery gives scientists a better understanding of Yellowstone's complex subsurface "plumbing" system that carries hot and partly molten rock upward. The upper magma chamber powers Yellowstone National Park's geysers and was responsible for three ancient volcanic eruptions that coated much of North America in ash, the Associated Press reported.

"Every additional thing we learn about the Yellowstone volcanic system is one more piece in the puzzle, and that gets us closer to really understanding how the volcanic system works," Dr. Fan-Chi Lin, an assistant professor of geology and geophysics at the university and another member of the research team, told Smithsonian. "If we could better understand the transport properties of magmatic fluids, we could get a better understanding of the timing and, therefore, where we are in the volcanic cycle."

Earthquake data. The researchers used instruments called seismometers to measure the seismic waves generated by earthquakes in order to determine the type of rocky material deep beneath Yellowstone. The researchers examined data from quakes in Utah, Idaho, the Teton Range, and Yellowstone itself as well as data from distant temblors.

Science magazine reported that 11 seismometers were used to analyze the more distant and deep quakes, while 69 seismometers were used to gather data from more local and shallower quakes.

"To be able to image lower crustal structure, we needed to combine a huge amount of observations from both distant earthquakes and local earthquakes," Dr. Jamie Farrell, a postdoctoral researcher at the university and another member of the team, told Live Science. "Our study opens up many new directions and future opportunities in volcano research... For example, it will be interesting to see if the existence of the lower crustal magma reservoir is a common feature for all the volcanic systems around the globe."

The study was published online in the journal Science on April 23, 2015.

LONDON (AP) — The desperate effort to save lives in earthquake-ravaged Nepal intensified Monday as aid flights arrived carrying emergency medical teams, search-and-rescue equipment and tarps for shelter.

Governments, charities and development agencies also announced broader plans for further help to arrive in the coming days and weeks.

Priority at the damaged international airport in the Nepalese capital, Kathmandu, was given to aid flights carrying either doctors or search teams, said Capt. Chezki, an Israeli air force pilot who landed an early aid flight and then returned to Israel. He could only be identified by his first name according to Israeli military guidelines.

He told The Associated Press that not every flight that wants to land can do so because of conditions at the airfield.

"It's a challenge," he said. "A lot of the airport was damaged."

He said his squadron dropped off boxes with aid as quickly as possible and set up camp to help the injured before returning to Israel with some injured people who were medically cleared for travel.

Aid experts said disruptions at the airport are likely to continue, slowing the arrival and distribution of vitally needed supplies.

Kipp Branch, senior medical supply officer for the MAP International charity, said the group is putting together an extensive medical supply shipment that will only be sent once it has clearance to land and distribute emergency health supplies intended to support 10,000 people for three months.

"The challenge now is getting the airport up and running," he said from Brunswick, in the U.S. state of Georgia, where he is organizing the shipment that will likely be sent from the Netherlands via a commercial cargo flight.

He said the huge amount of aid being sent means the airport will be challenged to accommodate all of the flights.

"The world is trying to respond, which is a good thing, and the systems and networks tend to work a little bit slower due to the traffic volume coming in," he said.

United Nations spokesman Farhan Haq said the UN is releasing $15 million from its central emergency response fund to help victims. But he also acknowledged problems getting relief supplies into the country and the pressure on the airport.

He said food trucks are on their way to affected regions outside the Kathmandu Valley, with distribution of the food expected to start Tuesday.

Citing government figures, Haq said an estimated 8 million people have been affected by the quake, and more than 1.4 million need food assistance.

The aid program is likely to be needed for an extended period of time.

The Asian Development Bank Monday announced a $3 million grant to Nepal and said an additional $200 million will be made available for rehabilitation projects needed to help rebuild the Himalayan country.

The U.S. Agency for International Development said it will make an additional $9 million available for the recovery effort.

