Once there was a little island country. The land of this country was the tiny island itself. The total money in circulation was 2 dollars as there were only two pieces of 1 dollar coins circulating around.
1) There were 3 citizens living on this island country.. A owned the land. B and C each owned 1 dollar.
2) B decided to purchase the land from A for 1 dollar. So, now A and C own 1 dollar each while B owned a piece of land that is worth 1 dollar.
* The net asset of the country now = 3 dollars.
3) Now C thought that since there is only one piece of land in the country, and land is non producible asset, its value must definitely go up. So, he borrowed 1 dollar from A, and together with his own 1 dollar, he bought the land from B for 2 dollars.
*A has a loan to C of 1 dollar, so his net asset is 1 dollar.
* B sold his land and got 2 dollars, so his net asset is 2 dollars.
* C owned the piece of land worth 2 dollars but with his 1 dollar debt to A, his net residual asset is 1 dollar.
* Thus, the net asset of the country = 4 dollars.
4) A saw that the land he once owned has risen in value. He regretted having sold it. Luckily, he has a 1 dollar loan to C. He then borrowed 2 dollars from B and acquired the land back from C for 3 dollars. The payment is by 2 dollars cash (which he borrowed) and cancellation of the 1 dollar loan to C. As a result, A now owned a piece of land that is worth 3 dollars. But since he owed B 2 dollars, his net asset is 1 dollar.
* B loaned 2 dollars to A. So his net asset is 2 dollars.
* C now has the 2 coins. His net asset is also 2 dollars..
* The net asset of the country = 5 dollars. A bubble is building up..
5) B saw that the value of land kept rising. He also wanted to own the land. So he bought the land from A for 4 dollars. The payment is by borrowing 2 dollars from C, and cancellation of his 2 dollars loan to A..
* As a result, A has got his debt cleared and he got the 2 coins. His net asset is 2 dollars.
* B owned a piece of land that is worth 4 dollars, but since he has a debt of 2 dollars with C, his net Asset is 2 dollars.
* C loaned 2 dollars to B, so his net asset is 2 dollars.
* The net asset of the country = 6 dollars; even though, the country has only one piece of land and 2 Dollars in circulation.
(6) Everybody has made money and everybody felt happy and prosperous.
(7) One day an evil wind blew, and an evil thought came to C's mind. "Hey, what if the land price stop going up, how could B repay my loan. There is only 2 dollars in circulation, and, I think after all the land that B owns is worth at most only 1 dollar, and no more."
(8) A also thought the same way..
(9) Nobody wanted to buy land anymore.
* So, in the end, A owns the 2 dollar coins, his net asset is 2 dollars.
* B owed C 2 dollars and the land he owned which he thought worth 4 dollars is now 1 dollar. So his net asset is only 1 dollar.
* C has a loan of 2 dollars to B. But it is a bad debt. Although his net asset is still 2 dollars, his Heart is palpitating.
* The net asset of the country = 3 dollars again.
(10) So, who has stolen the 3 dollars from the country? Of course, before the bubble burst B thought his land was worth 4 dollars. Actually, right before the collapse, the net asset of the country was 6 dollars on paper. B's net asset is still 2 dollars, his heart is palpitating.
(11) B had no choice but to declare bankruptcy. C as to relinquish his 2 dollars bad debt to B, but in return he acquired the land which is worth 1 dollar now.
* A owns the 2 coins; his net asset is 2 dollars.
* B is bankrupt; his net asset is 0 dollar. (He lost everything)
* C got no choice but end up with a land worth only 1 dollar * the net asset of the country = 3 dollars.
************ **End of the story; BUT ************ ********* ******
There is however a redistribution of wealth. A is the winner, B is the loser, C is lucky that he is spared. A few points worth noting -
(1) when a bubble is building up, the debt of individuals to one another in a country is also building up.
(2) This story of the island is a closed system whereby there is no other country and hence no foreign debt. The worth of the asset can only be calculated using the island's own currency. Hence, there is no net loss.
(3) An over-damped system is assumed when the bubble burst, meaning the land's value did not go down to below 1 dollar.
(4) When the bubble burst, the fellow with cash is the winner. The fellows having the land or extending loan to others are the losers. The asset could shrink or in worst case, they go bankrupt.
(5) If there is another citizen D either holding a dollar or another piece of land but refrains from taking part in the game, he will neither win nor lose. But he will see the value of his money or land goes up and down like a see saw.
(6) When the bubble was in the growing phase, everybody made money.
(7) If you are smart and know that you are living in a growing bubble, it is worthwhile to borrow money (like A) and take part in the game. But you must know when you should change everything back to cash.
(8) As in the case of land, the above phenomenon applies to stocks as well.
(9) The actual worth of land or stocks depends largely on psychology (or speculation).
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Dubai's stock market has dropped by more than 10%, adding to substantial losses over recent days amid fears of a faltering property market.
Two of the biggest fallers were the Gulf emirate's property giant Emaar and construction firm Arabtec.
Shares also fell heavily in several Middle East exchanges including Abu Dhabi, Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi slide came despite assurances from officials that the country was not exposed to the global financial crisis.
The Dubai Financial Market sank to 3,043 by mid-morning with prices of all 27 quoted shares falling. The market fell by 5.1% on Tuesday.
Foreign investors are reportedly selling interests in Dubai amid fears of weakness in the emirate's construction bonanza and a greater exposure to global markets than its Gulf neighbours.
Unwarranted falls
Saudi Arabia's stock exchange - the Middle East's largest - fell by more than 7.5%, trading below the 6,000-point mark for the first time since 2004.
Saudi central bank deputy governor Mohammed al-Jasser tried to reassure investors, saying the country had no liquidity problems and was safe from the financial crisis engulfing the US and Europe.
He said recent sharp falls on the Saudi stock market, which have hit banks, were unwarranted and bank deposits were safe.
"The situation is stable and does not require any emergency measures as if there were a problem with the banks meeting their commitments," Mr Jasser told al-Arabiya TV.
The latest declines mean Saudi bank shares have lost more than half their value since the beginning of the year.
Record falls
Egypt's Case-30 index sank another 12.5% percent within minutes of opening, after a fall of 16.47% on Tuesday.
"We're swamped here," Ahmed Hefnawi, an analyst with investment bank EFG Hermes told AFP news agency.
Kuwaiti economist Hajjaj Bukhdur said: "High tension and panic are gripping the Gulf stock markets".
"Some major portfolios and investment funds are pressurising governments to intervene by injecting liquidity," he said.
Kuwait's Central Bank cut discount interest rates by 1.25% percentage points to 4.5%, hoping to address growing concerns about financial liquidity.
But its stock exchange, the Arab world's second biggest, fell by 2.8% in the morning's trading.
Qatar's exchange meanwhile, dropped 8.3%, the biggest single-day market fall in several years in the gas-rich state.
The Tel Aviv stock exchange was closed for a Jewish holiday, having risen on Tuesday thanks to a 0.5-point cut in the base interest rate to 3.75%.
BBC
Shares also fell heavily in several Middle East exchanges including Abu Dhabi, Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi slide came despite assurances from officials that the country was not exposed to the global financial crisis.
The Dubai Financial Market sank to 3,043 by mid-morning with prices of all 27 quoted shares falling. The market fell by 5.1% on Tuesday.
Foreign investors are reportedly selling interests in Dubai amid fears of weakness in the emirate's construction bonanza and a greater exposure to global markets than its Gulf neighbours.
Unwarranted falls
Saudi Arabia's stock exchange - the Middle East's largest - fell by more than 7.5%, trading below the 6,000-point mark for the first time since 2004.
Saudi central bank deputy governor Mohammed al-Jasser tried to reassure investors, saying the country had no liquidity problems and was safe from the financial crisis engulfing the US and Europe.
He said recent sharp falls on the Saudi stock market, which have hit banks, were unwarranted and bank deposits were safe.
"The situation is stable and does not require any emergency measures as if there were a problem with the banks meeting their commitments," Mr Jasser told al-Arabiya TV.
The latest declines mean Saudi bank shares have lost more than half their value since the beginning of the year.
Record falls
Egypt's Case-30 index sank another 12.5% percent within minutes of opening, after a fall of 16.47% on Tuesday.
"We're swamped here," Ahmed Hefnawi, an analyst with investment bank EFG Hermes told AFP news agency.
