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2010-12-26T22:04:00.000-08:00

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How to Tell If You Are Addicted to Technology

2010-12-18T11:36:00.001-08:00

They're not called "Crackberries" for nothing. Some people may be as addicted to Blackberries and other personal electronics as junkies are to drugs, according to John O'Neill, director of addictions services for the Menninger Clinic in Houston.

These over-wired people are so focused on their gadgets, they neglect relationships with other people, O'Neill said. Communication aids such as texting and e-mail may actually hamper our abilities to have more important face-to-face conversations.

But some experts object to labeling the techno-savvy as addicts without verifying that they meet the precise psychological definition of addiction.

* In 2006, psychiatrists at Stanford University surveyed people over the phone to try to determine how compulsively they used the Internet. They found a sizable portion of respondents displayed troubling tendencies, but could not determine whether their use merited a medical diagnosis and said more research needed to be done.

* A 2006 article in the journal Perspectives in Psychiatric Care said the Internet can "promote addictive behaviors" and advocated formally recognizing its use as a possible addiction to improve treatment.

* Another research paper, published in 2007 in the Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology by a psychiatrist at Tel Aviv University, recommended that Internet addiction be regarded as an extreme disorder on par with gambling, sex addiction and kleptomania.

O'Neill admitted that there is not enough research to establish whether excessive technology use qualifies as addiction, but cited people who can’t sit through a movie without checking their cell phones or make it through dinner without peeking at their Blackberries as potential addicts.

"Technology can become more than a passing problem and more like an addiction," he told LiveScience. He listed some danger signs: "You become irritable when you can't use it. The Internet goes down and you lose your mind. You start to hide your use."

He said he can see corollaries between drug and alcohol addiction and the way some people use technology.

But some experts object to calling any excessive behavior "addiction."

"People use the term 'addiction' pretty indiscriminately, without considering the formal criteria that need to be met," said Robert A. Zucker, director of the Addiction Research Center at the University of Michigan.

He said patients must display certain behaviors including craving, compulsive use, neglecting other responsibilities, withdrawal when the addictive object is not available, and other habits to be considered addicts.

"I am not aware of any work that has formally examined whether persons who make heavy use of cell phones, Blackberries and the like meet these criteria, but until that happens, I remain skeptical of the characterization," Zucker said. "It is trendy but not scientific."

Whether or not it qualifies as addiction, O'Neill said, our all-consuming relationships with technology are getting in the way of more important relationships — with people.

"I believe that technology has benefited us greatly," O'Neill said, "but my concern is that many of us have taken it too far, and it's become a substitute for those necessary face to face conversations."

Some experts agree that people who are over-wired may experience similar brain processes as people who are addicted to other things, such as drugs.

Eugene Samoza, director of the Addiction Research Center at the University of Cincinnati, said that addiction hijacks the brain's natural reward center, the nucleus accumbens. This center rewards humans for acquiring things they need biologically, such as sex and food, by releasing dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with happiness.

"If it causes a release of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, it acts like addiction," Samoza said. "That’s true of lots of things that people end up liking to do. So basically I think probably one could become addicted to technology."

But even if you are a techno-junkie, it is possible to change, O'Neill said.

"The first thing to do is take a long, hard look at how you are using technologies, and then to start to set some limits," he said. "You have to take off a couple hours and make those hours important enough that you don't allow yourself to be interrupted. I think we should have certain rules. We don’t break up, fire people or break traumatic news to people via e-mail or text message."

For Better or Worse, 'Resident Evil 5' Exposes Racism

2010-12-18T11:32:00.000-08:00

Video gamers hardly blink at virtual violence — but charges of racism can raise eyebrows. For instance, anticipation for the fan-favorite "Resident Evil" series turned to uncertainty for some journalists in 2007, when they saw a game trailer which featured a white protagonist battling crowds of enraged Africans in a Third-World setting.

Now cultural and media experts have weighed in as "Resident Evil 5," the game previewed in the trailer two years ago, rolls out on U.S. shelves this Friday. And their opinion suggests that video game players should not worry so much.

In fact, the survival horror game may actually focus needed attention on issues of race and how the United States and other industrialized nations view the developing world.

Controversy strikes

The best-selling "Resident Evil" games tell an ongoing story about the sinister Umbrella Corporation and its biological experiments, which typically result in plenty of infected, zombie-like enemies for players to fight. Racism never came up as an issue in past "Resident Evil" game settings, which have included a fictional Midwestern U.S. town and locations in Spain.

That changed with the debut of a first "Resident Evil 5" trailer in the summer of 2007.

"Wow, clearly no one black worked on this game," said N'Gai Croal, a recently retired Newsweek game editor, when he spoke with MTV Multiplayer Blogabout black professionals in the game industry.

Croal suggested that many images in the trailer "dovetailed with classic racist imagery," saying that all the Africans appeared distant and hostile to the white character even before they turned into infected zombies. He added that the trailer's vaguely Middle Eastern-sounding music was reminiscent of the movie "Black Hawk Down," which drew some criticism in 2001 for its one-sided portrayal of U.S. Special Forces taking on hundreds of Somali fighters.

An MTV Multiplayer Blog editor, Stephen Totilo, also expressed his misgivings and contrasted the trailer's depictions of scary-looking Africans with his own fond recollections of people he met in Tanzania.

"It looks like it's an advertisement to virtually shoot poor people," Totilo noted. He said that he hoped to see more of the game before passing judgment, but clearly stated his uneasiness with seeing "the global sign of poverty down the barrel of a gun," as he put it.

The trailer led to a fierce debate among players and journalists, with many gamers angered or worried about the idea that a favorite game could be accused of racism.

Not just black and white

A more complex picture of "Resident Evil" became clear as Capcom, the Japanese company behind "Resident Evil 5," revealed additional information along with a second game trailer in May 2008. "Resident Evil" developers also expressed their surprise about the controversy in an interview with MTV Multiplayer Blog, and said that they expected the uproar to die down once the game hit shelves.

Curiosity's Evil Twin Can Drive You Insane

2010-12-18T11:29:00.001-08:00

It's that time of year again. Gifts are appearing under Christmas trees, and people — especially kids — are itching to find out what's in those boxes and bags. In many homes, curiosity gets the better of a child, as evidenced by hastily re-taped wrapping paper and ribbons in disarray.

There's a real reward to finding out what's under the tree, of course: a new gadget that's yours to keep, or the necklace you've been coveting for months. In other situations, though, the biggest rewards of curiosity are knowledge, stimulation and other intangibles. And for the most part, researchers who study curiosity have seen it as a positive thing, driven by a love of newness and learning.

But in recent years, some researchers have questioned that view of curiosity. These researchers don't disagree that people seek out knowledge for knowledge's sake. But what they're interested in is the dark side of curiosity, the kind that's more akin to dying to know what's under the Christmas tree than to cracking open a book on a favorite topic. In this view, curiosity is like an itch people desperately want to scratch.

"It's the difference between, 'Oh, that's cool,' and 'Aha!' Jordan Litman, a research scientist in psychology at the University of South Florida, told LiveScience. "To get there, you have to go through, 'Oh, dammit, it's bothering me!"

Information gap

The idea of curiosity as an itch harkens back to research done in the 1960s and earlier. At that time, scientists saw curiosity as a drive that forces animals to reduce uncertainty about their environment. The theory explained why animals like to explore new objects, but it left out the question of why animals and humans go out of their way to look for new things that can titillate their minds. After all, if the goal is to find information to reduce curiosity, why would anyone raise their curiosity levels in the first place by starting a puzzle or reading a murder mystery?

This "drive theory" fell out of favor as researchers focused on arousal, the idea that individuals seek a certain level of excitement from moment to moment. But for researchers like Litman that theory doesn't fit, either.

"The problem there is that optimal arousal involves always approaching the unknown to increase stimulation, but never resolving it," Litman said. In other words, once someone reaches an optimal level of curiosity about something, finding out the answer would reduce arousal, ruining the balance.

Instead, Litman and others argue, some curiosity may be driven by our awareness of the gaps in our knowledge. As anyone who's been to a trivia night can attest, nearly knowing an answer is more frustrating than being clueless — or even being sure of yourself.

"One of the greatest ways to seriously piss someone off is to throw out some trivia question at them and just don't tell them the answer," Paul Silvia, a psychologist at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, told LiveScience. "It will seriously drive them insane."

Trivial pursuits

The information gap theory of curiosity isn't ignored in the curiosity field, but it's isn't exactly celebrated, either. Silvia, for example, agrees that it happens, but thinks it's a minor part of a bigger picture.

"That's kind of the small stuff, because most learning, people are doing for its own sake," Silvia said. "It's not because they feel bad because they don't know it."

Litman, on the other hand, argues that plenty of learning is unpleasant, yet people struggle through to get the desired information. It's like food, he said. You can "snack" on knowledge to stifle boredom and entertain yourself, but strong curiosity is more like a nutritional deficit you need to fill.

"Sweet things are pleasurable in the absence of appetite... but they're much better when you're hungry," Litman said.

Both views have studies to support them. The developer of the information gap theory, Carnegie Mellon University behavioral economist George Loewenstein, conducted an experiment in 1992 in which he asked people to click on squares on a computer screen to familiarize themselves with the computer's mouse. In reality, Loewenstein was trying to simulate the volunteers' curiosity: For some participants, there was a picture of an animal behind each square. For others, there was a portion of a photo of an animal.

Loewenstein and his colleagues suspected that people who uncovered bits and pieces of a picture with each click would click more to find out what the full picture was. They were right. It seems, Litman said, that a little bit of information whets the brain's appetite for more.

Litman's research on individual differences in curiosity has found separate domains of the emotion. The deprivation-type of curiosity seems to be driven by tension and dissatisfaction, Litman reported in 2005 in the journal Cognition and Emotion, while the interest-type of curiosity seems motivated by positive emotions.