A U.S. Air Force C-17 carrying search experts and 45 tons of cargo was scheduled to land in Nepal Monday, with a second flight due the following day. Two Army Special Forces teams that were in Nepal when the earthquake struck are aiding in rescue efforts, officials said.

Spain's government planned to send a chartered jet to Nepal loaded with tons of donated aid from the government and charities, including material to build water storage distribution points and latrines, tarps for shelters plus blankets and cooking sets for more than 500 families.

Mariona Minet of Spain's Oxfam Intermon said many people are still sleeping on the streets.

"The government has asked them not to go back to their homes because there have been 65 aftershocks since the earthquake," she said. "Electricity and water are cut off, so supplying potable water is urgent."

A British Royal Air Force plane loaded with aid was also expected to arrive in Nepal on Monday. British volunteers are already helping with search-and-rescue operations.

The Israeli military said three aid-filled planes have already left for Nepal and three more departures are planned in the near future.

Plans call for the military to set up a field hospital to perform lifesaving medical procedures as quickly as possible and also to try to locate and aid survivors who are still trapped.

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PARIS (AP) — China now boasts more land dedicated to wine-making vineyards than France as it tries to satisfy a rapid rise in local demand.

China's vineyards grew to 800,000 hectares (1.9 million acres) last year, putting it behind No. 1 grower Spain but ahead of France. Because its production is less effective than more established wine-making countries, China's output is only the seventh-biggest, according to figures released Monday by the Paris-based International Organization of Vine and Wine.

France took over the title of top producer from Italy last year, with 46.7 million hectoliters, or 6.2 billion bottles. EU countries have intentionally reduced vineyards in recent years to make them more efficient and improve quality.

By contrast, China's harvest is expected to yield 11.2 million hectoliters. The bulk of that is destined for consumers in China, whose 1.4 billion people knocked back 15.8 million hectoliters (2.1 billion bottles) of wine last year.

The taste for wine has grown rapidly in China over the last 15 years, more than local production can keep up with. Added to the status carried by foreign wines, China has become the world's sixth-largest wine importer, on par with Russia.

According to London-based wine and spirits research firm IWSR China is the world's fourth-largest consumer of red wine, and the fifth-largest consumer overall.

Sparkling wines are also quickly gaining popularity in the country but remain a niche market, with around 13 million bottles drunk in 2013.

The United States remained the world's biggest wine consumer last year, at 30.7 million hectoliters (4.1 billion bottles).

Wine sales worldwide grew 2.6 percent last year in volume, for an overall value of 26 billion euros.

CILACAP, Indonesia, April 28 (Reuters) - Nine drug traffickers held emotional farewell meetings with their families at an Indonesian prison on Tuesday, after Jakarta rejected last-ditch pleas from around the world for clemency and ordered their mass execution to proceed within hours.

"I won't see him again," said Raji Sukumaran, the mother of an Australian who will go before a firing squad along with a fellow countryman and convicts from Nigeria, Brazil, the Philippines and Indonesia.

"They're going to take him at midnight and shoot him. I'm asking the government not to kill him. Please don't kill him today," she told reporters, weeping as she spoke.

Hundreds of people began gathering in cities across Australia for vigils for Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan, holding placards and calling for Australia to respond strongly to its neighbor if the executions proceed.

The death penalties have been condemned by the United Nations, and strained ties between Australia and Indonesia.

Security at the high-security prison on an island off the Central Java coast was heightened on Tuesday. Religious counselors, doctors and the firing squad were alerted to start final preparations for the execution, and a dozen ambulances, some carrying white satin-covered coffins, were seen arriving.

Amid chaotic scenes outside the jail, a member of one of the Australian's family collapsed and was carried through the crowd.

"I saw today something that no other family should ever have to go through. Nine families inside a prison saying goodbye to their loved ones," said Chan's brother, Michael. "It's torture."