Kuwaiti economist Hajjaj Bukhdur said: "High tension and panic are gripping the Gulf stock markets".
"Some major portfolios and investment funds are pressurising governments to intervene by injecting liquidity," he said.
Kuwait's Central Bank cut discount interest rates by 1.25% percentage points to 4.5%, hoping to address growing concerns about financial liquidity.
But its stock exchange, the Arab world's second biggest, fell by 2.8% in the morning's trading.
Qatar's exchange meanwhile, dropped 8.3%, the biggest single-day market fall in several years in the gas-rich state.
The Tel Aviv stock exchange was closed for a Jewish holiday, having risen on Tuesday thanks to a 0.5-point cut in the base interest rate to 3.75%.
BBC
Monday, September 8, 2008
Top 10 First Aid Mistakes
From cut fingers to electrical burns—what you should and shouldn't do in a home health emergency.
NewsWeek
NewsWeek
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Plastic bottles are deadly for your brain
TORONTO: Plastic containers may be deadly for your brain. Canadian researchers have found that Bisphenol A (BPA), the chemical used in making plastic containers, might be responsible for impairing many brain functions such as learning and remembering. They also fear that it could be a factor behind Alzheimer's, schizophrenia and depression. BPA is globally used in making plastic water bottles, baby food bottles, food containers and dental prostheses.
Link
Link
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Mars probe set for risky descent
Scientists are preparing for "seven minutes of terror" as a Nasa spacecraft makes a nail-biting descent to the surface of Mars
The Phoenix lander will begin its plunge through the Martian atmosphere on 25 May (GMT) as it attempts to land in the planet's polar north.
The craft needs to perform a series of challenging manoeuvres along the way.
It then begins a three-month mission to investigate Mars' geological history and potential habitability.
BBC Link
The Phoenix lander will begin its plunge through the Martian atmosphere on 25 May (GMT) as it attempts to land in the planet's polar north.
The craft needs to perform a series of challenging manoeuvres along the way.
It then begins a three-month mission to investigate Mars' geological history and potential habitability.
BBC Link
Monday, May 12, 2008
The Duggars Are Expecting Their 18th Baby
The Duggars, who already have 17 children, making them America’s largest family, continues to embiggen. Michelle and Jim Bob have just announced that they’re expecting a new baby on New Year’s Day, January 1, 2009.All of their children’s names start with the letter "J," so Discovery Health is taking polls on what you think the name should be
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
How to Be an Expert
While knowledge is an important quality of expertise, it’s only one of several factors that makes someone an expert in their field. There are five characteristics of real experts:
Knowledge: Being an expert requires an immense working knowledge of your subject, whether it’s memorized information, or knowing where to find information you haven’t memorized.
Experience: In addition to knowledge, an expert needs to have significant experience working with that knowledge, and be able apply it in creative ways.
Communication Ability: Expertise without the ability to communicate it is practically pointless.
Connectedness: Expertise is, ultimately, social; experts are embedded in a web of other experts who exchange ideas and approaches to problems. These experts are likewise embedded in a wider social web that connects them to people who need their expertise.
Curiosity: Experts are curious about their fields, and recognize the limitations of their own understanding of it.
Sometimes becoming an expert just kind of happens. But most of the time, it requires the careful pursuit of expertise. There’s no "quick and easy" path, but you can become an expert by focusing on these things:
Perpetual learning: Being an expert means being aware of the limitations of your current level of knowledge.
Networking: Build strong connections with other people in your field. Seek out mentors, and also make yourself available to the less experienced.
Practice: Not just in the "gain experience" sense but in your the "practice what you preach" sense -- your daily habits needs to reflect your expertise, or people will not trust you as an expert.
Presentation skills: Learn to present your expertise in the best possible way.
Sharing: Share your knowledge widely.
There are a lot of people out there passing themselves off as experts who aren’t experts at all. They may not even be competent. How can you tell if someone’s putting you on? Here are a few things to look for:
Commitment: Experts are enthusiastic about their fields of expertise. Look for serious, obvious commitment to the field.
Authenticity: A real expert doesn’t need to scam anyone. If you feel that someone is trying to pull one over on you, find someone else.
Openness: Expertise speaks for itself. Trade secrets are for people who aren’t confident in their abilities.
Open-mindedness: Experts are always looking for new approaches to problems. If your expert is dismissive when you explain what you thought might be the problem, it usually means they think they have all the answers. Real experts know they don’t.
Clarity: An expert should be able to explain to you exactly what they’re doing and why.
Knowledge: Being an expert requires an immense working knowledge of your subject, whether it’s memorized information, or knowing where to find information you haven’t memorized.
Experience: In addition to knowledge, an expert needs to have significant experience working with that knowledge, and be able apply it in creative ways.
Communication Ability: Expertise without the ability to communicate it is practically pointless.
Connectedness: Expertise is, ultimately, social; experts are embedded in a web of other experts who exchange ideas and approaches to problems. These experts are likewise embedded in a wider social web that connects them to people who need their expertise.
Curiosity: Experts are curious about their fields, and recognize the limitations of their own understanding of it.
Sometimes becoming an expert just kind of happens. But most of the time, it requires the careful pursuit of expertise. There’s no "quick and easy" path, but you can become an expert by focusing on these things:
Perpetual learning: Being an expert means being aware of the limitations of your current level of knowledge.
Networking: Build strong connections with other people in your field. Seek out mentors, and also make yourself available to the less experienced.
Practice: Not just in the "gain experience" sense but in your the "practice what you preach" sense -- your daily habits needs to reflect your expertise, or people will not trust you as an expert.
Presentation skills: Learn to present your expertise in the best possible way.
Sharing: Share your knowledge widely.
There are a lot of people out there passing themselves off as experts who aren’t experts at all. They may not even be competent. How can you tell if someone’s putting you on? Here are a few things to look for:
Commitment: Experts are enthusiastic about their fields of expertise. Look for serious, obvious commitment to the field.
Authenticity: A real expert doesn’t need to scam anyone. If you feel that someone is trying to pull one over on you, find someone else.
Openness: Expertise speaks for itself. Trade secrets are for people who aren’t confident in their abilities.
Open-mindedness: Experts are always looking for new approaches to problems. If your expert is dismissive when you explain what you thought might be the problem, it usually means they think they have all the answers. Real experts know they don’t.
Clarity: An expert should be able to explain to you exactly what they’re doing and why.
Health Tips
Eat 1 tea spoon variari (fennel seeds) after every meal
Microscopic dust is bad for eyes, splash cold water 5 times a day to cleanse the dust Red chillies - Do not consume Lal marchi - bad for liver, kidney and gives ulcers
Do not use lots of oil or ghee when cooking. Eat carrots Drink chaas (butter milk) Eat yogurt
Eat raw papaya in the morning and ripe papaya in the evening
Eat 2 ripe bananas a day (scientists have proven that eating very ripe bananas are good for reducing high blood pressure, cleaning the intestines and helping reduce constipation) CINNAMON ¼ tea-spoon of cinnamon powder mixed with cereals or anything in the morning with breakfast activates the pancreas which produces insulin, reduces the sugar level in the body• mixed with honey, it can be good for lungs and liver
HALDI (turmeric Powder)boil 1 cup milk, mix with ½ teaspoon haldi kills lactic acid take 1 cup water add honey (in a silver cup or Pyrex dish), add 1 teaspoon haldi (filter in a cheese cloth) store in a dark bottle drink a spoon keeps fever away boil haldi in oil till it burns changes colour toBlack and rub on (malish) the babies every 15 days it helps skin disease and fever.