A more recent study, published in 2009 in the journal Psychological Science, failed to find any evidence of a neural "itch" in brain scans. [Read: Your Brain on Curiosity]

"It doesn't mean the itch story is completely wrong, it just didn't seem to work in our data," study researcher Colin Camerer, a behavioral economist at the California Institute of Technology, told LiveScience.

Camerer and his colleagues did find that people's curiosity about trivia questions is most intense when they're equally split between thinking they know the answer and don't.

"There may be something very deep-seated about being torn between two things that are equally likely," Camerer said.

According to Litman, those findings echo his research on the "tip-of-the-tongue" phenomenon. Being tantalizingly close to knowing an answer — having it on the tip of your tongue — is incredibly frustrating for people, he said. In contrast, when people know nothing about an answer, their curiosity is both less intense and more pleasant.

Curious about curiosity

Perhaps the biggest struggle in the curiosity field is that so few people seem to be, well, curious about it. The trend in psychology has been to view the brain like a computer, Camerer said, and since computers aren't curious, curiosity research seems "kind of stale."

But there are many questions left to be asked on the topic, researchers say. Camerer has found that people will expend time and resources to find out answers to trivia questions. In other words, he said, information has value, and curiosity levels can influence that value.

Camerer and his colleagues have recently been investigating how paying people to answer questions influences their curiosity about information. Preliminary results suggest that payment actually increases curiosity, even after people aren't getting paid anymore.

"It's almost like the money is an introductory discount," Camerer said.

Even on the lighter side, questions remain about why certain information grabs people's interest, Silvia said. His work suggests that a combination of newness and understanding pique interest. People seem to like things that are new but comprehensible.

"Being different in a way that people can still understand and still get is the sweet spot," Silvia said.

Meanwhile, a happy-go-lucky view of curiosity fails to explain morbid curiosity, Litman said. He's done experiments in which people can choose to look at unpleasant pictures or not. Many people will decide to view the pictures, despite being obviously upset by them.

"Humans will go out of their way to see something awful that will give them nightmares," Litman said. He suspects that the drive to get knowledge about what the pictures contains outweighs the desire to avoid becoming upset.

"It's a more complex model, because it forces you to understand that the brain is oriented to make sense of the world even if the result is unenjoyable," Litman said. The next step, he said, is to find out whether it's more rewarding to resolve the happy interest-type curiosity or the tense deprivation-type.

"It may have to do with basic elements of the human brain that desire coherency," he said. "The closer you are to a coherent thing, perhaps it's more troubling when you can't get to the coherent whole."

10 Things You Need to Know About Coffee

2010-12-18T11:28:00.001-08:00

1. Caffeine Can Kill You
But you'd have to drink 80 to 100 cups in a hurry, health experts say. We advise not trying.

2. Coffee Can Be Good For You
A study shows that Americans get most of their antioxidants from their daily fix of java. One to two cups a day appear to be beneficial. Or, if you don't like coffee, try black tea, the second most consumed antioxidant source. Bananas, dry beans, and corn wrap up the top five.

3. Caffeine Might Boost Female Sex Drive
It worked on rats anyway. But researchers say in humans, coffee might enhance the sexual experience only among people who are not habitual users.

4. Caffeine Might Cut Pain
Moderate doses of caffeine — the equivalent of two cups of coffee— can cut post-gym muscle pain, a small study found. But the research was done on people who were not regular coffee drinkers.

5. Caffeine Can Indeed Keep You Up at Night
Health experts advise avoiding it for 6 hours before bedtime.

6. Decaf Coffee Has Caffeine!
If you drink five to 10 cups of decaffeinated coffee, you could get as much caffeine as from one or two cups of caffeinated coffee, a study found.

7. Decaffeination Uses Chemicals
Beans are steamed, so that dissolved caffeine rises to the surface, where it is washed off using an organic solvent called methylene chloride.

8. Caffeine Is Not The Bitter Culprit
Caffeine is not the main bitter compound in coffee. Rather, the pungent perpetrators are antioxidants.

9. Great Coffee Depends on Roasting and Brewing
When it comes to great flavor, coffee chemistry boils down to roasting and brewing. During roasting, oil locked inside the beans begins to emerge at around 400 degrees. The more oil, the stronger the flavor. Caffeine content goes up as the water spends more time in contact with the grounds, so regular coffee often has more of it than espresso or cappuccino. Darker roasts also yield more caffeine.

10. Coffee Was Discovered by Goats
A millennium ago on a mountainside in Africa, a herd of goats kept a shepherd up at night after feasting on red coffee berries. The shepherd took his animals' discovery to some monks, and very long prayer sessions ensued. It's a good story, anyway.

Power Idea Generation

2010-12-18T11:25:00.000-08:00

It’s a method I learned originally through Earl Nightingale. But it’s also strongly endorsed by Brian Tracy. It’s a way to solve problems quickly and get answers that “bubble up from the subconscious.”

Here’s the way it works. You go through an exercise of creating your own answers for your problem. But this mission is just the beginning. The answers you get from the act of doing the exercise aren’t as important as what you get later on.

To use a metaphor it’s almost like the first Karate Kid movie. It wasn’t intense karate training that gave him strong reflexes and fighting ability. It was the act of doing routine chores that lead to a “side effect” of karate skill.

So to do this process, all you need is a pen, sheet of paper and time – approximately 30-60 minutes of quiet solitude. The way to begin is to list out your most pressing problem at the top of the sheet of paper.

Here are some examples:
1. What is a fun way I can make extra money in my free time?
2. How can I get in shape by summer and enjoy the process?

After you have that, you simply list out your own answers to that problem. The goal is to think and write down at least 20 answers.

As you are answering your questions, think of all angles. Think outside the box. Imagine if you had no limitations or if you had a mentor to help. There are no wrong answers so write them all down.

It’s recommended you repeat this process every day or until you have enough ideas where you don’t have enough time to implement them all. You get a cumulative effect from this if you do it every day. Practice makes perfect. You’ll get more and better ideas more quickly.

But as I mentioned above, the payoff doesn’t come during the listbuilding process it comes later. You might be driving down the street. You might be folding socks. You might wake up in the middle of the night. But as you develop the habit of focused thought, your superconscious will reward you with these gems. But the only way it can reward you is if you get away from your thinking.

Take a break. Take a walk. Wash the dishes. Whatever..just get going. You don’t even have to think about your pressing issue. Your superconscious mind will churn it over automatically and without any extra effort.

It’s also important that you take action on at least one of the answers on your list. If you go to the “well of ideas” you need to faithfully pursue at least one of the actions. I relate this to a bow and arrow. If you load an arrow into a bow and shoot the arrow it flies fast and far. If you don’t load the arrow into the bow, you could break the bow by just plucking it empty.

Don’t go to the well of ideas if you don’t plan on acting some of them. You’ll break the process.

So there you go, set aside some time today and tomorrow, and the next to list out your own ideas to your most pressing problem. Keep a pad and pen handy while you are away from your idea sessions so you can capture your super conscious insight

Moving Your Eyes Improves Memory, Study Suggests

2010-12-18T11:23:00.000-08:00

If you’re looking for a quick memory fix, move your eyes from side-to-side for 30 seconds, researchers say.

Horizontal eye movements are thought to cause the two hemispheres of the brain to interact more with one another, and communication between brain hemispheres is important for retrieving certain types of memories.

Previous studies have suggested that horizontal eye movements improve how well people recall specific words they have just seen. But Andrew Parker and his colleagues at Manchester Metropolitan University in England wanted to know whether such eye movements might also help people recognize words they have just seen.

Recognition memory differs from recall memory in that people trying to recognize words tend to make false memory errors called source monitoring errors. This occurs when they recognize words but attribute their familiarity to the wrong source—they might think they just read the words, when they had actually heard them in a conversation earlier that day, for example.

Lure test

To test whether horizontal eye movements reduce source monitoring errors in addition to improving how many items people can remember, Parker and his colleagues presented 102 college students with recordings of a male voice reading aloud 20 lists of 15 words. Some of the lists converged around a “lure” word that wasn’t presented.

For example, subjects might have heard words that included “thread,” “eye,” “sewing” and “sharp”—all of which converge around the word “needle,” even though “needle” was never said.

After the subjects heard all of the lists, a third of them followed a computer prompt that initiated side-to-side eye movements for 30 seconds. Another third did the same with up-to-down eye movements, and the final third did nothing.

Then the subjects were handed a list of words and asked to pick out the ones they had just heard. Those who chose the unspoken “lure” words were making source monitoring errors because they couldn’t distinguish having heard the words from having thought the words themselves.

The researchers found that the people who performed the horizontal eye movements correctly remembered, on average, more than 10 percent more words, and falsely recognized about 15 percent fewer “lure” words than the people who performed vertical eye movements or no movements at all.

“The movements could be helping people identify the true source of their memories,” said Stephen Christman, a psychologist at the University of Toledo, who was not involved in the study, published in the April issue of the journal Brain and Cognition.

Eye movements and recall

Christman’s research has independently shown that such eye movements improve recall memory.

Christman said that he first came up with the idea to look at the effects of eye movements on memory after learning that leftward eye movements activate the right brain hemisphere and that rightward movements activate the left hemisphere. He thought that horizontal eye movements might, therefore, improve memory by helping the hemispheres interact.

But Parker notes that the proposed mechanism linking eye movement to memory is still somewhat speculative and that more research will be needed to understand how and why eye movements affect memory.

Christman said he has received many letters from people wondering whether horizontal eye movements could help them in their everyday lives.

“Let’s say you’re leaving a mall after a long day shopping and you realize, ‘Oh God, I can’t remember where I parked my car,’” he said. “Would it help you if you stood there in the parking lot and just wiggled your eyes back and forth for 30 seconds?”