TWELVE MARKSMEN FOR EACH PRISONER

Indonesian authorities have declined to specify a time for the executions, which are due to take place at a nearby clearing in a forest, but the last time a group of drug traffickers were executed earlier this year it was carried out at midnight.

The prisoners will be given the choice to stand, kneel or sit before the firing squad, and to be blindfolded. Their hands and feet will be tied.

Twelve marksmen are assigned to fire at the heart of each prisoner, but only three have live ammunition. Authorities say this is so that the executioner remains unidentified.

Philippine President Benigno Aquino said on Tuesday that he had made one last appeal to the Indonesian government to spare a Filipina among the nine, arguing that she could be a vital witness in prosecuting drug syndicates.

"She does present an opportunity right now to be able to uncover all the participants and start the process of bringing them to the bars of justice," Aquino told reporters in Malaysia, where he was attending a meeting of Southeast Asian leaders.

Mary Jane Veloso, a mother of two, was arrested in 2010 after she arrived in Indonesia with 2.6 kg of heroin hidden in her suitcase.

Veloso's lawyers filed a human trafficking complaint recently against another Filipina, Maria Cristina Sergio, who they allege promised the death-row inmate a job as a domestic worker in Indonesia but instead led her to become a drug mule.

Sergio voluntarily surrendered to police in the Philippines on Tuesday, seeking protection after receiving death threats via her social media accounts and mobile phone.

"I'd say it's a changing alibi," Indonesia's attorney-general, H.M. Prasetyo, told reporters.

"Now she says she's a victim of human trafficking. I think these are just efforts to delay the execution. We have given her all legal avenues. Don't force us to change. If we're not firm, it means we're weak in the war against drugs."

Filipino boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao, who is in the United States for a title fight, made a televised appeal to Indonesian President Joko Widodo on behalf of his countrywoman, Veloso: "I am begging and knocking on your kind heart that your excellency will grant executive clemency to her."

AUSTRALIA: "THERE WILL BE CONSEQUENCES"

Authorities on Monday granted Australian Chan's last wish, which was to marry his Indonesian girlfriend at the prison.

But they rebuffed last-minute appeals from Australia to save the lives of Sukumaran and Chan, who were arrested in 2005 as the ringleaders of a plot to smuggle heroin out of Indonesia.

The pending executions have strained Indonesia's relations with Australia, Nigeria and Brazil, which will likely worsen after the death sentences are carried out.

Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop told ABC television: "Should these executions proceed in the manner that I anticipate, of course, there will have to be consequences."

Australia-Indonesia relations have been tested in recent years by disputes over people smuggling and spying. In late 2013 Indonesia recalled its envoy and froze military and intelligence cooperation over reports that Canberra had spied on top Indonesian officials, including the former president's wife.

Indonesia has harsh punishments for drug crimes and resumed executions in 2013 after a five-year gap. Six have been executed so far this year.

Widodo's steadfastness on the executions, which has strong public support at home, stands in contrast to a series of policy flip-flops since he took office six months ago. Palace insiders and government officials portray him as sometimes out of his depth and struggling to get around entrenched vested interests. (Additional reporting by Fergus Jensen, Gayatri Suroyo and Randy Fabi in Jakarta and by Jane Wardell in Sydney; Writing by John Chalmers; Editing by Jeremy Laurence)

The 2015 Tony Nominations are here, thanks to announcers Bruce Willis and Mary-Louise Parker, who woke up before 8:30 a.m. on a Tuesday morning to read off this season's theater honorees.

The list of plays, musicals, actors, directors, designers and composers in the running for a shiny Tony award this year run the gamut of expected -- the critically acclaimed musical "Fun Home" and the Shakespeare favorite "Wolf Hall" both received nods, to the ever so slightly less expected -- "This Is Our Youth" nabbed a nomination while its very youthful star Tavi Gevinson was left out.

The musical version of "An American in Paris" and "Fun Home" managed to rack up the most mentions with 12 nominations each.