JEERA (cumin seeds) crush 1 teaspoon jeera add little salt, boil in water and give to kids for 15 days for good appetite It works as a good mouth refresher and is also good for the liver
JAIFER (nutmeg) boil with milk and drink.Good for sleep and helps clean the lungs
DHANA (SUKA) crush and make into a powder, eat daily to clean the blood, plus good for digestion CLOVE one drop of clove oil mixed with honey helps with stuffy nose ELCHI, peel and eat the seeds after meals, good for heart and heart muscles KESAR (saffron) 8-10 strands of kesar boiled in milk helps with the memory kesar is harmful for those with high blood pressure POPPY SEEDS good for diarreah BADAAM (almond) soak in water overnight, peel skin and eat 5-6 to help increase brain power and memory also keeps headaches away PISTA good for heart and lungs, helps with pneumonia
Microscopic dust is bad for eyes, splash cold water 5 times a day to cleanse the dust Red chillies - Do not consume Lal marchi - bad for liver, kidney and gives ulcers
Do not use lots of oil or ghee when cooking. Eat carrots Drink chaas (butter milk) Eat yogurt
Eat raw papaya in the morning and ripe papaya in the evening
Eat 2 ripe bananas a day (scientists have proven that eating very ripe bananas are good for reducing high blood pressure, cleaning the intestines and helping reduce constipation) CINNAMON ¼ tea-spoon of cinnamon powder mixed with cereals or anything in the morning with breakfast activates the pancreas which produces insulin, reduces the sugar level in the body• mixed with honey, it can be good for lungs and liver
HALDI (turmeric Powder)boil 1 cup milk, mix with ½ teaspoon haldi kills lactic acid take 1 cup water add honey (in a silver cup or Pyrex dish), add 1 teaspoon haldi (filter in a cheese cloth) store in a dark bottle drink a spoon keeps fever away boil haldi in oil till it burns changes colour toBlack and rub on (malish) the babies every 15 days it helps skin disease and fever.
JEERA (cumin seeds) crush 1 teaspoon jeera add little salt, boil in water and give to kids for 15 days for good appetite It works as a good mouth refresher and is also good for the liver
JAIFER (nutmeg) boil with milk and drink.Good for sleep and helps clean the lungs
DHANA (SUKA) crush and make into a powder, eat daily to clean the blood, plus good for digestion CLOVE one drop of clove oil mixed with honey helps with stuffy nose ELCHI, peel and eat the seeds after meals, good for heart and heart muscles KESAR (saffron) 8-10 strands of kesar boiled in milk helps with the memory kesar is harmful for those with high blood pressure POPPY SEEDS good for diarreah BADAAM (almond) soak in water overnight, peel skin and eat 5-6 to help increase brain power and memory also keeps headaches away PISTA good for heart and lungs, helps with pneumonia
Sunday, May 4, 2008
WHY WASTE YEARS OF YOUR VALUABLE LIFE!!!
A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village.
An American tourist Complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.
"Not very long," answered the Mexican.
"But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American.
The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his Needs and those of his family.
The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"
"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife.
In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, Play the guitar, and sing a few songs... I have a full life."
The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard, and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the Extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."
"And after that?" asked the Mexican.
"With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a Second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of Trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then Negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own Plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City , Los Angeles , or even New York City ! From there you can direct your Huge new enterprise."
"How long would that take?" asked the Mexican.
"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American.
"And after that?" "Afterwards?
Well my Friend, That's when it gets really interesting, " Answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really Big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!" "Millions? Really? And after that?" said the Mexican.
"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near The coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take A siesta with your wife and spend your evenings doing what you like And enjoying your friends."
"With all due respect sir, but that's exactly what I am doing now.
So what's the point wasting twenty-five years?" asked the Mexican.
Know where you're going in life....... You may already be there........
Thnaks to the unknow writer
India sounds global recall of passport series
Dubai: The government of India has issued instructions that all Indian passports with serial numbers Z-000001 to Z-045925 are to be recalled and new passports issued in their place.
Some of these include certain passports issued by the Indian Consulate General in Dubai between February and September 2007.
"This is a global recall. It is not restricted to the consulate in Dubai alone," said Venu Rajamony, the Consul General in Dubai.
Rajamony assured that Indians whose passports fall under these serial numbers will be issued new passports without any delay. "Those who want it on an emergency basis will be issued with a new passport on the same day.
To realize
The value of a sisterAsk someoneWho doesn't have one.
To realizeThe value of ten years:Ask a newlyDivorced couple.
To realize The value of four years: Ask a graduate.
To realizeThe value of one year:Ask a student whoHas failed a final exam.
To realizeThe value of nine months:Ask a mother who gave birth to a still born.
To realize The value of one month:Ask a motherWho has given birth toA premature baby.
To realizeThe value of one week:Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.
To realizeThe value of one hour: Ask the lovers who are waiting to Meet.
To realizeThe value of one minute:Ask a personWho has missed the train, bus or plane.
To realizeThe value of one-second:Ask a personWho has survived an accident...
To! RealizeThe value of one millisecond:Ask the person who has won a silver medal in the Olympics
Time waits for no one.
Treasure every moment you have.You will treasure it even more when You can share it with someone special.
To realize the value of a friend:Lose one
To realizeThe value of ten years:Ask a newlyDivorced couple.
To realize The value of four years: Ask a graduate.
To realizeThe value of one year:Ask a student whoHas failed a final exam.
To realizeThe value of nine months:Ask a mother who gave birth to a still born.
To realize The value of one month:Ask a motherWho has given birth toA premature baby.
To realizeThe value of one week:Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.
To realizeThe value of one hour: Ask the lovers who are waiting to Meet.
To realizeThe value of one minute:Ask a personWho has missed the train, bus or plane.
To realizeThe value of one-second:Ask a personWho has survived an accident...
To! RealizeThe value of one millisecond:Ask the person who has won a silver medal in the Olympics
Time waits for no one.
Treasure every moment you have.You will treasure it even more when You can share it with someone special.
To realize the value of a friend:Lose one
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
To: My loving wife
To: My loving wife
A man checked into a hotel. There was a computer in his room. So he decided to send an E-MAIL to his wife.
However he accidentally typed the wrong e-mail address and without realising his error, he sent the message. Meanwhile,
Somewhere a widow had just returned home from her husband's funeral. The widow decided to check her mail,
Expecting message from her relatives and friends.; After reading the first message she fainted.
The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read:
To: My loving wife
Subject: I've just reached
Date: 13th Oct 2006
I know you are surprised to hear from me. They have computers here now, and you are allowed to sent e-mails to your loved ones.
I've just reached and have been checked in. I see that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you.
Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was;
MORAL OF STORY - be careful while sending mails if not mishaps like these happen ..
A man checked into a hotel. There was a computer in his room. So he decided to send an E-MAIL to his wife.
However he accidentally typed the wrong e-mail address and without realising his error, he sent the message. Meanwhile,
Somewhere a widow had just returned home from her husband's funeral. The widow decided to check her mail,
Expecting message from her relatives and friends.; After reading the first message she fainted.
The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read:
To: My loving wife
Subject: I've just reached
Date: 13th Oct 2006
I know you are surprised to hear from me. They have computers here now, and you are allowed to sent e-mails to your loved ones.
I've just reached and have been checked in. I see that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you.
Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was;
MORAL OF STORY - be careful while sending mails if not mishaps like these happen ..
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Bionic eyes implanted in blind patients
Bionic eyes have been implanted in British patients for the first time offering hope to hundreds of thousands of blind people.Read from Telegraph
How to Improve Your Memory
Our memory is one of the integral parts of day-to-day human life. We’re using it every moment, consciously or not, as we perceive the world and interpret it based on our memories and experiences, or as we look for the car keys, trying to recall where, exactly, was the last place they were seen?
It’s no small wonder that this part of our brain would fall prey to such inefficiency and failure, given the busy pace of Western life and the constant barrage of information that the hippocampus must somehow keep up with. At the same time, how can we fall complacent when such an essential thing as memory doesn’t work properly? Many lifehackistas and personal development fans spend hours, weeks, months and years dedicated to other areas of their lives while they completely ignore the memory.
You should up your standards. Your memory should be a finely-tuned, working piece of equipment that you can depend on. So where do we start?
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
First Intel Atom-powered phone unveiled
Japanese mobile service provider Willcom has today announced that the company will be selling the world’s first handset to be powered by Intel’s Atom chipset, and has released some details on the device.
Read from ITP
Read from ITP
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Cancer Therapy Without Side Effects Nearing Trials
A promising new cancer treatment that may one day replace radiation and chemotherapy is edging closer to human trials.
Read from Wired
Read from Wired
Monday, April 14, 2008
Think Positive!!
This is nice - finding positive out of every negative - which we don't always manage to do. I am thankful...
1. For the husband who snores all night, because he is at home asleep with me and not with someone else.
2. For my teenage daughter who is complaining about doing dishes, because that means she is at home & not on the streets.