He’s not sure, he said—but it might be worth a shot.

8 Proven Strategies For Defeating The Fear of Public Speaking and 4 Myths That Won’t

2010-12-18T11:19:00.001-08:00

Everybody has to give a public presentation every now and again.

Some people call it butterflies. Others are not so lucky. They consider getting up in front of an audience to be terrifying. If you are someone like this, you may dread a Monday morning presentation starting on the Friday before. You might have trouble sleeping Sunday morning. We’ve probably all heard about how there are many people who fear public speaking worse than death.

But the truth is, being able to present before an audience is great for your career. Public speakers command astounding paychecks for their performances. Considering some of the lesser known politicians can demand $20,000 for an hour and a half speech should convince you mastering the art of public speaking is a worthwhile venture.

But only if we could get to the point we don’t want to vomit at the idea of presenting before a group of people.

Before I launch into the tactics that will help, I want to make something clear. A little nervousness before a speech is not only okay, it’s desirable. Light butterflies or jitters wakes you up, keeps you on top of your game and will make your speech dynamic.

Heaven help the speaker who suffers no nervousness. He’s just going through the motions, reading from note cards and boring his audience to death. Or worse, he knows that he’s going to suck (pardon my French) so he doesn’t even try.

Nervousness increases your power to project yourself and roll with questions and unexpected turn of events. You’ll be more edgy, more on your toes…as a result, a better performer. Plus, after 15-30 seconds on stage most people report their nervousness goes away. Therefore, jitters are only a pre-speech concern.

As a former stand-up comic, I sometimes had a touch of stage fright. The newer people on the road had it worse than those who had been doing it for awhile. But we all knew what it was like and had our ways of dealing with it.

It always amazed me to see the various ways some people would deal with stage fright. Some would throw up before a gig and get on stage sweating like they just ran a marathon. Others would drink heavily leading people to laugh for all the wrong reasons.

Therefore, I’ve compiled a list of 8 proven strategies that defeat fear of public speaking and 4 myths that won’t:

Here are the myths that don’t work:

Myth #1: Picture the audience naked. They will look so ridiculous your confidence will increase. You can mess up the speech but who cares, they’re naked. As unfortunate as it may seem, the audience is not naked. They’ll be fully clothed and staring at you waiting for a good performance. Do you want the expression on your face to reflect someone looking at a crowd of naked people?
Myth #2: Drink lots of water – a belly full of water will do the trick. How about compounding your nervousness by giving yourself a stomachache and increasing your need to use the bathroom?
Myth #3: Throw up before your presentation – ugh! Don’t even go there…
Myth #4: Take a few swigs of alcohol or some pills to calm you down – Getting drunk or high might get rid of the apprehension, but it will ruin your presentation. You need to have all of your mental faculties. Getting stoned will only make you look stoned.

Here are 8 solid ways to kick your fear of public speaking and give a top-notch performance…

1. Prepare – It is funny the number of people who say “I’ll just wing it.” Honestly, how do they expect not to be nervous or give a crappy performance if they are just making it up as they go? Thorough preparation decreases fear and increases your confidence. Would you ever want a surgeon to just wing it? Of course not. Winging it on stage is dumb. Make sure you prepare adequately.

2. Stand up before a presentation – On your feet soldier. Standing up, takes the physical pressure off your stomach so there’s less of a nauseous feeling. You should also stand up straight with a good posture so you are conditioning a powerful stance before you go on. If you give your body the signal that you are a confident presenter by taking the stance of a confident performer, your mind and emotions will follow. As the host introduces you, the audience will see how confident you are before you even open your mouth. – Isn’t that great?

3. Open with a joke. Most skilled public speakers will open their presentation with a clean ? non offensive joke. A joke solves two purposes. 1. It builds rapport with the audience. 2. A joke allows you time to relax. Remember, if you can make it just 15 or 30 seconds, you’re home free. A joke is an easy way to make it.

4. Avoid drinks and food – It is common to get a frog in your throat before a big presentation. Anxiety causes the muscles to tighten. One of the ?cures? for this is drinking a beverage or eating. The problem with throwing food or liquid on the fire is it goes to your stomach and can intensify the nauseous feeling. The drink will go to your bladder. You don’t want to feel like you’ve got to run to the restroom 30 seconds before you go on stage do you? It’s best to just breath your way through the tension (see tip 5)

5. Breathe abdominally – You may have heard this referred to as “breathing from the diaphragm”. I like to tell people to watch how a baby breaths and you’ll see how to breathe in this way. When a baby breaths, you will see her stomach expand on the inhalation. Her stomach will contract on the exhalation. The effect of this is a much deeper and calming breath. Unfortunately, if you find yourself breathing from the chest, or worse, gasping for air, you are intensifying your anxiety. Your brain isn’t getting enough oxygen and panic reflex sets in — or so I’m told. So practice breathing from the diaphragm. Go ahead, nobody is looking and I won’t tell. Give it a try and see how relaxed you’ll become even right now.

6. Picture a standing ovation – Ahhh the standing “O”. What a night you’ve had if you get an ovation. It’s enough to give you a big head if you are not careful. But go ahead and imagine yourself giving such a terrific performance people stand applauding. Take a mental bow. Go ahead you deserve it. By vividly imagining a striking performance, you can’t worry about falling on your face. All good presenters I’ve talked to picture themselves giving a great performance before they get on stage.

7. Give in to the fear – This is a tricky one. I don’t mean to give in and crawl into a corner and weep. But instead to think “I will not fight my fear.” If you read number 6, you realize that you’re going to go for broke anyway. If you look silly or strange, so what? But the amazing outcome is, when you do let go and stop fighting it, your performance improves. The real you shines through and you won’t choke like the people who fight it.

8. Let it all go – Ok, as you leave the green room (that’s showbiz talk for where the presenters sit before a public speech) you should be walking tall and confidently – remember your mind will follow your body. One of the last thoughts you should tell yourself is “Ok, I am gonna go for it. I am going to speak loudly and confidently. I am going to make them all remember me.” You see, you’ve already committed yourself. There’s no benefit to whispering or walking out like you are facing certain death. Take it all in, the bright lights, the audience, the sounds of it all… It?s too late to turn back so just give in and project confidence – even if you don’t believe it!

Finally, acting is part of every presentation. Persuading your audience to listen and pay attention requires acting like you are someone worth listening to. You can act confident or act shy and withdrawn. Choose to be withdrawn and your audience will follow you into boredom. Choose to be confident and your audience will follow your lead. It’s not natural for most people to speak loudly and project confidence all day long. That’s why I call it acting the part of a persuasive speaker.

Top Ten Reasons Why Ants Are Better Goal Setters Than You

2010-12-18T11:16:00.001-08:00

1. Ants follow proven instruction. When scout ants find food, they spray a pheromone and hightail it back to the nest. The pheromone makes a trail that leads back to the food. Worker Ants at the nest don’t argue that there’s a better way back to the food, they just follow the trail.

A human, though, will see a proven path to success and try to change it. They’ll think they see shortcuts and take those instead of the proven path.

I read a report recently the success rate with franchises was higher if the owner didn’t have a high IQ. Why? Because the franchisees who were smart usually veer off the proven path. They change the working formula and in doing so mess up their own success.

If you watch a scout ant, once he finds food he runs back to the nest, sometimes he gets excited and zigzags a little, he might even make a circle. When the other ants follow the trail do they say “hey we’re going in a circle? Let’s take this shortcut?” No! They follow the proven path back to the food. The result? Everyone gets the food.

2. Ants are determined. If you tell an ant there is food over a hill but there are 5 trees down blocking the path, does the ant think twice? No, an ant will climb a house 1000 times its size if it has to make its journey.

This makes a guy feel bad for putting down a research manual because it has too many pages doesn’t it? Just think of the number of people who quit because the path is “too difficult,” too hard to follow. I face that a lot with the people I mentor on computer networking.

“Brad, that book is 1800 pages long, you mean I have to know all of that?”They ask.

What would an ant say? Would an ant ever say, “You know, now that you mention it, you’re right. I never thought about it that way. It is too hard. We might as well put that big book away and work at McDonalds.”

3. Ants see defeat as only temporary. Every fall, as most southern dwellers do, I go to battle with ants coming into our house from the cold. And although I love ant attitude, Kim’s arch enemy is the ant. So I must exterminate. We have a service that sprays; I also throw out ant stop powder and use borax bait to kill off the colony.

After a week or two they are all gone. They have been defeated. But not so fast! What happens the next year? They come back in the same numbers!

Isn’t it strange that they would come back? They lost. Why would an ant set 1 foot, let alone 6 tiny ant feet in my house? Because they see defeat as only temporary. They know eventually they’ll win. Truth is, I know it too. One day, I’ll be gone, but generations of ants will still be back – until one day – possibly 2000 years from now, this house will be demolished and the ants will live here freely.

4. Ants Collaborate better than Wall Street Executives. As I touched on before, when ants search for food, they set up markers along the way, letting other ants know where the food is. If the food happens to be an insect or grub, this trail is a call to action, they work together to conquer the bug or insect and then drag it back to the nest.

Humans have the ability to collaborate as well. But most don’t do it very well. We are all out searching for our version of food, be it happiness, be it money, or health. Yet how many people do we actively collaborate with daily? How many other people do you actively work on your goals with? One? Ten?

An ant doesn’t want to hear you are not collaborating with anyone. He’d think you are crazy. He’d say you are doing it the hard way.

Napoleon Hill called collaboration the Mastermind formula. It’s true. Two brains are better than one, 3 brains are better than 2. None of us know it all. Yet, if we sit down together and give perspectives, we can help each other get what we want.