Hollywood stars showed up in more than a few categories; Helen Mirren, Carrey Mulligan, Elisabeth Moss, and Ken Watanabe among them. Willis will be heading to the stage in an adaption of Stephen King's "Misery," hence his presence today. Parker won a Tony back in 2001 for her performance in the play "Proof."

The 2015 Tony Awards is set to air on CBS on Sunday, June 7, at 8 p.m. ET. Past winners Kristin Chenoweth and Alan Cumming will replace perennial master of ceremonies Neil Patrick Harris as hosts.

Leading Actor in a Play:

Steven Boyer, "Hand to God"
Bradley Cooper, "Elephant Man"
Ben Miles, "Wolf Hall"
Bill Nighy, "Skylight"
Alexander Sharp, "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time"

Leading Actress in a Play:

Geneva Carr, "Hand to God"
Helen Mirren, "The Audience"
Elisabeth Moss, "The Heidi Chronicles"
Carey Mulligan, "Skylight"
Ruth Wilson, "Constellations"

Leading Actor in a Musical:

Michael Cerveris, "Fun Home"
Robbie Fairchild, "An American in Paris"
Brian d'Arcy James, "Something Rotten!"
Ken Watanabe, "The Kind and I"
Tony Yazbeck, "On the Town"

Leading Actress in a Musical:

Kristin Chenoweth, "On the Twentieth Century"
Leanne Michelle Cope, "An American in Paris"
Beth Malone, "Fun Home"
Kelli O'Hara, "The King and I"
Chita Rivera, "The Visit"

Best Revival of a Play:

"Elephant Man"
"Skylight"
"This is our Youth"
"You Can't Take It With You"

Best Revival of a Musical:

"The King and I"
"On the Town"
"On the Twentieth Century"

Best Play:

"The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" by Simon Stephens
"Disgraced" by Ayad Akhtar
"Hand to God" by Robert Askins
"Wolf Fall" by Hilary Mantel and Mike Poulton

Best Musical:

"An American in Paris"
"Fun Home"
"Something Rotten!"
"The Visit"

Best Director of a Play:

Stephen Daldry, "Skylight"
Marianne Elliott, "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time"
Scott Ellis, "You Can't Take It With You"
Jeremy Herrin, "Wolf Hall"
Moritz von Stuelpnagel, "Hand to God"

Best Director of a Musical:

Sam Gold, "Fun Home"
Casey Nicholaw, "Something Rotten!"
John Rando, "On the Town"
Bartlett Sher, "The King and I"
Christopher Wheeldon, "An American in Paris"

Best Book of a Musical:

Karey Kirkpatrick and John O'Farrell, "Something Rotten!"
Lisa Kron, "Fun Home"
Craig Lucas, "An American in Paris"
Terrence McNally, "The Visit"

Best Score:

John Kander and Fred Ebb, "The Visit"
Wayne Kirkpatrick and Karey Kirkpatrick, "Something Rotten!"
Sting, "The Last Ship"
Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron, "Fun Home"

Best Featured Actor in a Play:

Matthew Beard, "Skylight"
K. Todd Freeman, "Airline Highway"
Richard McCabe, "The Audience"
Alessandro Nivola, "The Elephant Man"
Nathaniel Parker, "Wolf Hall"
Micah Stock, "It's Only a Play"

Best Featured Actress in a Play:

Annaleigh Ashford, "You Can't Take It With You"
Patricia Clarkson, "The Elephant Man"
Lydia Leonard, "Wolf Hall"
Sarah Stiles, "Hand to God"
Julie White, "Airline Highway"

Best Featured Actor in a Musical:


Christian Borle, "Something Rotten!"
Andy Karl, "On the Twentieth Century"
Brad Oscar, "Something Rotten!"
Brandon Uranowitz, "An American in Paris"
Max von Essen, "An American in Paris"

Best Featured Actress in a Musical:

