The Data Digger

Political side of Food

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Tue, 12 May 2009 13:37:00 +0000

Are we not thinking about the political side of food because someone has already given us the answers? There are so many questions. The answers are not easy to obtain. We let someone else filter the information for us.

clipped from food.change.org

Branding Food As Politics

Think about going out of town and needing to buy something. Maybe food, maybe something else. You look for the name of a store or restaurant chain that you know. Say you don't find one you recognize, but you go into a place that looks like they'll have what you need. Do you find yourself looking first for a familiar brand or dish before you'll start evaluating the alternatives?

An excess of choice actually being paralyzing, it's useful to have symbolic shortcuts that let us wade quickly through our options. Having once taken the time to find out what we like, or can at least tolerate, why redo that process every time?

Where it comes from, who grows it and how, who harvests it, who buys it, who processes it, who it's sold to, who gets the profits. These are the political issues surrounding food, and they need to be branded that way.

Outlook 2007 Tutorial

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:20:00 +0000

this valuable content will enhance your Outlook skills.

clipped from www.virtualassist.net

Andrea Kalli E-Learning Center: Courses

Outlook 2007 - What's New videos

Are you already a seasoned Outlook user and just want training that targets the new features of Outlook 2007? Maybe you want to evaluate what the new version has to offer before you decide if you want to upgrade. Look no further!

$9.95 USD NOW FREE for 22 videos / approx 2 hours

To Do Bar (4:47)

RSS (3:04)

Tasks in the Calendar (1:57)

Calendar Snapshot (11:47)

Calendar Subscriptions 1 (4:06)

Calendar Overlay (2:45)

Business Cards (16:30)

Trust Center (2:46)

Reminders (2:53)

QuickParts (10:06)

Email Editor based on Word (2:11)

How to cook an egg

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:40:00 +0000

one day I will cook an egg so it turns out the way I like it.

clipped from lifehacker.com

Cook the Perfect Boiled Egg with the Power of Science

Their "Art of cooking an egg" page contains a handy little Flash application that turns variables like egg circumference, desired yolk hardness, the egg's current temperature, and your elevation, then spits out exactly how long you should boil that egg. The site is in Norwegian, but this page provides a translation (minus the Flash app)—and reader Martin offered a quick rundown of what each segment of the Flash app asks for:

1st slider: The circumference of the egg (in cm)
2nd slider: How hard you want the egg yolk to be. (Hard = Hard, Middels = Medium, Bløtt = Soft)
3rd slider: Start temprature of the egg (on the botton, its directly from the fridge. In celcius)
4th slider: How high over the sea level you are in meters. (Because water boils faster the higher you are.) moh = meters over the sea level

Stitch Simple For the quilter

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 15:08:00 +0000

clipped from www.stitchsimple.com

Escape from tedious quilt fabric preparation- without sacrificing choice

Does fabric preparation annoy you? Does having to prewash and cut fabric take the fun out of quilting? Stitch Simple understands and we have the solution.

Looking for Home Staging?

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 15:13:00 +0000

Would you like to be a home stager?

clipped from www.stagingdiva.com

Learn how to make money as a home stager
Help your clients ~ Sell High. Sell Fast. Sell Smart.

What is Home Staging?

Home Staging (House Staging, House Fluffing, House Primping, Real Estate Staging) is the art of decorating a home to sell quickly and for top dollar.

Established in 2004, Staging Diva® is one of the most recognized and respected names in home staging today.

Advertising & Social Networks

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:56:00 +0000

Let's keep advertising out of our social networks.

clipped from www.blueridgenow.com

Advertisers Face Hurdles on Social Networking Sites

Independent experts on Web advertising have been watching, however, and what they see is a myriad of difficulties in making brand advertising work on social networking sites. Members of social networks want to spend time with friends, not brands.

Mr. Goldstein of SocialMedia Networks describes a self-perpetuating cycle in social networks: “Advertisers distract users; users ignore advertisers; advertisers distract better; users ignore better.”