An ant won’t waste any time following the path that says “lots of food here!!!” Of course, he has to trust his comrades. But that’s what collaboration is all about. Learning different perspectives and forming relationships that profit all parties. It can’t be a 1-0 relationship. It has to be a 1 to 1 or 2-2 or 3 to 3 relationship where everyone’s needs are met.

5. Ants defend what they have and expand it. Has anyone out there had the pleasure of stepping on a fire anthill barefooted? If you’ve made this mistake, you’ve seen firsthand how an ant will defend its colony. But not only do they defend it. They are constantly expanding it. Both above and below ground, they build, build, build.

If the wind or a boot knocks over their house, they build it right back and continue expanding it.

Yet, when it comes to humans, defending our homes in the form of insurance, paint and weatherproofing can feel like a major inconvenience. And what about expanding your home? Making it better? What an inconvenience! Who wants to build a deck or add on a sunroom? That’s too much work! Especially when a new season of 24 is getting ready to start.

An ant, however, would care nothing for 24. “Nonsense!” He’d say. I’d rather have that sunroom!

6. Ants never let personalities get in the way. Now granted, Bob the ant may be a raging jerk at home, or perhaps he plays the ant equivalent to video games once the kids are in bed. But when Bob gets to work in the morning he’s all business.

You never see Bob the ant wasting precious time gossiping about Mary the ant or the queen who passed you over for the formica sanguinea promotion. No, ants may well have their own personalities, but they leave that at home.

One ant doesn’t purposefully stab another in the back just to get ahead. Another ant doesn’t steal food from the rest to hoard it all to himself.

Ants adopt at a primal level the old saying “There’s a time for work and a time for play.” They never get the two confused. When they are at work, they work, non-stop till its time for rest, then they rest.

7. Ants never spend their whole paycheck. Ants are acutely aware that a storm is coming, winter is on the horizon or the possibility of a lawn mower in the area. That is not to be negative, in every life a little rain must fall. To think you’ll never have a setback is dumb. We all have setbacks.

Ants, know they’ll have setbacks too. So what do they do? They prepare for them. They don’t simply find enough food for one week and then eat it all until the next week. No, they eat some and save some. Yet, something like 30% of the American population lives paycheck to paycheck!

Instead of saving a bit out of each check, people spend it all. You can almost hear them say “If something bad happens, I’ll deal with it then.” Again, not to be negative, but setbacks will happen. Accidents happen, winters come, floods take out houses, businesses downsize. You don’t have to dwell upon these facts, but you need to prepare yourself for them in case they do happen. If they don’t occur, then hey! You’ve got extra in your savings account.

Ants would never think to blow it all in a week’s time. They scrimp and save for the tougher times.

8. Ants expect more from themselves than should be possible.Have you ever seen an ant carrying a leaf or a stick 20 times its size? Sometimes you can catch two or three of them carrying a caterpillar and it looks like the caterpillar is floating on air.

Why would an ant ever believe that it’s possible to carry so much? Well one reason is ants brains are not so big, but the other is they are born without negative limits.

Humans, as a whole, give in to mental limits all the time. We don’t lift 10 times our weight because we either believe we can’t or never made it a focus.

I read in Men’s health last week that some bodybuilders are bench-pressing over 1000 pounds. That’s an incredible feat isn’t it? But one reason these guys can do that is they didn’t limit themselves to 100, 200 or even 500 pounds.

We have examples all around us of people who have severe handicaps, or who come from poor or abusive backgrounds, yet are able to “overcome” and achieve their life dreams.

How is that possible?

One reason is they don’t believe the limits in their physical makeup or background and upbringing. They expect more from themselves than should be possible. They know they are better than to set the ceiling so low.

9. Ants remain focused until they succeed. Have you ever seen an ant who is building its anthill suddenly stop what he’s doing and then buy a lottery ticket? No, of course not! Why? Because ants stay focused on what they are doing until they succeed.

When ants are working, they don’t take sudden detours. They don’t quit halfway through to play World of Warcraft. They pick up one rock, carry it where it needs to go and place it there. He picks up the next rock and does the same, and so on until he finishes his work.

In writing this article, I had to do something similar – so far, it’s taken 2 hours of focused attention. I sat down, wrote up the outline, point by point – until I was finished. Then it was time to write the first draft. I didn’t break off during this time and go to the driving range. I focused until I completed it. Finally, I went through the draft, correcting mistakes and misspellings, adding points where needed. But I had to keep focused the entire time. It’s not all fun, or entertaining. But if I want to finish and have something good to show for my time, the I have to stay focused on progress.

If you can focus like an ant on your progress, brick by brick, stone by stone, you can’t help but be successful.

10. Ants never give up. The typical human is easily
discouraged. For some people all it takes is one “No” and that’s the
end. If he is working on a goal and you say “no” that is usually the
end. He’ll take that as the final word and stop trying. Isn’t that
sad? If you said no to an ant, he’d simply find another way. You can
step on them, spray poison, burn them with magnifying glasses but still
they never give up.

Never give up..

Thoughts on Training Your Nervous System for More Success

2010-12-18T11:12:00.001-08:00

“An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.”
–Mahatma Gandhi

One of the fundamentals of developing new skills you can sell in the marketplace is practicing them until they are routine and easy for you to do. If you can easily do work that others find difficult, you are well on your way to finding an area of expertise others cannot match.

One of the keys to specialization is training your nervous system to perform difficult tasks automatically.

I am reminded of two guitar instructors I had years ago. I wanted to learn classical guitar in my early twenties. Classical guitar is a challenging instrument to learn because you have to use both sides of your brain at the same time. My instructors were often saying “Brad, train your nervous system so you don’t have to think so much.”

What they meant was if I made a habit of the difficult chord progressions, I could forget about the easy music until I got to it!then rely on simple thinking to get through that part.

So how did they recommend I train my nervous system? They recommended repetitive practice of difficult chords and picking. One instructor recommended that I play one troubling chord progression over and over 10 times every day for a week to get it right. He said “If you do that, your nervous system will learn it and you won’t have to worry about messing it up any more.” And he was right. Although the practice was difficult at first, and boring toward the end of a week, I still can play that same piece from memory some 20 years later.

I have found this tip so valuable over the years. It can make you an expert with little effort. One small example in how I’ve applied it to my work is I am excellent at connecting to SQL server databases from a customized application. Many developers hate doing SQL connections. But I can do it without having to think about it because I spotted it as a weakness in my skills and I spent a week doing the nervous system training.

I followed the same method described above slightly altered for software development:

1. Write the code to connect to a database
2. Erase all my work and write it again
3. Repeat steps one and two 10 times a day for a week

It wasn’t all that fun. It was tedious and boring at times. But eventually, it became a habit. Now, I can sit down almost anywhere and bang out a customized application that will connect to a SQL Server in about 10 minutes. I don’t really have to think about it. This skill comes in quite handy when failures happen and quick decisions need to be made.

Do you see any weaknesses in your work in which you could use some improvement? If so, figure out a way to break it down into small chunks. Then you can apply the three steps above to train your nervous system to make it an integrated part of your skill set.

Links Of Interests

2010-12-18T11:09:00.001-08:00

Take A Cue From ‘Iron Man’
The power of owning your own product and building your own business.
The Hyperconnected vs. 84% of Everyone Else on Earth
Are we the minority? From the post “The first piece of research from Parks Associates (via Dwight Silverman and CNET) reveals that one-fifth of all U.S. heads-of-household have never used e-mail. “
Fastest Online Dictionary in the net – DefineItFast.com
This is a fast disctionary, but so far only 203,147 English Words

12 Superb Ways

2010-12-18T11:07:00.000-08:00

So you’ve got a few pounds to lose. Maybe you are just starting out with your weight loss goal. Maybe you are near the end and you’ve hit a plateau. Either way, you want to lose 10 pounds in the next 30 days.

Here are 12 attitudes you can develop that will make sure you see a thinner, more healthy you by next month:

1. It’s not only possible, it’s probable – Adopting a “can do” attitude is of utmost importance if you really want to lose 10 pounds in 30 days. Abandon questions of whether it’s possible or not, of course it’s possible. But not only that, if you develop the attitudes in this article, losing 10 lbs. becomes probable. In fact you might lose more!

2. There’s no tomorrow – One key attitude all success minded people can develop is TODAY thinking, not tomorrow thinking. Saying “I’ll start tomorrow” always fails. You can’t predict what’s going to happen tomorrow. So you need to start today. If you truly want to lose 10 pounds you’ll have to start today. The clock is already ticking.

3. Cut portions, not calories – Cutting calories is a lot of work. You have to add, subtract and chart your daily meals. Instead, I suggest youcut portion size for the next 30 days. “Shrink your stomach” as grandma used to say. Eat half a sandwich instead of a full one. Eat only what it takes to survive. But don’t starve yourself, starving causes the body to store fat.

4. You are strong enough to endure the tough times – The next 30 days will be a challenge. Like a marathon runner, you’ll have some strong times and weak times. During the down times, hold onto something positive. A determined “I CAN do this!” is a good place to start. But reach deep. Pull out the very best in yourself to make it through the setbacks. Life tests us all, make sure you pass the test by keeping positive when the times get tough.

5. Resisting temptation feels good – Here’s an attitude that makes weight loss like a game. When you resist that piece of cake, feel the thrill. You should feel like you are a new person, someone strong, someone who has it all together. Good for you. You don’t have to be powerless anymore. Resisting temptation does feel good. So enjoy that feeling. Think “I conquered my sweet tooth tonight and I couldn’t be happier. It is powerless over me!”

6. Doing 10 extra minutes of exercise each day is easy – Have you ever heard the saying “the extra mile has no road blocks?” What that means is doing a little more is much easier than stopping and starting all over again. Put another way… Suppose you are walking for 20 minutes. It’s far easier to continue an extra 10 minutes than to stop and do that 10 minutes later. You are already out there, do an extra 10 minutes – it’s easy. And hey, I’ll let you even cut back intensity for that 10 minutes – just as long as you do it.