Victoria Clark, "Gigi"
Judy Kuhn, "Fun Home"
Sydney Lucas, "Fun Home"
Ruthie Ann Miles, "The King and I"
Emily Skeggs, "Fun Home"

Best Scenic Design of a Play:

Bunny Christie and Finn Ross, "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time"
Bob Crowley, "Skylight"
Christopher Oram, "Wolf Hall"
David Rockwell, "You Can't Take It With You"

Best Scenic Design of a Musical:

Bob Crowley and 59 Productions, "An American in Paris"
David Rockwell, "On the Twentieth Century"
Michael Yeargan, "The King and I"
David Zinn, "Fun Home"

Best Costume Design of a Play:

Bob Crowley, "The Audience"
Jane Greenwood, "You Can't Take It With You"
Christopher Oram, "Wolf Hall"
David Zinn, "Airline Highway"

Best Costume Design of a Musical:

Gregg Barnes, "Something Rotten!"
Bob Crowley, "An American in Paris"
William Ivey Long, "On the Twentieth Century"
Catherine Zuber, "The King and I"

Best Choreography:

Joshua Bergasse, "On the Town"
Christopher Gattelli, "The King and I"
Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett, "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time"
Casey Nicholaw, "Something Rotten!"
Christopher Wheeldon, "An American in Paris"

Best Lighting Design of a Play:

Paule Constable, "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time"
Paule Constable and David Plater, "Wolf Hall"
Natasha Katz, "Skylight"
Japhy Weideman, "Airline Highway"

Best Lighting Design of a Musical:

Donald Holder, "The King and I"
Natasha Katz, "An American in Paris"
Ben Stanton, "Fun Home"
Japhy Weideman, "The Visit"

Best Orchestrations:

Christopher Austin, Don Sebesky and Bill Elliott, "An American in Paris"
John Clancy, "Fun Home"
Larry Hochman, "Something Rotten!"
Rob Mathes, "The Last Ship"

As demonstrators took to the streets of Baltimore to protest police brutality on Saturday night, CNN largely stuck with its coverage of the White House Correspondents' Dinner. As Jon Stewart pointed out on Monday night's "Daily Show," it got pretty awkward.

During a discussion of the celebrity red carpet arrivals, one CNN host noted that many people on social media were asking for coverage of the unrest.

"This is what people want to hear about, this is what people are talking about," one host said.

"Yeah, it's important," another host agreed, but then quickly added: "I do want to get to the red carpet."

That led Stewart to make a memorable analogy.

"It's one thing to say, 'Oh, that's terrible. We should be doing that,' and then go do it," Stewart said. "But to say it's terrible, we should do it, and not do it, it's sort of like standing in the middle of the street going, 'Oh, people are saying I shouldn't be masturbating in the street, but ... you know ... my balls aren't going to release themselves."

Stewart even played a clip of one of the network's commentators suggesting people could find the latest information on Baltimore elsewhere.

After mimicking a head explosion, Stewart responded: "To be clear, a guy on CNN just said 'Hey, if people are looking for news, I'm sure they can find it somewhere.' It would be like Google going 'What's your question? I don't know, just look it up yourself, I'm busy.'"

See his full takedown of CNN in the clip above.

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Recent attacks on immigrants and their businesses in some parts of South Africa revealed anger over limited economic opportunities and a degree of intolerance, but they also gave rise to charity and solidarity.

Gift of the Givers, a South African aid group inspired by a Muslim Sufi group from Turkey, established a camp on the grounds of an Anglican church in Johannesburg for foreigners, most from other African countries, who sought shelter from the attacks. "There are no boundaries," Emily Thomas, a Gift of the Givers representative, said on Sunday in reference to the working relationship with the Christ Church in the city's Mayfair district.

At the Regina Mundi church in the Soweto area of Johannesburg, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela on Saturday expressed gratitude for a gathering of people opposed to the violence.