When Facebook convinces advertisers to stage Super Bowl-sized entertainment every day, its future will be assured.

CRM & Social Media

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:41:00 +0000

clipped from www.btobonline.com

Forrester survey finds social media leading way toward CRM 2.0

Even as analysts and experts predict the coming age of more collaborative, enterprise-ready customer relationship management (CRM), savvy marketers have begun using a variety of social media tools already at their disposal to bring CRM 2.0 in through the backdoor.

What we found was that there's no need to wait; social technologies are already driving business results today,” said Band, author of a new report titled “CRM 2.0: Fantasy or Reality.” “[Marketers] who wait will find it hard to catch up.”

In fact, traditional CRM vendors haven't been sitting on the sidelines. Several large-scale CRM vendors added social media capabilities to their products in 2008.

Interesting Webinars offered by One Day University

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 20:08:00 +0000

clipped from www.onedayu.com

One Day University brings together award-winning professors from Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, and other top-tier schools to create the most stimulating day of college available anywhere. Our great lectures lineup lets you partake in the latest thinking on History, Psychology, Philosophy, Political Science, English Literature, and more. At One Day University there are no entrance exams, no SATs to ace, and no stress. For more information and event schedules, click here.

WEBINARS

December 10th and 11th

Each Webinar will feature Wendy Schiller of Brown as she explores President Obama's daunting challenges and Shawn Achor of Harvard as he examines the science of happiness.

Educators embracing virtual worlds in Ontario

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 22:19:00 +0000

clipped from www.itbusiness.ca

Second Life opens new world of opportunity to Ontario students

"Virtual worlds have been used as training environments for many years," Hudson said. "In the past 30 years, if you've ever flown on an airplane, the pilot was probably trained in a virtual world – on a simulator."

Hudson calls it "practice in a non-threatening environment."

And one such environment that Hudson has used extensively to train his own students is Second Life, a 3-D virtual world created by its "residents", where users can socialize, connect and create using voice and text chat.

Read about how Hudson has turned Loyalist's Second Life experience into a business: Canadian college turns virtual world creation into real business venture

"Ethics of Practice in Virtual Worlds"

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 16:39:00 +0000

clipped from virtuallyblind.com

CLE Seminar “Ethics of Practice in Virtual Worlds” in Second Life Saturday Nov. 8 at Noon PST

As part of the SL Bar Association’s speaker series, I’m presenting “Ethics of Practice in Virtual Worlds” in Second Life Saturday, November 8 at 12:00 Noon Pacific time.

I’ll be talking about a wide range of professional responsibility issues that should be on the radar of any lawyer practicing — or thinking about practicing — in a virtual world. I’ll discuss advertising in virtual worlds, confidentiality of communication, unauthorized practice of law, conflicts of interest, and much more. I will also take questions.

You can sign up for a free spot at the seminar and also sign up and pay for CLE credit at the SL Bar Association’s site. You can pay for the CLE credit via PayPal or in-world using Linden Dollars.

CMS Watch

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 04:56:00 +0000

clipped from www.cmswatch.com

Online Education from CMS Watch

Get smart about content technologies -- at your own pace, on your time,
with the help of leading CMS Watch analysts.

Each course is designed to be completed in a half-day, but they're each split
into shorter modules, so you can complete them at your own pace over the course
of a full year, from wherever you have online access. And each course comes
with our 100% money-back guarantee: if you're not satisfied with the course,
we'll return your money. Sign up today for any of the courses listed on the right and described below.

CMS Watch™ evaluates content-oriented technologies,
publishing head-to-head comparative reviews of leading solutions.
What makes us special?