And if you haven’t started exercising, now is the time! Don’t put it off any longer. Do 10 minutes today!

7. I will do it or die trying – This attitude is a bridge burning attitude that if you feel it deep down in your gut will guarantee you’ll lose those 10 pounds. It means you are through with excuses. You’re through feeling sorry for yourself. You are going to put 110% into reaching this goal or it will be the last thing you do.

Security agents often say “no lock or alarm system will beat a determined criminal.” Why? Because a determined criminal will do it or die trying.

If you can pump up your determination to the level of some lowly criminal, you’ve got it made.

8. A Taste – Not The Whole thing – What drives me crazy about some weight loss plans is they present desserts and other high calorie foods as forbidden fruit. The problem is that if you eat something in that category, you feel bad about yourself. It becomes a colossal failure. You might think “Well, I failed last night, no sense in continuing this. I will never make it.”

That’s why I always suggest a taste, not the whole thing. A taste is a bite or two of something you like. Not the whole thing.

You can take a bite of chocolate cake and enjoy every sheer morsel of that bite. But the whole piece? Do you really need it all to be happy? If your happiness is dependent on cake, then something else is going on… and I think you know what I mean.

People long for the taste and experience, not filling their stomachs until they hurt. So a taste can go very far if you simply enjoy it, experience it. Close your eyes and soak it all in. Isn’t that better than denying yourself or feeling like junk because you ate too much?

9. I will look sooooo good – This attitude should put a smile on your face. You need to see in your mind’s eye what you’ll look and feel like when you reach the -10 lb mark. How will you look? Will you be able to fit into some jeans you outgrew? Will people notice? Sure they will. And you’ll have yourself to thank for it. So spend some time every day thinking about how good you’ll look, not how much you are missing.

By the way, if you read attitude #8 can you honestly say you are missing anything? I mean, c’mon this can be fun if you have the right attitude.

10. I am different now – If you have tried and failed, tried and failed, I have some good news. You are different now. You are different today than you were yesterday, and the day before that. As humans we are always evolving. We are always growing…like it or not.

So realizing you are a new person, you don’t have to worry about how you failed it the past. Today it will be different. You are able to cope better and stay motivated better. This time you’ll do it.

11. Just wait until they see the new me – We all like to be appreciated for what goals we achieve. This is no different, picture a scenario where you unveil yourself in 30 days before your family and friends. They see how much progress you’ve made. Picture them patting you on the back and saying “great job! I knew you could do it.”

12. It’s ONLY 2 1/2 pounds per week – Hey, I am only talking 2 1/2 pounds a week! Not 5 or 7 pounds… Just 2 1/2 pounds on average. You can do that can’t you?

This attitude is more about picturing such a small number to shoot for should be achievable in anyone’s mind. So why not you? Set 2 1/2 lbs. for each week and then do it.

By the way, I recommend not weighing every week, because sometimes you might retain water or your body may be compensating for a good week of weight loss. What we are shooting for is an average of 2 1/2 lbs. You might start out losing 5lbs. the first week and lose only 1 the second. That’s ok.

10 Brainstorming Techniques that Help Stimulate Your Individual Creativity

2010-12-18T11:00:00.000-08:00

Brainstorming is a valuable method for rediscovering your creativity. Some days, you are drowning in an ocean of ideas. Others, you are looking at the desert and hoping for an oasis. You are creative, your brain just needs a bit of priming. Here are ten methods for brainstorming to get the idea river gushing.

1. Free Writing

Stream of consciousness writing is one of the most unpredictable forms of writing. You do not know where your brain will lead you, but you can be assured that it will be interesting. There is no special preparation for this method. Open a new Notepad window or pick up a sheet of paper and start writing.

2. Wordplay

Start writing poetry about your favorite topic. Use words that rhyme. Write the song that is going through your head. Pick your favorite prefix or suffix and start listing all of the words within which that fragment resides. Attempt to be as silly as possible.

3. What If?

Most novels are written on the premise of ‘what if?’ What if there were no water on our planet? What if there were too much water on the planet? What would happen if our feet were digitigrade instead of plantigrade? Ask some what if questions and see where the answers take you.

4. Mind Map

Mind mapping is an exciting method of generating ideas because you are building on the idea of ‘and then?’ You are mapping out those tangents that your mind takes. Take a concept or idea and write it in the center of your page. Write concepts and ideas around that idea until something interests you. When you exhaust the options for one of the topic, elaborate on one of the subtopics.

5. Analogy

Take two unrelated topics and attempt to connect them. Start with the question ‘How is _____ like a ______?’ and see what happens. Your brain is geared toward answering questions, so you will immediately start finding answers. Write down your list and see where it leads.

6. Role Playing

How would someone else handle the situation that you are in? What would someone else have for dinner? This exercise is all about looking at the alternative perspective to a problem. How would the person that you dislike the most care for their pets?

7. Escapism

Start with a common problem or situation that everybody has. Write a list of surreal solutions. There can be no reasonable or completely feasible answers on this list. Once you have your list, search for items which can be altered to become viable.

8. Outlining

This brainstorming technique is perfect for analytical people. This is like the mind map method. You are using writing instead of drawing to convey your ideas. Start with a broad subject and break it into subtopics. The outline method is very useful for writing non fiction.

9. 77 Storms

When you are brainstorming, aim for a specific number and do not stop until you have reached the number. Do not judge the ideas, merely fill the page. This will give you ideas and directions.

10. Questions

Look at the items which surround you and ask questions. What is the history of this object? Why is the mantlepiece made of faux wood? These questions are intended to be childlike because it will spur on your brain. Search for answers to your questions after ten minutes.

Using these creativity techniques will help you to get your ideas once again flowing like a river. Brainstorming will add that extra push to your writing and take you in exciting directions.

just join this!!!

2010-12-16T04:59:00.001-08:00

http://www.prelaunchmalaysia.com/osamasan

You Got Magic Inside You!

2010-12-14T01:51:00.000-08:00

I’d like to tell you a story if you’re willing to read on, I think it can change your thinking and could change your life.

A bear is silently strolling around in the woods looking for food.

Out of the corner of her eye she spots a mountain lion, silently creeping toward her. The bear slowly turns her head in the other direction and spots another mountain lion. Her worst fears are being realized. She is being ambushed, if there are two, there will be more.

She quickly turns her head and spots another two lions. As her head turns she feels a hot searing pain in her back as one of the lions has pounced on her and dug his claws deep into her back. The bear struggles but can’t find her roar to shout for help and to scare the lions away. Another lion sinks his teeth into her leg. and the other two lions pounce on her back and front.

For a few moments the bear gives up and thinks she is good as dead. Then a picture of her cubs jumps into her mind. She sees the cubs looking for their mother, looking for food and at that moment she knows the cubs will die if she does not go back to the large hole under the oak tree, where they are dwelling. Another claw just misses her eye as she sees the lion about to bite into her neck. The three cubs keep coming back into her mind and suddenly she rises…..she rises to shake off two of the lions and lets out an almighty roar…she shakes another lion from her leg and swats another as he pounces again, she looks at the lion face on and roars another massive, bellowing roar. The lions stops in it’s tracks….another roar confirms his suspicion that this bear wants to live, and will do anything to survive. He turns and walks away and the other lions join him.

The bear, limps slowly back to her cubs and cradles them in her fur as she feeds them.

The magic in you

We all have magic in us, we all have that spark that says ‘I am not going to settle for a mundane life, I want to experience life to it’s fullest, I want to live, I want to dance, I want to do something, I want to love and feel totally alive’

The trick to life is finding your magic, finding the meaning that will drive you forward every single day of your life. So many of us have given up. I’ve heard countless stories of men and women who have retired after working for 45 years, only to die a few years after retirement, their fight had left them, they hadn’t found the magic inside of them.

You goal in life should be to find the magic inside of you, find it quick and keep driving toward it every single day of your life, you truly are magical, you might not realise it but the magic is there.

When you have found the magic, there’s only one thing you need to do with it……………. Share it with others.

Inspirations Lost ??

2010-12-14T01:48:00.001-08:00

We all get our inspirations from everyone & everything that happens around us. So it should be no surprise that in return, we can inspire other people. What better way to give back to this world than to inspire everyone around you? I remember a quote from Tupac Shakur that said “I may not change the world, but I will spark the mind of the one that will.“ It’s one of the best gifts that you can provide to this world and specifically, to the ones that are close to you. Here are some ways that you can ensure that you create inspiration everywhere around you:

Tell the truth
There is something about honesty that we all appreciate. When you think about it, has a liar ever been inspiring? Maybe, but that doesn’t last. You see, truth has a way of always coming to light. It can take some time, but usually, the truth comes out. Telling the truth makes sure that your word is gold, and that you will never disappoint anyone in the process. I have a friend that is brutally honest, and I admire this person very much, because what you see is what you get. There are no smoke and mirrors. Telling the truth peels all the layers away and the real person is exposed. There is no trickery or manipulation, it’s all genuine and to me, I find this extremely inspiring. If we all would get inspired to tell the truth in this world, how things would be different!

Live passionately
The Olympics are coming up in a few days, and the entire world will witness these incredible athletes perform what they are truly passionate about. I can watch someone excel in swimming and it will inspire me in my own endeavors. Have you ever watched a singer perform in a way that it touched you? This is passion coming through to you. In return, you can live your own life passionately and everyone around you will be inspired because the emotions become crystal clear. We know right away when someone does something with passion. It has that little extra, it touches us in our heart. One of the most popular articles I have ever written is 7 Questions To Finding Your True Passion. Thousands of people have been really touched by it and this shows how important it is to live passionately.