"We are so grateful that today we can be here as one, speaking about peace," Madikizela-Mandela, a leading dissident in the apartheid era and divorced wife of the late Nelson Mandela, said at the church where, years ago, blacks fleeing the guns and truncheons of the apartheid security forces had sought refuge.

She said the word xenophobia "should not even exist in South Africa."

The Alma Chamber Orchestra, which includes musicians from top French orchestras, performed Mozart and Vivaldi concertos at the Soweto church and was joined by a local string ensemble. Some spectators danced in the aisles as South African violinists sashayed and stamped to their own urban rhythms.

The looting and violence killed seven people in parts of Durban and Johannesburg and led to soul-searching as South Africa on Monday celebrated Freedom Day, a public holiday marking the anniversary of its first all-race elections on April 27, 1994. The ruling African National Congress said the vast majority of South Africans are not "hostile and intolerant of our brothers and citizens from the rest of the African continent."

Zodwa Makau, a Soweto resident who attended the church concert, said she hoped the anti-immigrant violence is over.

"I think 95 percent of people (in South Africa) understand that this should not have happened," Makau said.

THE FLORIDA EVERGLADES is one of the most unique natural resources in the world, with an abundance of wildlife found nowhere else. It also soaks up carbon dioxide from the air better than major rainforests around the world, researchers say.

But it is slowly disappearing, and has been for more than a century. Today, the Everglades is about the size of New Jersey — half the size it once was.

Much of the damage has been caused by humans through water diversion, population pressures, and agricultural run-off. But there are more subtle forces at work, including the growing effects of climate change.

The discussion of leaving a legacy has come up in conversation lately among my friends and family. Most of my friends are almost or just past mid-century age, and my sons- and daughters-in-law are almost 40 years old or older. There must something in the water.

I thought about the concept of legacy when my grandchildren were born and that was 10 years ago when I was 61. It seems my friends and family are way ahead of me on the idea of a life well lived and what they will leave future generations. One of my sons said to me the other day: "My work is done on this earth. I have three wonderful children." I tried not to tear up.

The idea of leaving a legacy is the need or the desire to be remembered for what you have contributed to the world. In some cases, that contribution can be so special that the universe is unalterably changed. However, for most mere mortals walking this earth, most will leave a more modest legacy that doesn't necessarily change the world but does leave a lasting footprint that will be remembered by those whose lives you touched.

You hope your life matters in some way. I know I do. I've been teaching since the age of 22 and teaching is my legacy, my contribution that hopefully enlightened the lives of my students whether they became actors, scientists, doctors, mothers or yogis. My teaching is a gift that keeps on giving because it leads me to other learning and knowing experiences that I share with others.

My purpose legacy is my family: two sons and five grandchildren. I hope I am fully present to be the best that I can be as a mother and grandmother. I also hope that I am leaving a legacy as a good daughter and a loyal and loving sister and friend.



"Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you." -- Shannon L. Alder

Here are five ways to leave a great legacy:

1. Support the People and Causes That are Important to You
My best friend of decades ago once asked me what I thought was the most important attribute of friendship. I replied that support was the major theme of friendship. There isn't any more wonderful feeling in life than making the choice to sustain loyalty to a friend by lovingly supporting everything that is good and right about that person's life. My friend was an advocate of a few major causes in the city we resided in and I supported those causes, too, as she supported mine. Although we parted ways when I moved out of the city, she would always reach out to me and remember my work, my life and my family.

2. Reflect and Decide What is Most Important in Your Life
When you review your life's journey, several ideas may come to mind: Did you grow and perhaps transform your life, make changes when you needed to, find your truth, inspire others, become a leader or influence others? Touching lives and exemplifying a truthful path is paramount to living a joyful and purposeful life. Your legacy will live on.