3. For the taxes that I pay because it means that I am employed.
4. For the mess to clean after a party because it means that I have been surrounded by friends.
5. For the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means I have enough to eat.
6. For my shadow that watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine.
7. For a floor that needs mopping, and windows that need cleaning because it means I have a home.
8. For all the complaining I hear about the government because it means that we have freedom of speech.
9. For the parking spot I find at the far end of the parking lot because it means I am capable of walking and that I have been blessed with transportation.
10. For the noise I have to bear from my neighbours because it means that I can hear.
11. For the pile of laundry and ironing because it means I have clothes to wear.
12. For weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day because it means I have been capable of working hard.
13. For the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours because it means that I am stilll alive.
AND FINALLY ....... for received e-mails because it means I have friends who are thinking of me, at least.
Thanks to the unknown writer
1. For the husband who snores all night, because he is at home asleep with me and not with someone else.
2. For my teenage daughter who is complaining about doing dishes, because that means she is at home & not on the streets.
3. For the taxes that I pay because it means that I am employed.
4. For the mess to clean after a party because it means that I have been surrounded by friends.
5. For the clothes that fit a little too snug because it means I have enough to eat.
6. For my shadow that watches me work because it means I am out in the sunshine.
7. For a floor that needs mopping, and windows that need cleaning because it means I have a home.
8. For all the complaining I hear about the government because it means that we have freedom of speech.
9. For the parking spot I find at the far end of the parking lot because it means I am capable of walking and that I have been blessed with transportation.
10. For the noise I have to bear from my neighbours because it means that I can hear.
11. For the pile of laundry and ironing because it means I have clothes to wear.
12. For weariness and aching muscles at the end of the day because it means I have been capable of working hard.
13. For the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours because it means that I am stilll alive.
AND FINALLY ....... for received e-mails because it means I have friends who are thinking of me, at least.
Thanks to the unknown writer
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
The Whole World Is Watching: Google Shines Light on Refugee Camps
Google Earth's new mapping programme takes you on a virtual reality tour with the UN refugee agency of some of the world's major displacement crises and the humanitarian efforts aimed at helping the victims.
Link to UNHCR
Link to UNHCR
Apple releases new iPhone 2.0 OS and SDK Beta 3
Apple released another iPhone 2.0 OS update and the iPhone SDK Beta 3 today. The last iPhone SDK update is just about 10 days old.
Link to I4U
Link to I4U
Monday, March 24, 2008
India Outsourcing IT To The States?
India is actually starting to outsource some of their IT functions back the U.S. One example of this is new trend is Tata's new facility:
"Tata Consultancy Services said last week it has opened a development center in a former paper plant outside Cincinnati, with initial plans to employ 1,000 people, which would make it one of the largest U.S. development centers by an India-based IT services company. The 200,000-square-foot facility will include a lab where TCS hopes to show off its experience in such areas as industrial engineering and services. TCS plans to hire Midwest tech talent for the facility."
Tata isn't alone, the trend of IT jobs returning to US shores via foreign employers may only be beginning. We'll keep our fingers crossed.
Thanks
"Tata Consultancy Services said last week it has opened a development center in a former paper plant outside Cincinnati, with initial plans to employ 1,000 people, which would make it one of the largest U.S. development centers by an India-based IT services company. The 200,000-square-foot facility will include a lab where TCS hopes to show off its experience in such areas as industrial engineering and services. TCS plans to hire Midwest tech talent for the facility."
Tata isn't alone, the trend of IT jobs returning to US shores via foreign employers may only be beginning. We'll keep our fingers crossed.
Thanks
Web site for Dutch anti-Quran film suspended by host
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands: The Web site where Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders was promoting his not-yet-released anti-Quran film has been suspended by its U.S. hosting service, Network Solutions.
The site formerly showed the film's title, "Fitna" — "Coming Soon" — and an image of a gilded Quran. Now it shows a note that the company is investigating whether the site violates its terms of service.
"Network Solutions has received a number of complaints regarding this site that are under investigation," the note said.
While the exact contents of the 15-minute movie, due to be released by March 31, are unknown, Wilders has said it will underscore his view that Islam's holy book is "fascist."
Dutch officials fear the movie could spark violent protests in Muslim countries, similar to those two years ago after the publication of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in a Danish newspaper.
Wilders has said he will release his movie on the Internet after television stations refused to air it.
Wilders, who lives under police protection due to death threats, could not immediately be reached for comment Easter Sunday.
"How many ways are there left for me to be worked against?" he was quoted saying Saturday night by Dutch press agency ANP.
"If necessary, I'll go hand out DVDs personally on the Dam," he said, referring to Amsterdam's central square.
Thousands demonstrated on the Dam against Wilders' film Saturday in a protest intended to show that he does not represent the whole country.
Wilders heads a reactionary party with nine seats in the 150-member Dutch parliament, elected on an anti-immigration platform.
Network Solutions could not immediately be reached for comment. Its terms of service contains a sweeping prohibition against "objectionable material of any kind or nature."
A Dutch court will hear a complaint lodged by Muslim groups seeking to bar Wilders from releasing the film March 28, but there is no legal barrier preventing Wilders from releasing his film before then.
It was not clear whether YouTube or other video sharing sites would be willing to host the movie.
Last month, YouTube was inaccessible globally for several hours after the government of Pakistan blocked it, citing what it said were offensive clips in which Wilders made denigrating remarks about Islam.
Thanks
The site formerly showed the film's title, "Fitna" — "Coming Soon" — and an image of a gilded Quran. Now it shows a note that the company is investigating whether the site violates its terms of service.
"Network Solutions has received a number of complaints regarding this site that are under investigation," the note said.
While the exact contents of the 15-minute movie, due to be released by March 31, are unknown, Wilders has said it will underscore his view that Islam's holy book is "fascist."
Dutch officials fear the movie could spark violent protests in Muslim countries, similar to those two years ago after the publication of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in a Danish newspaper.
Wilders has said he will release his movie on the Internet after television stations refused to air it.
Wilders, who lives under police protection due to death threats, could not immediately be reached for comment Easter Sunday.
"How many ways are there left for me to be worked against?" he was quoted saying Saturday night by Dutch press agency ANP.
"If necessary, I'll go hand out DVDs personally on the Dam," he said, referring to Amsterdam's central square.
Thousands demonstrated on the Dam against Wilders' film Saturday in a protest intended to show that he does not represent the whole country.
Wilders heads a reactionary party with nine seats in the 150-member Dutch parliament, elected on an anti-immigration platform.
Network Solutions could not immediately be reached for comment. Its terms of service contains a sweeping prohibition against "objectionable material of any kind or nature."
A Dutch court will hear a complaint lodged by Muslim groups seeking to bar Wilders from releasing the film March 28, but there is no legal barrier preventing Wilders from releasing his film before then.
It was not clear whether YouTube or other video sharing sites would be willing to host the movie.
Last month, YouTube was inaccessible globally for several hours after the government of Pakistan blocked it, citing what it said were offensive clips in which Wilders made denigrating remarks about Islam.
Thanks
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
TWO HANDS!!
An old man, probably some ninety plus years, sat feebly on the park bench. He didn't move, just sat with his head down staring at his hands. When I sat down beside him he didn't acknowledge my presence and the longer I sat I wondered if he was ok.
Finally, not really wanting to disturb him but wanting to check on him at the same time, I asked him if he was ok. He raised his head and looked at me and smiled. Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking, he said in a clear strong voice.
I didn't mean to disturb you… but you were just sitting there staring at your hands and I wanted to make sure you were ok I explained to him. Have you ever looked at your hands he asked? I mean really looked at your hands? I slowly opened my hands and stared down at them. I turned them over, palms up and then palms down. No, I guess I never really looked at my hands as I tried to figure out the point he was making.
Then he smiled and related this story: Stop and think for a moment about the hands that you have; how they have served you well throughout your years. These hands, though wrinkled, shriveled and weak have been the tools I have used all my life to reach out and grab and embrace life. They braced and caught my fall when as a toddler I crashed upon the floor. They put food in my mouth and clothes on my back. As a child my mother taught me to hold them in prayer. They tied my shoes and pulled on my boots. They dried the tears of my children and caressed the love of my life. They have been dirty, scraped and raw, swollen and bent. They were uneasy and clumsy when I tried to hold my newborn son. They wrote the letters home and trembled and shook when I buried my parents and spouse. Yet, they were strong and sure when I dug my friend out of a foxhole and lifted a plow off my best friend's foot. They have held children, consoled neighbors, and shook in fists of anger when I didn't understand. They have covered my face, combed my hair and washed and cleansed the rest of my body. They have been sticky and wet, bent and broken, dried and raw. And to this day when not much of anything else of me works real well these hands hold me up, lay me down, and again continue to open in prayer. There hands are the mark of where I've been and the ruggedness of my life.