Keep your promises
There is nothing more disappointing than someone that does not keep their promise. Once you disappoint someone, you can never inspire them. Because they will never look at you the same way. When someone doesn’t keep a promise with me, I feel the way a kid feels when they find out that santa claus doesn’t exist. That magic is gone, those expectations that this individual is a great person fade away. It’s truly unfortunate. This is why I make it a point to keep my word, no matter what. I do not want to disappoint people. I was inspired by my mother who genuinely goes out of her way to help people. She’s never broken a promise to me. There is something so wise about it, I just had to follow this same path. Hopefully I can inspire others to follow through as well!

Listen
Sometimes, the best gift you can give to someone is to just listen to them. By nature, being a curious person about how other people function and finding out what makes them tick, I became a very good listener. I know the impact it has had on the many friends around me that I spend time listening to. People need to be heard, it could be something really silly or something totally not important…do not judge and just be there in full, open your two ears, and just pay attention. This super simple act can truly create inspiration all around you. Being a good listener is one of the most respected skills anyone can ever have, because it’s a selfless act. I highly regard people that spend time listening to what I have to say, and it inspires me to continue doing the same.

Share
Along the same lines as listening, by donating your time and your wealth, you can help inspire those around you. I have tremendous respect for people that go out of their way to fight for a particular cause, such as cancer research, helping overcome poverty, cleaning up the environment, and the likes. It inspires me to do the same and share some of my time and wealth to help other people and contribute to such causes. Sharing is such a beautiful act, one that we simply cannot help but to be in awe of. It’s powerful indeed, and such power creates massive inspiration. Donate some of your time and watch how it changes everyone in your surroundings.

Smile
Such a small act, yet such a large impact. The power of a smile can transform anyone, anywhere, in an instant. I remember once I had bought a defective appliance and had to go back to the store multiple times to straighten it out. Being not too pleased, I ended up dealing with this lady who was a supervisor and instead of having attitude with me, she smiled and made some small jokes to lighten up the mood. It worked so well. Everything that made me impatient and cranky completely lifted off me. It was truly inspiring, and I do the same when I deal with clients or when I speak with a friend that is going through a rough time. A simple smile can truly change everything.

Gandhi once said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.“ It starts with us. It’s by inspiring others that we can get the ball rolling and make a difference in this world.

7 days to becoming a better person.

2010-12-14T01:39:00.000-08:00

There are many things that you can do to become a better person. You can work hard, exercise, and eat well for example. All of these things are great, no question about it. However, in my opinion, becoming a better person starts with being selfless. Doing good deeds for other people without expecting to gain from it is one of the most rewarding experiences that one can feel in a lifetime. Becoming a truly better person begins with giving outwardly. I’ve come up with this challenge:

7 days to becoming a better person.

Each day you do something selfless, that will not even take more than a few moments of your time, and experience first hand what it feels like to transform into a genuinely great person. Here’s the challenge:

Day 1 – Tell someone you love them
So many people out there never take the precious time to express how they feel to the ones that are truly important in their life. Expressing your love shouldn’t be seen as taboo or a sign of weakness. It’s a sign of confidence, and an expression of what you really feel. There is nothing more amazing than to know that someone loves you. On this first day of the challenge, choose someone in your life to make them feel that special feeling. It’s very simple, just sit them down and say something along those lines: “You know I don’t say this often enough but I do appreciate our bond and everything that you do for me. So I just wanted to tell you that I love you…I wanted you to know that.” In two minutes, you have made someone’s day….forget day, you’ve made their month! So pick a spouse, a parent, a sibling, a friend….anyone that you truly care about and say the magic word. You may get a little nervous just before, but once you say it, I guarantee you that you will feel amazing. Yes, becoming a better person is not a chore….it actually feels great!

Day 2 – Open your ears and listen

Everyone has their share of issues that they deal with on a daily basis. We all at some point need to be heard. We need to get things out and just blow some steam. Unfortunately, the art of listening is fading away. It’s becoming more and more of a struggle for people to find a good pair of ears to vent off to. So on day 2 of your quest to becoming a better person, you simply have to be there for someone close to you. That’s all you have to do. Listen to them. Let me tell you, I do this all the time with my friends. I make myself available for them and I just listen. You wouldn’t believe how it makes them happy to have someone listen to them. No opinions, no judgment. Listen unconditionally. You may not have realized the power of listening yet, but this exercise will prove it to you. It can make a tremendous difference in someone’s life, and it’s one of the best gifts you can give anyone.

Day 3 – Apologize

We all have made certain mistakes. We’ve all done things we regret. Unfortunately, the majority of the time, we never take the opportunity to make things better, perhaps out of pride or ego. So we carry this along with us. Sure, with time, its impact may fade a little, but there is a much more powerful method to deal with such situations. On day 3, it’s time for you to swallow your pride and apologize. Look into your past. Is there a particular person that you have lost touch with or haven’t spoken to in a while? Regardless of what happened, this is not the time to decide who was right and who was wrong. This is about healing a wound. Apologizing is not an admission that you were wrong. On the other hand, it is proof that you are confident enough to say it. This act will not only make the other party feel much better, it will inspire them. So by being the “bigger person” and apologizing, you create nothing but positive energy all around. This is as rewarding for you as it is for that other person.

Day 4 – Give away a valuable

Nowadays, the only time people give each other anything somewhat meaningful is on birthdays and holidays. What about the other 360-something days of the year? Simply giving contains so much power in and of itself. This is why on day 3, you will choose something meaningful that you will give to someone that you know will like it and/or benefit from it. It must be something in your home, that you already own. Perhaps a painting, or a book. Something that you hold dear and that will bring happiness and value to the person you choose to give it to. You see, sharing your wealth is one of the best ways to prove how much you care and necessary to becoming a good person. These types of gifts are so much more powerful than anything given on birthdays or holidays, because it shows that you gave it because you wanted to, not because you had it. This brings a whole new meaning to that gift and will make the person appreciate it even more!

Day 5 – Volunteer your time

The first few days, you have given back to the people close to you, but now, it is time to take this further than the comfort of your own surroundings! Giving back to your community and your society is just as important, and an integral part of making everything as a whole, a much better existence for all involved. On day 5, it is time for you to give some of your time away. It doesn’t have to be complicated. You can volunteer your time helping out at your children’s school, or at a local community center for example. It doesn’t have to be a full day or many hours. Volunteer the time that you can. What I mean is that instead of watching tv or surfing the web for example, take some of that time and do something that will help contribute to the development of your community. Ask around, could be something at work or related to a particular activity that you do. Nobody refuses a helping hand and everyone benefits out of it

Day 6 – Help out a stranger

So many people out there could use the help of some good people. After all, we are all humans and we should stick up for one another. I’ve always been amazed by stories of complete strangers risking their life to help a fellow human being. If we can just help anyone with a fraction of such a commitment, then we’ve all made a difference. On day 6, it’s time to do a kind gesture for a total stranger. Could be helping an elderly person with their bags, or helping a kid cross the street, there are so many tiny gestures that we can do in our daily life to help others it’s incredible. When you see a car break down on the side of the road, most people drive by, thinking that help is on the way or that someone else will stop. How about you become the person that stops? How about you become the person whose gesture makes a total stranger’s day? This is your opportunity to showcase how a good-hearted person reacts in such situations for the greater good of all involved.

Day 7 – Donate

The world is a big place, but in the end, we are a tiny community in the vastness of the Universe. All we have is each other. Although they may not live nearby, there are so many people around the world that need the assistance of good natured people. On this final day, it is time to take your good deeds global! There are tons of really good charities and organizations across the globe that make it their goal to help out those that are in need. Pick any organization about any particular cause that you may hold dear to your heart, and provide them with a donation. The internet makes it really easy now to find such organizations, so this final step is super simple and quick to complete. Donate whatever you can. The amount is not important. What is important is that even though your gesture was simple and quick, the difference it will make will resonate with far greater significance in the grand scheme of things.

So there you have it! 7 days and a better you comes out of it. As a matter of fact, if you have noticed, in becoming a better person, you have affected the lives of so many different people in such positive ways. With such small gestures each day, you have made a difference in your life as well as in other people’s, and that is what becoming a better person is all about. You may find that after these 7 days, you have now developed a habit and that you will continue each and every day to give back. If you have created a “momentum” of doing good deeds and that it will keep on going, then I have done my work. This can indeed become life changing! So you have the challenge and I would love to hear what you all have done and how it’s impacted your life and those around you

7 Ways To Cure Fatigue

2010-12-14T01:33:00.001-08:00

I think we can all agree that in this fast-paced world, our days are pretty full and hectic. It’s only natural to feel somewhat tired at some point during those long days. If you are feeling like you’d rather be taking a dive back into your bed instead of working, exercising, or doing whatever it is that you need to do, this article is for you! I have compiled here the best methods to cure your fatigue right away:

1- Take a deep breath
Yes, we all breathe without even thinking about it. However, we all mostly don’t breathe properly. Deep breathing helps in the better delivery of oxygen to your body’s cells, along with nutrients in your blood stream. As well, it helps in the process of carrying away toxins via your lymphatic system. If you do not detoxify properly, which proper breathing does, you become susceptible to weight gain, muscle loss, inflammation, and yes, fatigue! Try it out, take a couple of deep breaths, you will automatically feel better, and more awake instantly.

2- Drink water
If you aren’t drinking plenty of water by now, you should! This may be the reason why you are feeling tired. Juice, soft drinks and the likes aren’t what you should be consuming if you are tired. You see, dehydration reduces the blood volume which creates fatigue. Those other drinks are full of sugar which actually causes dehydration. Water is king, so make a habit to drink a glass of water whenever you feel tired. While I work, I always have a full glass next to me. This is the best way, because if you have to get up and get water, you will never remember it, especially while you are working intensively. With water right next to you, your mind will just know to take a sip here and there throughout your activity. You will be surprised how quickly just drinking water can get rid of your fatigue.