3. Share Your Blessings With Others
I was walking two dogs the other day -- one dog was totally blind and the other dog stubbornly knew her mind. I stopped suddenly in the middle of my son's beautiful neighborhood to observe with wonder the late afternoon thunderclouds bulging out from the mountains. I thought of all the blessings I have in life and how I try to be mindful of sharing with others the richness of my life. I have been given abundance and such is my fate. And it is my legacy to give back this abundance to others. Everyone has blessings to share, even if it a simple smile of acknowledgement.

4. Be a Mentor to Others
A mentor by definition is a more experienced or more knowledgeable person with an area of expertise. Everyone has some significant truth to impart to others that will guide less experienced people in life. The mentoring/mentee relationship involves personal development and support. This process involves an exchange of knowledge complimented by psychological and/or social support that is crucial to sustaining new mindsets. Sometimes these relationships last a lifetime, even when the mentee has moved on to influence others.

5. Pursue Your Passions Because They Are Infectious
Your passions are your legacy. Passion comes from an outpouring of the interests and ideas that make a difference in your life. Finding and pursing your passion allows you to see your destiny clearly. That's what happened to me with yoga and dancing tango. I can attest to the fact that life won't be any fun if you don't pursue your passions to the fullest. It's contagious. It's religious. It's religious. Don't miss the opportunity to pursue your passions and then continue to look for new adventures.

Leaving a legacy is an important part of your life's work. A legacy develops from a life dedicated to self-reflection and purpose. What will be revealed and what will endure is a truthful and value driven body of living.

Joan Moran is a keynote speaker, commanding the stage with her delightful humor, raw energy, and wealth of life experiences. She is an expert on wellness and is passionate about addressing the problems of mental inertia. A yoga instructor, Moran is the author is "Sixty, Sex, & Tango, Confessions of a Beatnik Boomer." Visit her at www.joanfrancesmoran.com.

A devastating 7.8-magnitude earthquake in Nepal on Saturday was part of a pattern of major temblors that have become so predictable that many seismologists had been expecting this one -- and at least one team of researchers warned just weeks ago that a major quake was due in the exact location where this one struck.

Nepal sits right where the Indo-Australian Plate is pushing itself beneath the Eurasian Plate, a collision that gave rise to the Himalayan Mountains. As the plates push, pressure builds, eventually resulting in a quake to relieve that pressure.

And according to Nature, the Indo-Australian Plate is still pushing itself under the Eurasian Plate at a rate of nearly 2 inches per year.

"Geologically speaking, that's very fast," Lung S. Chan, a geophysicist at the University of Hong Kong, told the Wall Street Journal. "Earthquakes dissipate energy, like lifting the lid off a pot of boiling water... But it builds back up after you put the lid back on."

That immense and constant pressure has led to an unusually regular pattern of major quakes, making it "one of the most seismically hazardous regions on Earth," according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Major earthquakes in the region are so regular that they occur roughly every 75-80 years. With the last one hitting just east of Kathmandu 81 years ago in 1934, most seismologists believed the area was due for another.

"We knew it was going to happen. We saw it in '34," USGS geologist Susan Hough told the Washington Post. "The earthquakes we expect to happen do happen."

One team of researchers not only expected this earthquake to happen, but even pinpointed the location.

Laurent Bollinger of the CEA research agency in France told the BBC that his team had been digging trenches along the fault. Using carbon dating on charcoal samples found in the trenches, they discovered one segment that hadn't moved in nearly 700 years.

The last time it did was in 1344, and it came 89 years after a segment of the fault east of Kathmandu moved -- the same segment of the fault that moved 81 years ago in 1934.

As it's common for strain to transfer from one part of a fault to another, Bollinger's team warned at a Nepal Geological Society meeting in early April that the same pattern could occur again. And now that it has, Bollinger is warning that Saturday's quake may not have been enough to relieve all the pressure.

"Early calculations suggest that Saturday's magnitude-7.8 earthquake is probably not big enough to rupture all the way to the surface, so there is still likely to be more strain stored, and we should probably expect another big earthquake to the west and south of this one in the coming decades," Bollinger told the BBC.
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