But more importantly it will be these hands that receive, The Book of deeds. I look, ponder and pray that MY RIGHT HAND is blessed the fortune of receiving the trials of this life i.e…. MY BOOK OF DEEDS with this RIGHT HAND.
"(And Remember) the Day when We shall call together all human beings with their Imam. So Whosoever is given his records in his right hand, such will read their records, and they will not be dealt with unjustly in the least."
No doubt I will never look at my hands the same again. I never saw that old man again after I left the park that day but I will never forget him and the words he spoke. When my hands are hurt or sore or when I stroke the face of my children and wife, I think of the man in the park.
I, too, want to receive MY BOOK OF DEEDS WITH MY RIGHT HAND. I am trying to be worthy of it by preparing for it now…..
O' MY PERFECT AND GENEROUS LORD!
I make shukr for these hands.
Thank to the unknown Aughor
Finally, not really wanting to disturb him but wanting to check on him at the same time, I asked him if he was ok. He raised his head and looked at me and smiled. Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking, he said in a clear strong voice.
I didn't mean to disturb you… but you were just sitting there staring at your hands and I wanted to make sure you were ok I explained to him. Have you ever looked at your hands he asked? I mean really looked at your hands? I slowly opened my hands and stared down at them. I turned them over, palms up and then palms down. No, I guess I never really looked at my hands as I tried to figure out the point he was making.
Then he smiled and related this story: Stop and think for a moment about the hands that you have; how they have served you well throughout your years. These hands, though wrinkled, shriveled and weak have been the tools I have used all my life to reach out and grab and embrace life. They braced and caught my fall when as a toddler I crashed upon the floor. They put food in my mouth and clothes on my back. As a child my mother taught me to hold them in prayer. They tied my shoes and pulled on my boots. They dried the tears of my children and caressed the love of my life. They have been dirty, scraped and raw, swollen and bent. They were uneasy and clumsy when I tried to hold my newborn son. They wrote the letters home and trembled and shook when I buried my parents and spouse. Yet, they were strong and sure when I dug my friend out of a foxhole and lifted a plow off my best friend's foot. They have held children, consoled neighbors, and shook in fists of anger when I didn't understand. They have covered my face, combed my hair and washed and cleansed the rest of my body. They have been sticky and wet, bent and broken, dried and raw. And to this day when not much of anything else of me works real well these hands hold me up, lay me down, and again continue to open in prayer. There hands are the mark of where I've been and the ruggedness of my life.
But more importantly it will be these hands that receive, The Book of deeds. I look, ponder and pray that MY RIGHT HAND is blessed the fortune of receiving the trials of this life i.e…. MY BOOK OF DEEDS with this RIGHT HAND.
"(And Remember) the Day when We shall call together all human beings with their Imam. So Whosoever is given his records in his right hand, such will read their records, and they will not be dealt with unjustly in the least."
No doubt I will never look at my hands the same again. I never saw that old man again after I left the park that day but I will never forget him and the words he spoke. When my hands are hurt or sore or when I stroke the face of my children and wife, I think of the man in the park.
I, too, want to receive MY BOOK OF DEEDS WITH MY RIGHT HAND. I am trying to be worthy of it by preparing for it now…..
O' MY PERFECT AND GENEROUS LORD!
I make shukr for these hands.
Thank to the unknown Aughor
Friday, March 14, 2008
New Breath-Based Diagnostic
An innovative technique for detecting different biomarkers could result in a precise, easy-to-use diagnostic tool.
Technology Review
Technology Review
32 Hacks for Sticking to Your Budget
1. Don’t spend more money than you have.
2. Stick to your grocery lists – compile them based on an itemized overview of your household needs and never stray too far from it.
3. In a similar vein, never go grocery shopping hungry!
4. Keep your receipts, or write your own – at the end of each day, list your expenditures. At the end of the month, group those expenditures to create a simple overview of where you’re spending too much or even too little.
5. Pack a brown bag lunch each day. Save hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars each year.
6. Develop a distaste for Starbucks.
7. Talk yourself out of purchases. Ask yourself, do I need this? Think of various ways you can avoid a purchase that seems necessary through innovative MacGyvering.
8. You don’t need the $100 shirt from the pricey store when there’s a $10 equivalent at the thrift store. You don’t need a room-sized plasma TV when your old CRT still works.
9. Remind yourself frequently of your financial goals, especially when you’re at the mall: paying off a big debt, retiring early, the Macbook Air. Remind yourself that by living frugally, you’re at least in some small way helping the environment.
10. Use cash. Take money out of your account and use real cash from a real wallet to pay for your daily expenses. When you run out of bills, you run out of money to spend.
11. Use credit. Run your finances on credit cards so that you don’t lose big money over the course of the year in spare change spent on coke and McDonalds. Always repay within 48 hours.
12. Never watch commercials. Get a PVR.
13. Sleep on your purchases. Give yourself a night to consider and rationalize before buying a new toy, and if you rationally decide you need it, you can go back and get it. Mac users may need to take longer – much longer.
14. Review your budget and spreadsheets regularly. Keep your financial situation constantly fresh in your mind. This helps to curb your desire to spend, spend, spend, ensures you know how much you actually have to spend if you need to, and motivates you to pay off debt and save more.
15. Use spreadsheets instead of expensive apps like Quicken – use Google Docs for spreadsheets and you can even save on overpriced office software.
16. Use every last scrap of every last thing you purchase. Don’t waste anything. Don’t leave taps running, don’t throw out the quarter of a plate of dinner you didn’t eat.
17. Become a power Nazi. Switch off lights and appliances at every opportunity, and tweak your computer’s power settings to give you the optimum balance between power savings and practicality.
18. Think about money philosophically – consider your spending behavior as a reflection of who you are. If you would not like to be defined by your purchases of cigarettes, hard liquor and pork rinds, reconsider and make better purchases that reflect the person you’d like to be.
19. Respect money like you do your family heirloom; that which you respect, can’t be hastily thrown away. It’s not about how much you make, but how much you save.
20. Exercise in the great outdoors, or use your own body weight – forget expensive gym memberships and personal trainers.
21. Diligently organize rebates and send them in on time, every time.
22. Do extensive research before all purchases, especially impulse purchases. Find the best price online or off, even if it’s “almost new” from eBay.
23. Do extensive research not only on price, but on durability and quality; buying everything from Crazy Clark’s is a bad decision as far as your long term savings go.
24. Don’t fall for the vicious technology upgrade cycle. Your laptop is still fine until there’s something actually wrong with it; performance is all in the software you run. Do you need to be running Vista or Leopard or the latest version of Photoshop? For most people, probably not. Wishing for more drains what you have.
25. If you come under your budget, save the excess. There is no legal obligation to spend it!
26. Pay yourself first. Take 10% or so off the top of your income and save it before you even start paying bills.
27. Base your meals on cheap, but nutritious, food sources instead of fresh produce that goes off quickly all the time. They might be a better food source, but if you want to pinch pennies go to grains, lentils, legumes and beans.
28. Preventing an impulse purchase with this motivation hack: simply think about how many hours it took you to earn that amount.
29. When keeping track of credit card purchases, put them into your checkbook as soon as the transaction occurs. That way the checkbook will always have as much money as you actually have, letting you freely pay off your credit card when the time comes.
30. Don’t keep credit cards in your wallet, or near any of your computers with an Internet connection.
31. Water is cheap (for the time being) and can easily replace most other beverages, such as soda – just not coffee.
32. Borrow books from your library, don’t purchase them. This puts an imperative on you to actually read your books (how often do the ones your purchase just sit on the bookshelf?) and saves huge amounts of money if you read a decent amount.
Thanks
2. Stick to your grocery lists – compile them based on an itemized overview of your household needs and never stray too far from it.
3. In a similar vein, never go grocery shopping hungry!
4. Keep your receipts, or write your own – at the end of each day, list your expenditures. At the end of the month, group those expenditures to create a simple overview of where you’re spending too much or even too little.