Our critical analysis
exposes product weaknesses as well as strengths

We deliver unrivaled technical depth and comprehensive project advice

Our research is led by international topic experts

We only work for buyers -- never for vendors

Where to buy a Birkin Bag

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 01:41:00 +0000

Bag, Borrow or Steal
http://www.bagborroworsteal.com/ui/search!search

Luxurynavi.com
http://luxurynavi.com/30cm-birkin-handbag-in-dark-green-lizard-skin-p-8865.html?zenid=0d4a491a64ec482edbdba795976c152c

Creaturs Deluxe
http://www.createursdeluxe.com/bags.asp

*Links provided here are for research purposes. Consumer due diligence regarding vendor reliability, product quality, etc is still required.

Now this is what Second Life is for...

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:34:00 +0000

"the ideas and visions for students here is endless. Economics majors can do research and learn the values of the Linden Dollar (L$) - Second Life's general source of currency. Psychology majors can meet new people and talk to them about their experiences and how it relates to Second Life. Art majors can go behind the scenes making their own buildings or putting their newest creations in a digital gallery. Business majors can follow the trends of the Second Life marketplace and marketing majors can learn how it all works."

clipped from media.www.pacepress.org

University purchases virtual island through grant

Even though the world is virtual and the land is only net space, building an island on Second Life is not cheap. The University received a sizable grant from Verizon's Thinkfinity fund with a primary goal to get the University on the Second Life map.

Beth Gordon Klingner, the assistant dean for Instructional Technology at the Pleasantville campus, is very excited to be working on Second Life. Just as her job title entails, she assists faculty and students in their goal to use technology in teaching and learning.

The students, faculty and staff are working hard on making the best possible result but also keeping it light and fun.

Punkin Chunkin

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 23:53:00 +0000

Where to go for Punkin Chunkin:

http://www.punkinchunkin.com/

Schedule:
http://www.delmarvanow.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081014/ENTERTAINMENT07/81014026/1040/ENTERTAINMENT

Photos, videos, etc:
http://www.atbeach.com/punkinchunkin/

Halloween: Haunted Houses

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 23:39:00 +0000

Where to go to find haunted houses:

http://www.hauntedhouses.com/

http://www.horrorfind.com/Haunted_Houses/

Stories:
http://www.realhaunts.com/

Daylight Savings Time-Sources

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 22:57:00 +0000

Where to go for more information about Daylight Savings Time:

Dates:
http://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/time-zone/rules/usa.htm

Dates, explanation & additional resources:
http://www.infoplease.com/spot/daylight1.html

Explanation:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daylight_savings_time

Global Warming: More fear than fact

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 21:56:00 +0000

clipped from www.infowars.com

WWF Resorts To Deception In Climate Fearmongering

Which is why we are seeing evidence of natural global cooling all over the planet - Alaskan glaciers growing for the first time in 250 years, unprecedented ice storms in Kenya, China experiencing its coldest winter in 100 years, many parts of the U.S. suffering their coldest April on record along with record snowfall, Britain suffering its coldest Easter in decades, Sydney Australia suffering its coldest summer in 50 years.

All the evidence is screaming out that the planet has now embarked on a cooling trend to follow the natural warming trend that caused Arctic ice to shrink in the first place, just as natural global warming caused Greenland to be green thousands of years ago when it was a lush forest and when temperatures were on average 5 °C (9 °F) higher than today.

Similarities to the Great Depression?

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:49:00 +0000

clipped from consumerist.com

The Great Depression Diaries

A serialization on In The Big Money of the diary of Benjamin Roth, a lawyer for local businesses who lived through the Great Depression, there's several entries with disturbing parallels to our present economic crisis.

Hints for the new iGoogle

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:26:00 +0000

clipped from www.micropersuasion.com

Three Ways to Rock the New iGoogle

Use iGoogle as a Google Notebook Scratch Pad

By adding the Google Notebook widget to iGoogle and maximizing it full screen, I have found it to be an awesome scratch pad for meeting notes. I can tag entries, export them later to Google Docs an then email these into GMail. Further, If I need to reference my Google Reader or Gmail, it's right there on the same page. In fact, I used it to start writing this blog post.