3- Get up and move!
Sometimes our fatigue is caused by inertia. Especially when you have to work at a computer or sitting at a desk all day. Movement, any type of movement is exercise! Moving your body creates an increased blood flow which in return increases your energy and defeats fatigue. As well, it makes you breathe deeper and you already know the benefits of breathing deeply as mentioned in point #1. So, all that you need to do is just get up, stretch a little bit, and walk around if you can. The best would be to do this every hour, so that you break the pattern of inertia. So get up and move, you will feel more awake right away!

4- Listen to music
Whenever it’s too quiet, we tend to get bored very easily. Being bored leads to fatigue. So turn up the radio, or pull out your iPod and start listening to your favorite tunes. In an instant, you can turn your boredom and fatigue into a fun, entertaining moment. As you sing along to your favorites songs in your head, your thoughts of being tired will slowly fade away. If you can actually get up and start dancing, then you will have mastered point #3 and #4 in one shot

5- Laugh a little
Laughter has a lot of benefits, such as releasing higher levels of endorphins which make you feel better. This also sweeps away any feelings of being tired. As a matter of fact, recent studies have shown that even the anticipation of laughter increases endorphin levels. So you don’t have to laugh out loud, simply finding something amusing is beneficial. So start reading some jokes online, listen to your favorite radio show, or watch some funny videos on YouTube. You will notice that once you start laughing, you won’t be tired anymore.

6- Speak your mind
It is very easy to find ourselves being tired when we are quiet. Think of a classroom for example. It’s very easy to get bored and feel fatigue during a monotonous routine. However, the cure is to participate! Speaking can bring about the same benefits as movement (after all, you are moving muscles when you talk) and being a part of something such as a conversation or a discussion can give us an extra boost in focus and energy to counter the feeling of fatigue. So say something to a co-worker, or pick up the phone and call up a loved one for a few minutes. If you are alone, then maybe sing along to your tunes out loud?

7- The Ultra Quick Power Nap
A quick power nap in the middle of the day is a great method to revitalize yourself and boost your energy to last you until the end of the day. However, most people who work in public settings cannot just take a nap like that! What you can do is take an “ultra quick power nap”, which consists of simply closing your eyes for a few minutes, clear your mind, breath deeply and slowly, and then return to your task. You can do this either at your break, or even at your desk. Just like that, you have gotten rid of your fatigue, and you can also enjoy better focus and alertness.

Practicing any of these techniques will make you feel more awake, more energized, and increase your concentration skills. With the very long working days that we now experience, it is crucial to implement such methods into your routine so that you can get through your days without always having to feel tired. I used to always feel like I wanted to sleep, all day, whether I had enough sleep or not. Basically, I got tired of being tired These methods worked really well for me, so I hope they can be beneficial for you as well.

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Shifting Dots Optical Illusion

2010-12-13T13:57:00.000-08:00

You’ll need to wait few seconds before the .gif file fully loads, but when it does I promise you’ll love it! Once the animation has started, you’ll quickly notice how outer-rim dots begin shifting themselves up and down. But what is so cool here, is that this is actually an illusion! Our little dots haven’t changed their starting position one bit! The only thing changing here is their color; from white to black and vice-versa!

The 10 Most Overrated Things Of The Decade

2010-12-12T20:40:00.000-08:00

1. With religion the reason (or the excuse) for everything from 9/11 to the Tea Party, God has seen better decades. So, just as it was cool in the nineties to come out as gay, it was cool in the 2000s (especially for really smart people) to adopt another once-scandalous lifestyle choice: atheism. The non-believers were inspired by such prophets as Christopher Hitchens (who devised the term “the new atheism”) and Richard Dawkins. Hitchens’ book God is not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything was (as you might guess) an attack on religion, justifying the author’s own passionate atheism. This is like complaining against the management of the Elvis Presley Fan Club, and hence concluding that Elvis didn’t really exist.

Dawkins’ book The God Delusion at least spends some time arguing why God doesn’t exist, based mainly on Charles Darwin’s theories. Darwin would probably be surprised that atheists talk about him so much, because he himself was not an atheist. Sure, there’s good reason to criticize religion and promote science… but exactly how does that prove that God doesn’t exist? The new atheism might be cool, but it makes about as much sense as… as… well, religion.

2. This was one of the decade’s great television hits, for obvious reasons. “What this is really about is the American dream,” said the notorious British judge Simon Cowell, perhaps the biggest star to come out of the series (or at least the wealthiest). It inspired the nation so much that the 2004 finale drew more votes than any candidate in the US elections. It seems awesome, until you realize that the “American dream” consists of an incredibly prohibitive contract with the production company, 19 Entertainment. As Salon observed in 2002, “Their careers are literally not their own.” Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood and the other winners (most of whom I’ve already forgotten) have no control over their images (and not enough control over their earnings), which is nothing unusual, but seems unfair considering their achievement: defeating thousands of hopefuls for… the right to be owned by a corporation. Considering the odds that were stacked against them, it would have been just as easy – and less soul-destroying – to win stardom in the usual way… whatever that is.

3. We’ve heard a lot about this in the past decade, as “liberals” apparently took control of the media. One of the first commentators to see this trend was former CBS journalist Bernard Goldberg. In Bias, his 2001 bestseller, he complained that the media constantly identiﬁed politicians and writers as “conservative”, without labeling their “liberal” counterparts. It’s the type of accusation that became more and more common among right-wing columnists and Fox News anchors –- but like other critics to make such claims, Goldberg didn’t back it up with facts. A few months after Bias was published, Geoffrey Nunberg, a commentator on the National Public Radio show Fresh Air, actually did some research. Nunberg looked up ten well-known politicians in thirty major US newspapers, coming back with 100,000 references. The result: the imbalance in labeling was on the other side. Liberals had a thirty per cent greater chance of being labeled than conservatives, even at “liberal” newspapers like the New York Times.

4. As if to prove that the economy was in bad shape, even Hollywood was crying poor in the past decade. The studios, which had thrived during the Great Depression, tightened their belts in the Great Recession. At the same time, however, they continually announced that box-office records had been broken – and not just records like “all time biggest box-office hit” (Avatar, in case you didn’t know). Any record, from “all time biggest Independence Day opening” (Spider-Man 2, if you really must know) to “all time most popular desert-based adventure” (The Mummy Returns). Of course, they didn’t adjust the numbers for inflation. So not only were these claims desperate, but they weren’t even accurate.

But perhaps the most ridiculous claim was “the most profitable movie of all time” – a title bestowed upon The Blair Witch Project for most of the decade, then passed on in 1999 to another ultra-low-budget screamer, Paranormal Activity. Technically, this claim was actually true. Paranormal Activity cost around $US15,000 to make. At time of writing, its worldwide earnings are $US107.9 million, so it’s made back its money 7,193 times over. It’s likely that no other movie has done that. If, say, Titanic had made 7,193 times its cost, it would have made more than $1.4 trillion (which is around 780 times the world record, and enough to run several nations). So even though about 300 movies made more money, Paranormal Activity is the most profitable. When it’s explained like that, of course, it doesn’t sound nearly as impressive.

5. Every decade is defined by at least one motor vehicle. The flamboyant luxury cars of the Roaring Twenties, the stylish convertibles of the Sixties, the ultra-practical minibuses of the Eighties... And the must-have vehicle of the 2000s? Everyone wanted an SUV! Yes, while we went to war in the Middle East and oil prices went through the roof, while we worried about climate change, while technology for hybrid cars improved in leaps and bounds, we had a love affair with the most inefficient, gas-guzzling vehicles around. Even as we entered the global credit crisis, and once-proud SUV owners tried to sell them before they’d even had a chance to pay them off, the arrogant SUV was still meant to be a symbol of success. What were we thinking?

6. It’s like shooting fish in a barrel, right? Well, yes and no. In one sense, I would even say that this diva was underrated: someone whose undoubted talent (five octaves, for heaven’s sake!!!) was overshadowed by all the celebrity gossip. But she belongs on this list for another reason. In my previous slideshow, I introduced the egotistically-named Juddery’s Law: the theory that, once you say someone is “bigger than the Beatles”, you’ve gone overboard. It’s almost the same with Elvis Presley, though a couple of artists (the Beatles, for example) actually were bigger than Elvis. But the Mariah-hype went into overdrive in 2008, when she overtook Elvis by scoring her eighteenth chart-topper in the Billboard Hot 100. If you really stretch it, this made her the biggest solo artist in history!

Or maybe not. Sorry, but in Presley’s day, a record would have to sell a heck of a lot more units to make number one. And even if that wasn’t the case (which it was), Presley had already scored twelve top 10s before the Billboard Hot 100 had even started. Sure, Mariah’s big, but Elvis was The King.

7. It was one of news stories of 2009, as the H1N1 “swine flu” virus caused panic and fear throughout the world. On April 27, the World Health Organization soberly declared a Phase 4 level of severity for the dreaded virus. This was raised to Phase 5 just two days later, for no good reason aside from the fact that people were getting really scared. On June 11, it was raised to Phase 6 – pandemic levels! Such a speedy change usually means one thing: something was wrong with the data collection process. Instead of looking into this, the WHO predicted that up to two billion people – nearly one-third of the world’s population – could be infected within two years, and 4.9 billion doses of vaccine were required to stop the swine flu.

As the data called for the mass vaccination of half the US population, few people were aware that this worst-case data was being collected for the WHO by the Atlanta-based Center for Disease Control, which was working in the interests of the pharmaceutical industry. The fear might have been unnecessary, but it sold newspapers (and for the struggling print media, that was a godsend). This was, after all, the decade of scaring people with hyperbole. If we ever face a serious flu pandemic (and that might happen soon), let’s hope we can still trust the WHO.