5. Pack a brown bag lunch each day. Save hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars each year.
6. Develop a distaste for Starbucks.
7. Talk yourself out of purchases. Ask yourself, do I need this? Think of various ways you can avoid a purchase that seems necessary through innovative MacGyvering.
8. You don’t need the $100 shirt from the pricey store when there’s a $10 equivalent at the thrift store. You don’t need a room-sized plasma TV when your old CRT still works.
9. Remind yourself frequently of your financial goals, especially when you’re at the mall: paying off a big debt, retiring early, the Macbook Air. Remind yourself that by living frugally, you’re at least in some small way helping the environment.
10. Use cash. Take money out of your account and use real cash from a real wallet to pay for your daily expenses. When you run out of bills, you run out of money to spend.
11. Use credit. Run your finances on credit cards so that you don’t lose big money over the course of the year in spare change spent on coke and McDonalds. Always repay within 48 hours.
12. Never watch commercials. Get a PVR.
13. Sleep on your purchases. Give yourself a night to consider and rationalize before buying a new toy, and if you rationally decide you need it, you can go back and get it. Mac users may need to take longer – much longer.
14. Review your budget and spreadsheets regularly. Keep your financial situation constantly fresh in your mind. This helps to curb your desire to spend, spend, spend, ensures you know how much you actually have to spend if you need to, and motivates you to pay off debt and save more.
15. Use spreadsheets instead of expensive apps like Quicken – use Google Docs for spreadsheets and you can even save on overpriced office software.
16. Use every last scrap of every last thing you purchase. Don’t waste anything. Don’t leave taps running, don’t throw out the quarter of a plate of dinner you didn’t eat.
17. Become a power Nazi. Switch off lights and appliances at every opportunity, and tweak your computer’s power settings to give you the optimum balance between power savings and practicality.
18. Think about money philosophically – consider your spending behavior as a reflection of who you are. If you would not like to be defined by your purchases of cigarettes, hard liquor and pork rinds, reconsider and make better purchases that reflect the person you’d like to be.
19. Respect money like you do your family heirloom; that which you respect, can’t be hastily thrown away. It’s not about how much you make, but how much you save.
20. Exercise in the great outdoors, or use your own body weight – forget expensive gym memberships and personal trainers.
21. Diligently organize rebates and send them in on time, every time.
22. Do extensive research before all purchases, especially impulse purchases. Find the best price online or off, even if it’s “almost new” from eBay.
23. Do extensive research not only on price, but on durability and quality; buying everything from Crazy Clark’s is a bad decision as far as your long term savings go.
24. Don’t fall for the vicious technology upgrade cycle. Your laptop is still fine until there’s something actually wrong with it; performance is all in the software you run. Do you need to be running Vista or Leopard or the latest version of Photoshop? For most people, probably not. Wishing for more drains what you have.
25. If you come under your budget, save the excess. There is no legal obligation to spend it!
26. Pay yourself first. Take 10% or so off the top of your income and save it before you even start paying bills.
27. Base your meals on cheap, but nutritious, food sources instead of fresh produce that goes off quickly all the time. They might be a better food source, but if you want to pinch pennies go to grains, lentils, legumes and beans.
28. Preventing an impulse purchase with this motivation hack: simply think about how many hours it took you to earn that amount.
29. When keeping track of credit card purchases, put them into your checkbook as soon as the transaction occurs. That way the checkbook will always have as much money as you actually have, letting you freely pay off your credit card when the time comes.
30. Don’t keep credit cards in your wallet, or near any of your computers with an Internet connection.
31. Water is cheap (for the time being) and can easily replace most other beverages, such as soda – just not coffee.
32. Borrow books from your library, don’t purchase them. This puts an imperative on you to actually read your books (how often do the ones your purchase just sit on the bookshelf?) and saves huge amounts of money if you read a decent amount.
Thanks
Tiny Brain-Like Computer Created
The most powerful computer known is the brain, and now scientists have designed a machine just a few molecules large that mimics how the brain works.
So far the device can simultaneously carry out 16 times more operations than a normal computer transistor. Researchers suggest the invention might eventually prove able to perform roughly 1,000 times more operations than a transistor.
Yahoo News
So far the device can simultaneously carry out 16 times more operations than a normal computer transistor. Researchers suggest the invention might eventually prove able to perform roughly 1,000 times more operations than a transistor.
Yahoo News
NASA: Data from Saturn moon 'looks great'
LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Scientists say the data download has started from the international Cassini spacecraft as it moves through geyser plumes from one of Saturn's moons.
An unmanned probe will sweep through geysers on one of Saturn's moons to measure the chemical makeup.
Todd Barber, NASA's lead propulsion engineer on the project, says the transmission signal from the unmanned probe was received at 10:01 p.m. ET Wednesday and "everything looks great."
The probe was expected to be at a height of nearly 120 miles above the surface of the moon Enceladus as it sweeps through the edge of the geysers and measures their chemical makeup.
The carefully orchestrated event will take Cassini "deeper than we've been before," mission scientist Carolyn Porco of the Space Science Institute said in an e-mail.
CNN News
An unmanned probe will sweep through geysers on one of Saturn's moons to measure the chemical makeup.
Todd Barber, NASA's lead propulsion engineer on the project, says the transmission signal from the unmanned probe was received at 10:01 p.m. ET Wednesday and "everything looks great."
The probe was expected to be at a height of nearly 120 miles above the surface of the moon Enceladus as it sweeps through the edge of the geysers and measures their chemical makeup.
The carefully orchestrated event will take Cassini "deeper than we've been before," mission scientist Carolyn Porco of the Space Science Institute said in an e-mail.
CNN News
Endeavour astronauts begin spacewalk
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (AP) -- A pair of astronauts have ventured out on the first spacewalk of Endeavour's space station mission despite a problem getting power to a giant robot that they needed to assemble.
CNN News
CNN News
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
First portable eye-controlled device launches at Rehab 2008
MyTobii, a Swedish-based world leader in eye-tracking software and hardware, has launched their Middle East division at the Dubai International Rehabilitation Forum 2008.
ITP Link
ITP Link
Chemical brain controls nanobots
A tiny chemical "brain" which could one day act as a remote control for swarms of nano-machines has been invented.
BBC Link
BBC Link
Monday, March 10, 2008
Britain makes camera that 'sees' under clothes
A British company has developed a camera that can detect weapons, drugs or explosives hidden under people's clothes from up to 25 meters away in what could be a breakthrough for the security industry.
Full Story
Full Story
Sunday, March 9, 2008
A small touching story mainly for professionals. ..
A man came home from work late, tired and irritated, to find his 5-year old son waiting for him at the door.
SON: "Daddy, may I ask you a question?"
DAD: "Yeah sure, what is it?" replied the man.
SON: "Daddy, how much do you make an hour?"
DAD: "That's none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?" the man said angrily. SON: "I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?"
DAD: "If you must know, I make Rs.100 an hour."
SON: "Oh," the little boy replied, with his head down.
SON: "Daddy, may I please borrow Rs.50?"The father was furious, "If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I work hard everyday for such this childish behavior."
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.
The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?
After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think: Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that Rs.50 and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door.
"Are you asleep, son?" He asked.
"No daddy, I'm awake," replied the boy.
"I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier" said the man.
"It's been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you.. Here's the Rs.50 you asked for."
The little boy sat straight up, smiling. "Oh, thank you daddy!" He yelled.
Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills. The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.
"Why do you want more money if you already have some?" the father grumbled.
"Because I didn't have enough, but now I do," the little boy replied.
"Daddy, I have Rs.100 now. Can I buy an hour of your time?
Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have dinner with you!"
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness.
It's just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts.
Do remember to share that Rs.100 worth of your time with someone you love.
If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days.
But the family & friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives. And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than to our family.
SON: "Daddy, may I ask you a question?"
DAD: "Yeah sure, what is it?" replied the man.
SON: "Daddy, how much do you make an hour?"
DAD: "That's none of your business. Why do you ask such a thing?" the man said angrily. SON: "I just want to know. Please tell me, how much do you make an hour?"
DAD: "If you must know, I make Rs.100 an hour."
SON: "Oh," the little boy replied, with his head down.