Add Google Suggest with iSuggest

I am addicted to Google Suggest. It's amazing way to discover searches that are relevant to yours. Google recenty added it to the main Google interface, but for some reason they forgot iGoogle. Add the iSuggest widget to iGoogle and minimize it and you'll enjoy the same functionality while waiting for Google engineering teams to become a bit more synchronized.

Consumers want Companies to support a cause

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:13:00 +0000

clipped from www.entrepreneur.com

Cause Marketing Matters to Consumers

Social responsibility makes consumers take notice. Follow these 5 steps to create a successful cause-based marketing campaign.

If your business or brand doesn't stand for a cause, consumers may turn to your competitors. The number of consumers who say they would switch from one brand to another if the other brand were associated with a good cause has climbed to 87 percent, a dramatic increase in recent years, according to a Cone Cause Evolution Survey.

Even niche markets, such as the nation's college students, now show a striking preference for brands they believe to be socially responsible. According to a newly released College Explorer study from Alloy Media, nearly 95 percent of students say they are less likely to ignore an ad that promotes a brand's partnership with a cause.

Use technology to simplify your message

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:08:00 +0000

clipped from www.entrepreneur.com

Simplify Business Communication

Technology allows us to be more creative and visual than ever. But using it to make things simpler is the real trick.

By Whitney Chen
| October 17, 2008

In this information-overloaded age, your employees, potential clients, and investors don't have time to sift through the numbers and charts thrown at them. Just as in a grocery market or a bookstore where you just have to judge a meat sauce by its packaging, or a book by its cover, your audience needs you to help them choose you by simplifying your business, not by complicating things.

She recommends using a Sharpie and one sticky note per idea to keep them simple. It's easy to throw everything you know into a PowerPoint.

"One mistake companies often make is that they try to create one communication and send it to everybody," Wood says. "But the reality is that you talk to a CEO very differently than you would talk to an employee on the factory floor."

Lifehacker Compiles Places for Political Info

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:14:00 +0000

clipped from lifehacker.com

10. Compare the candidates.

2008 Presidential Candidate Selector gives you the skinny on the major-topic stances of every candidate, including most of the third-party contenders

9. Go poll-crazy at FiveThirtyEight.com.

Silver's FiveThirtyEight grabs all the polls it can find, weighs them based on methodologies and past accuracy, projects data for regions where it can't find polls, then runs thousands of simulated elections to come up with a likely outcome

7. Follow the money.

The graph-happy folks at Many Works have put together a ton of interactive (and usually Java-required) tools, including this earmarks visualization of per-capita earmark spending. Now you're not just mad, you're madly informed.

6. See what the candidates said about your hot-button topic.

In Quotes lets you type a term and see how Obama and McCain referenced it in speeches, interviews, and other places.

2 Track fund raising and donations by candidates (and your neighbors).

OpenSecrets.org has maps, graphs, and details

Are you in?

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 17:02:00 +0000

Participate in developing a 21st Century learning system

clipped from www.converstations.com

Mission: (In) Possible - 21st Century Learning System

Scott McLeod asks "What would it take to get from our current system of schooling to a
robust, province - or statewide system of 21st century learning?"

What Needs to Be Done

Who Needs to Be Involved

What it Will Cost to Do

Spread this conversation. Engage others in it. Whiteboard ideas. Offline and online. Comment or Blog about it on your site.

Opening plastic packaging

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 18:41:00 +0000

Wikihow tells you how to open plastic packaging safely.
http://www.wikihow.com/Open-Rigid-Plastic-Clamshell-Packages-Safely

Economics of Pennies

encoreva@gmail.com (Lara Nieberding, The Data Digger) — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 14:51:00 +0000

Should the USA stop using/producing pennies?

clipped from freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com

Pennies: Enough Already!

Imagine my surprise at the recent announcement that the U.S. will be issuing four new versions of the penny, the first of which comes out in February, in honor of Lincoln’s bicentennial.

What a waste of resources — and what a move inside the production-possibility frontier! Each penny costs much more than 1 cent to manufacture.