8. No wonder the global economic crisis was so bad. The 777-point stock-market decline of September 29, 2008 was the worst crash ever! No, seriously. As we were often reminded at the time, by a breathless media, it was a “record” crash, even worse than the infamous Black Thursday crash of October 1929. But if we talk percentages (which is the only sensible way to do it), the Great Crash of 2008 was less than seven per cent, whereas the crash of 1929 was 12.82 per cent. What does this mean? Not much, really. On their own, Wall Street crashes don’t lead to recessions (and certainly not to Great Depressions). Wall Street’s worst-ever crash actually happened on October 19, 1987, when the Dow Jones industrial lost 22.6 per cent of its value. But while that wasn’t exactly good news, it didn’t lead to the Great Depression II. The stock-market dive of 2008 was bad, but it wasn’t the worst thing ever.

9. OK, now I’ll admit this might seem ridiculous. Of all the celebrities I could include on this list, not him! Do I doubt that Phelps is the greatest swimmer in history? No, not really. I simply disagree with the chorus of people who call him the greatest Olympian – because it’s too soon to say that. Sure, nobody else ever won 14 gold medals – but it took Michael Johnson to put it into perspective. “If we could run the 200-metre [race] forwards and backwards, track-and-field athletes would’ve won a lot more medals,” said the 200-metre sprinting legend, who was getting a bit bored with all the Phelps-mania in Beijing. Dumb as this sounds, he did have a point. Swimmers, unlike most Olympians, can go home with multiple golds. Phelps won gold in freestyle races, butterfly races, individual medley races, freestyle relays (in which, for the record, some of his opponents were actually faster than him) and medley relays. When you’re good enough, and you’re able to do that many races, you can win a few medals. There is never a shortage of multi-medal swimmers at the Olympics. Phelps was a champion in Athens and Beijing, but let’s see whether he – like Carl Lewis, Al Oerter, Steve Redgrave, or a handful of others – can win gold in four Olympiads. Then he might be the greatest.

10. Not long ago, if I were to include terrorism on this list, I would have been pilloried, censured, and denounced as “irresponsible” by Dick Cheney. But still I would have been right. The attacks of 9/11 shaped the decade, ensuring that we lived in fear of terrorism. With all the news of later terrorists attacks, we could have been forgiven for thinking that terrorism was the worst threat facing the world. Government policy was based around that. Not to trivialize the hard work of terrorists, but 9/11 – easily the worst terrorist attack of the decade – killed some 3000 people. Terrorists killed thousand during the decade, but that was nothing compared to, say, smoking (443,000 Americans every year), the Haiti earthquake, or indeed the Iraq War. But while our governments were arming against terrorists, what of that other problem that they seem to practically dismiss? In a 2005 World Health Organization report, climate change was estimated to contribute to more than 150,000 deaths and five million illnesses each year – a toll that could double by 2030. However scary the terrorists were, they probably couldn’t do that.

So how bad was the terrorist threat really? Just to answer that question, the color-coded Homeland Security Advisory System was adopted just after 9/11. But as Charles Seife notes in his book Proofiness: The Dark Arts of Mathematical Deception, the alert level has never been relaxed below stage three (yellow), meaning an “elevated” risk. As “elevated” means “higher than usual”, it means that the risk is always higher than usual – which, for the record, is impossible. In the lead-up to the Iraq War in 2003, the adminstration admitted to relaxing the alert, just so they could elevate it again just before they invaded. There was only one constant: whenever the government issued a terror warning, the president’s approval rating increased. What more do you need to know?

~osamasan~

Did You Know that today is Human Rights Day ?

2010-12-12T16:28:00.000-08:00

LU XIAOBO

PETER BENENSON

DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI

Today is a special Human Rights Day. It marks the beginning of Amnesty International's 50th year celebration. That's 50 years of working together to demand freedom and justice for all.

The shameful imprisonment of writer Liu Xiaobo and China's refusal to allow him or his family to accept the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo earlier today is a powerful reminder that we must sustain global pressure to achieve basic rights.

Like Liu Xiaobo, millions of people worldwide live in fear of persecution by repressive governments or armed factions and millions more suffer extreme deprivation. But we are not powerless against this injustice.

Amnesty International has proved for 50 years that collective action is a powerful force for change. Just look at the last month where the world witnessed the joyful release of the world's most famous political prisoner, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, after 15 years of house arrest in Myanmar.

In 1961, British lawyer Peter Benenson ignited a worldwide campaign when he published an article in The London Observer titled"The Forgotten Prisoners" Benenson wrote: "Open hyour newspaper any day of the week and you will find a report from somewhere in the world of someone being imprisoned, tortured, or executed because his opinions or religion are unacceptable to his government." Amnesty International was born that year with an appeal to free six prisoners of conscience.

Over the next 50 years, we've shown that collective action is a powerful force for change. Today Amnesty International is the largest grassroots human rights organization in the world with nearly 3 million members worldwide. We've helped win the freedom of tens of thousands of individuals jailed for expressing beliefs or defending basic rights, shut down torture chambers, halted executions, and established laws and treaties to protect the freedom and dignity of people around the world -- and in the United States. And we won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1977.

We hope that on this human rights day you'll join us and our global human rights movement.Take Action.Donate. Invite your friends. Help us give the gift of human rights to countless others around the world (watch our video below for a taste of what we can achieve when we work together).~osamasan~

Well done UK!

2010-12-12T16:04:00.000-08:00

Home Secretary Theresa May has said she was "actively" considering whether to ban a controversial US pastor from entering Britain to share his views on Islam with far-right activists.

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Terry Jones sparked condemnation around the world when he threatened to burn the Koran on the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.

He intends to preach "against the evils and destructiveness of Islam" at an English Defence League rally in Luton, Bedfordshire, on February 5.

Mrs May told Sky News' Sunday Live: "Of course the home secretary has the right to exclude people who are not conducive to public good or on national security grounds. Pastor Terry Jones has been on my radar for a few months now."

TERRY JONES

A statement on the pastor's website said: "During the protest, Dr Terry Jones will speak against the evils and destructiveness of Islam in support of the continued fight against the Islamification of England and Europe."

However, Weyman Bennett, joint national secretary of Unite Against Fascism, accused Mr Jones of coming to Britain to "whip up Islamophobia and racism".

Subhanallah!! What a creatures!

2010-12-12T01:09:00.000-08:00

These pictures are taken from the book ‘ Microcosmos‘, created by Brandon Brill . This book includes many scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of insects, human body parts and household items.

These are the most amazing images of what is too small to see with the naked eye.
1 – A wood or heathland Ant, Formica fusca, holding a microchip
02 – The surface of an Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory silicon microchip
03 – Eyelash hairs growing from the surface of human skin
04 – The surface of a strawberry
05 – Bacteria on the surface of a human tongue
06 – Human sperm (spermatozoa), the male sex cells
07 – The nylon hooks and loops of velcro
08 – Household dust which includes long hairs such as cat fur, twisted synthetic and woolen fibers, serrated insect scales, a pollen grain, plant and insect remains
09 -The weave of a nylon stocking
10 – The end of the tongue (proboscis) of a hummingbird hawkmoth
11 – The head of a mosquito

12 – A human head louse clinging to a hair
13 – The eight eyes (two groups of four) on the head of a Mexican red-kneed tarantula
14 – Cut hairs and shaving foam between two razor blades
15 – Cigarette paper
16 – The corroded surface of a rusty metal nail
17 – The head of a Romanesco cauliflower
18 – The fungus Aspergillus fumigatus
19 – Mushrooms spores
20 – A clutch of unidentified butterfly eggs on a raspberry plant

Read This!! I Dare U

2010-12-12T01:02:00.000-08:00

Can you read what it says in the newspaper headline below? Now try and move your head further away from you monitor. Did this help? This ad was recently placed in a publication that shows the best restaurants in the city (Veja Comer E Beber Magazine), and the idea was to simulate the difficulty people have when trying to read some restaurant menus. When they first look at the text from a standard distance, they can’t read the headline. But as soon as they stretch their arms, taking the magazine further away, the message can easily be read. Did this remind you of our Eye Examination Test, by any chance?

2010-12-12T00:14:00.000-08:00

Are you a big Lamborghini fan?

Most of us agrees that Lamborghini is a great looking car and I am sure that many wealty people who love cars wouldn´t hesitate to have one in their collection. Cars like Lamborghini Diablo, the Gallardo and the Murcielago are like candy to my eyes. Here is a list of 5 facts you should know about Lamborghini…

Fact 1

Did you know that the fastest Lamborghini, with a reported top speed of 370 km/h, is the Le Mans version of the Murcielago R-GT model. The fastest street model from Lamborghini, with a reported top speed of 340 km/h, is the Murcielago LP640. Both of the models have a V12 engine with more than 6000 cc.

Fact 2

Did you know that Lamborghini used to be an independent company, but went bankrupt in 1978 and was sold to Chrysler. In 1998, the German company, Audi AG, became the owner of Lamborghini.

Fact 3

Did you know that most of the Lamborghini models are produced with a V12 engine, even though the newest model, Gallardo, have a V10 engine oil. No Lamborghini have ever been produced with less than a V8 engine.

Fact 4

Did you know that the first Lamborghini was produced in 1963 and called for the 350GTV. With a top speed of 280 km/h, the 350GTV was extremely fast back in 1963. The first Lamborghini to go faster than 300 km/h came out in 1974 and was called for the Countach.

Fact 5

Did you know that the Countach, the Diablo and the Murcielago all have scissor doors (that rotate up and forward on a hinge near the front of the door), but the Gallardo does not. Both the Diablo and the Countach are no longer being produced, so the only Lamborghini car with scissor doors today is the Murcielago.~osamasan~