SON: "Daddy, may I please borrow Rs.50?"The father was furious, "If the only reason you asked that is so you can borrow some money to buy a silly toy or some other nonsense, then you march yourself straight to your room and go to bed. Think about why you are being so selfish. I work hard everyday for such this childish behavior."
The little boy quietly went to his room and shut the door.
The man sat down and started to get even angrier about the little boy's questions. How dare he ask such questions only to get some money?
After about an hour or so, the man had calmed down, and started to think: Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that Rs.50 and he really didn't ask for money very often. The man went to the door of the little boy's room and opened the door.
"Are you asleep, son?" He asked.
"No daddy, I'm awake," replied the boy.
"I've been thinking, maybe I was too hard on you earlier" said the man.
"It's been a long day and I took out my aggravation on you.. Here's the Rs.50 you asked for."
The little boy sat straight up, smiling. "Oh, thank you daddy!" He yelled.
Then, reaching under his pillow he pulled out some crumpled up bills. The man saw that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly counted out his money, and then looked up at his father.
"Why do you want more money if you already have some?" the father grumbled.
"Because I didn't have enough, but now I do," the little boy replied.
"Daddy, I have Rs.100 now. Can I buy an hour of your time?
Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have dinner with you!"
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little son, and he begged for his forgiveness.
It's just a short reminder to all of you working so hard in life. We should not let time slip through our fingers without having spent some time with those who really matter to us, those close to our hearts.
Do remember to share that Rs.100 worth of your time with someone you love.
If we die tomorrow, the company that we are working for could easily replace us in a matter of days.
But the family & friends we leave behind will feel the loss for the rest of their lives. And come to think of it, we pour ourselves more into work than to our family.
Saturday, March 8, 2008
US schools segregate boys, girls
GREENSBORO (GEORGIA): Nearly four decades after this rural Georgia county stopped segregating its schools by race, it wants to divide students again—this time by sex. Greene County is set to become the first school district in the nation to go entirely single-sex, with boys and girls in separate classrooms—a move born of desperation over years of poor test scores, soaring dropout rates and high numbers of teenage pregnancies.
Full Story
Full Story
Friday, March 7, 2008
How to Make Tea
A well-made cup of hot tea can warm the heart and soul of any tea lover, but it can be unpleasantly bitter or disappointingly tasteless when improperly steeped. A conscientious approach to tea preparation can maximize the flavor and health benefits provided by the tea bush, Camellia sinensis. Here's how to get it just right.
Link
Link
Unleash your Inner Genius
Let’s say you are wrestling with a tough issue - maybe at work, at home, with your children or in your social life. You have been stuck for a while and you can’t seem to make a breakthrough. You want to come up with some really creative ideas. What can you do? Here are ten great practical ways to boost your inventiveness and to crack the problem:
1. Ask why, why? Ask, ‘why has this issue arisen?’ Come up with six different reasons and for each of them ask, ‘why did this happen?’ Keep asking why for each cause. This helps you to better understand the different reasons why this is a problem and so in turn you will see different possible solutions.
2. Sleep on it. Ponder the issue and all its aspects for some time and then put it out of your mind. Get a good night’s sleep. The subconscious mind goes to work and often you come up with great ideas the next day.
3. Talk it over with someone who has nothing to do with the situation. They will often ask basic questions or make seemingly silly suggestions that prompt good ideas. Two heads are better than one but people who are too close to the issue will often come up with the same ideas as you, so try an outsider.
4. Ask how some celebrity would tackle the issue - what would Steve Jobs do? Or Bob Geldof , or Richard Branson, or Salvador Dali or Margaret Thatcher or Madonna or Sherlock Holmes? Take each individual’s approach to its extremes and it will likely give you some radical solutions.
5. Pick up any object at random and say to yourself, ‘this item contains the key to solving the problem.’ Then force some ideas. Try this with several different objects and you will have a selection of radical and inventive ideas.
6. Use similes. Try to think of a different problem in another walk of life that is like your problem. Say you want your staff at work to try new ways of working. You might imagine that this is like getting your children to eat vegetables. List various methods you might use with your children to encourage or persuade them to try vegetables. Then go through the list and then see if any of the ideas can be converted into things you can try at work.
7. Imagine an ideal solution in a world where there are no constraints -e.g. you can use any resource you want. Now work back from that ideal and challenge each of the constraints that is holding you back from achieving it. Many of the obstacles can be overcome when you take this approach.
8. Open a dictionary and take any noun at random. Write down six attributes of that noun - so for tree you might write - root, branch, family, apple, trunk and tall. Then force some links between the word or its attributes and the problem in order to come up with fresh ideas. You will be surprised at how well this works - for individuals or in a group.
9. Ponder the issue and then go for a walk around an art gallery or museum. The range of external stimuli will help you conceive plenty of new ideas.
10. Draw a picture of the situation showing the people and the issues in simple cartoon style. Put it up on the wall and then imagine how the story could develop. Think of it as a cartoon strip. Many people’s brains work better in images than in words or numbers so this can lead to fantastic ideas.
These methods work for individuals and for groups. Try them and see what suits you best. Above all keep reminding yourself - there are some great solutions for my problem - I haven’t found the right one yet but I will!
Thanks
1. Ask why, why? Ask, ‘why has this issue arisen?’ Come up with six different reasons and for each of them ask, ‘why did this happen?’ Keep asking why for each cause. This helps you to better understand the different reasons why this is a problem and so in turn you will see different possible solutions.
2. Sleep on it. Ponder the issue and all its aspects for some time and then put it out of your mind. Get a good night’s sleep. The subconscious mind goes to work and often you come up with great ideas the next day.
3. Talk it over with someone who has nothing to do with the situation. They will often ask basic questions or make seemingly silly suggestions that prompt good ideas. Two heads are better than one but people who are too close to the issue will often come up with the same ideas as you, so try an outsider.
4. Ask how some celebrity would tackle the issue - what would Steve Jobs do? Or Bob Geldof , or Richard Branson, or Salvador Dali or Margaret Thatcher or Madonna or Sherlock Holmes? Take each individual’s approach to its extremes and it will likely give you some radical solutions.
5. Pick up any object at random and say to yourself, ‘this item contains the key to solving the problem.’ Then force some ideas. Try this with several different objects and you will have a selection of radical and inventive ideas.
6. Use similes. Try to think of a different problem in another walk of life that is like your problem. Say you want your staff at work to try new ways of working. You might imagine that this is like getting your children to eat vegetables. List various methods you might use with your children to encourage or persuade them to try vegetables. Then go through the list and then see if any of the ideas can be converted into things you can try at work.
7. Imagine an ideal solution in a world where there are no constraints -e.g. you can use any resource you want. Now work back from that ideal and challenge each of the constraints that is holding you back from achieving it. Many of the obstacles can be overcome when you take this approach.
8. Open a dictionary and take any noun at random. Write down six attributes of that noun - so for tree you might write - root, branch, family, apple, trunk and tall. Then force some links between the word or its attributes and the problem in order to come up with fresh ideas. You will be surprised at how well this works - for individuals or in a group.
9. Ponder the issue and then go for a walk around an art gallery or museum. The range of external stimuli will help you conceive plenty of new ideas.
10. Draw a picture of the situation showing the people and the issues in simple cartoon style. Put it up on the wall and then imagine how the story could develop. Think of it as a cartoon strip. Many people’s brains work better in images than in words or numbers so this can lead to fantastic ideas.
These methods work for individuals and for groups. Try them and see what suits you best. Above all keep reminding yourself - there are some great solutions for my problem - I haven’t found the right one yet but I will!
Thanks
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Brain Scanner To Visualize Dreams
"Scientists have developed a computerised mind-reading technique which lets them accurately predict the images that people are looking at by using scanners to study brain activity.
The breakthrough by American scientists took MRI scanning equipment normally used in hospital diagnosis to observe patterns of brain activity when a subject examined a range of black and white photographs. Then a computer was able to correctly predict in nine out of 10 cases which image people were focused on. Guesswork would have been accurate only eight times in every 1,000 attempts.
The study raises the possibility in the future of the technology being harnessed to visualise scenes from a person's dreams or memory."
Thanks
The breakthrough by American scientists took MRI scanning equipment normally used in hospital diagnosis to observe patterns of brain activity when a subject examined a range of black and white photographs. Then a computer was able to correctly predict in nine out of 10 cases which image people were focused on. Guesswork would have been accurate only eight times in every 1,000 attempts.
The study raises the possibility in the future of the technology being harnessed to visualise scenes from a person's dreams or memory."
Thanks
"The technology of teaching" BBC
.jpg)
Learning looks set to undergo a big change as novel technologies make it into the classroom, says Bill Thompson.Once you start looking at the way schools operate then you start to question teaching methods, assessment, exams and even the very existence of "schools" and "classrooms" Bill Thompson
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
How to Save Money
Saving money is one of those tasks that's so much easier said than done. There's more to it than spending less money (although that part alone can be challenging). How much money will you save, where will you put it, and how can you make sure it stays there? Here's how to set realistic goals, keep your spending in check, and pay yourself first.Nationwide fails to debit thousands of withdrawals in ATM blunder
The Nationwide Building Society has admitted an ATM blunder which has seen thousands of customers not charged for machine cash withdrawals.
The building society has been forced to apologise to thousands of customers after a technical glitch in Northern Ireland led to accounts not being debited at the time of withdrawals.
The problem reportedly affects about 7,500 customers who took money from their accounts using cash machines at Northern Bank between last November and this February.
The total amount in question is said to be about £400,000. An IT fault in the building society's connection to the national Link processing system is believed to be the cause of the problem.
Jay Colville, area director of Nationwide in Northern Ireland, told the BBC that Link upgraded the ATM network at the end of last year, but that the building society did not handle the upgrade correctly.
ADVERTISEMENT
Nationwide has told affected customers it will now debit the cash from their accounts on 10 March.
Link
The building society has been forced to apologise to thousands of customers after a technical glitch in Northern Ireland led to accounts not being debited at the time of withdrawals.
The problem reportedly affects about 7,500 customers who took money from their accounts using cash machines at Northern Bank between last November and this February.
The total amount in question is said to be about £400,000. An IT fault in the building society's connection to the national Link processing system is believed to be the cause of the problem.
Jay Colville, area director of Nationwide in Northern Ireland, told the BBC that Link upgraded the ATM network at the end of last year, but that the building society did not handle the upgrade correctly.
ADVERTISEMENT
Nationwide has told affected customers it will now debit the cash from their accounts on 10 March.
Link
Monday, March 3, 2008
UAE bank card details stolen from hacked ATM
Thieves operating in the UAE have compromised an ATM machine and stolen bank card details over a seven day period, according to a statement from the Central Bank of the UAE.
The gang is understood to have installed a card reader inside the ATM to read card data, along with a video camera to record PIN numbers. The Central Bank statement warns that the thieves were able to "copy data of all the cards used in the said ATM during the period 19-25 February 2008".
The location and owner bank of the ATM was not disclosed.
The Central Bank has contacted the banks of card users who were affected, with instructions to block usage of affected cards and to replace them or PINs, as well as to check ATM machines for sign of tampering.
Skimming attacks normally involve the placement of a fake card reader over or inside the regular card reader in an ATM, which reads and records the data from the card's magnetic strip, while either a hidden camera or a nearby observer (a so-called ‘shoulder surfer') steals the PIN. The stolen details can then be used to create fake cards or make purchases online, or the data may be sold on to other gangs of fraudsters.Story continues below ↓ advertisement
Skimming fraud has been seen in most regions of the world, and banks usually take measures to protect machines, such as installing plastic guards to prevent the installation of illicit card readers, camera monitoring of ATMs and regular inspections of machines.
Jonathan Campbell-James, head of Regional Security and Fraud Risk, HSBC Bank Middle East, said that HSBC ATM machines were not been affected by this latest spate of skimming incidents, as the bank has taken steps to protect its machines.
"HSBC Group has invested heavily by installing devices in its ATMs that prevent this type of activity. All of our ATMs in the UAE are covered by these devices, meaning that ‘card skimming' on our machines is highly unlikely," Campbell-James said.
"Nevertheless, if customers notice anything unusual about a machine which might represent a card reader added to the card slot or a micro camera, we ask that they contact the bank immediately so that appropriate action can be taken," he added.
Most skimming attempts now either target high usage ATMs for a very short period of time, to steal the maximum number of card details in a short time, or machines in out-of-the-way locations where the reader will not be detected as quickly.
It is unknown if the thieves have been caught or what they have done with the stolen card data.
Thanks
The gang is understood to have installed a card reader inside the ATM to read card data, along with a video camera to record PIN numbers. The Central Bank statement warns that the thieves were able to "copy data of all the cards used in the said ATM during the period 19-25 February 2008".
The location and owner bank of the ATM was not disclosed.
The Central Bank has contacted the banks of card users who were affected, with instructions to block usage of affected cards and to replace them or PINs, as well as to check ATM machines for sign of tampering.
Skimming attacks normally involve the placement of a fake card reader over or inside the regular card reader in an ATM, which reads and records the data from the card's magnetic strip, while either a hidden camera or a nearby observer (a so-called ‘shoulder surfer') steals the PIN. The stolen details can then be used to create fake cards or make purchases online, or the data may be sold on to other gangs of fraudsters.Story continues below ↓ advertisement
Skimming fraud has been seen in most regions of the world, and banks usually take measures to protect machines, such as installing plastic guards to prevent the installation of illicit card readers, camera monitoring of ATMs and regular inspections of machines.
Jonathan Campbell-James, head of Regional Security and Fraud Risk, HSBC Bank Middle East, said that HSBC ATM machines were not been affected by this latest spate of skimming incidents, as the bank has taken steps to protect its machines.
"HSBC Group has invested heavily by installing devices in its ATMs that prevent this type of activity. All of our ATMs in the UAE are covered by these devices, meaning that ‘card skimming' on our machines is highly unlikely," Campbell-James said.
"Nevertheless, if customers notice anything unusual about a machine which might represent a card reader added to the card slot or a micro camera, we ask that they contact the bank immediately so that appropriate action can be taken," he added.
Most skimming attempts now either target high usage ATMs for a very short period of time, to steal the maximum number of card details in a short time, or machines in out-of-the-way locations where the reader will not be detected as quickly.
It is unknown if the thieves have been caught or what they have done with the stolen card data.
Thanks
Bloodless Diabetes Monitoring
To track their blood sugar levels, patients with diabetes typically prick their fingers at least three times a day and feed blood samples into glucometers. It's a tedious and sometimes painful process, and a patient will often need to run a second test due to "insufficient blood" in the first sample. Now, researchers at Baylor University, in Waco, TX, have engineered a thumb-pad sensor that measures glucose levels via electromagnetic waves--no finger pricking required.
"There are many patients that don't monitor because of the pain of monitoring," says John Buse, president of the American Diabetes Association. "So there's certainly the potential to improve the lives of people with diabetes."
According to Randall Jean, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at Baylor, the prototype of the new device matches the performance of conventional glucometers.
"It is accurate enough for people to make decisions about whether or not to inject insulin," says Jean. "That's really the target. It's not to measure glucose within one ppb [part per billion] but to produce an instrument that patients can use to make decisions about externally controlling blood sugar."
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved only one noninvasive glucose monitor, called the GlucoWatch Biographer. Designed by Cygnus, of Redwood City, CA, the device is a wristwatch that uses an electric current to pull small amounts of fluid through the skin without pricking it. A sensor analyzes the fluid for glucose. However, 50 percent of patients who used the watch experienced skin irritation and sores, and the product was discontinued in 2007.
Jean says that the sensor he and his colleagues are developing will be "truly noninvasive" and will not require that any fluid--blood or otherwise--pass through the skin. The sensor itself is a small, spiral-shaped microwave circuit, which acts as a transmission line and emits electromagnetic waves. When a person places her thumb on the spiral, the electrical properties of her thumb change how energy passes through the circuit. Jean and his colleagues measure this change, and in early trials, they seem to have found patterns that correspond to variations in glucose levels.
"The energy does not specifically respond to glucose; it responds to the aggregate effect of blood, muscle, fat, skin, and glucose," says Jean. "What we're hoping is that over a broad enough frequency range, the individual components have unique signatures that allow us to extract the glucose."
The sensor is still in the early stages of development, and Jean has so far tested the prototype on five volunteers in 15 separate trials. The researchers made plastic molds of each subject's thumb, and they fabricated plastic guides to ensure that the subjects placed their thumbs on the sensors in exactly the right position. Jean also added a pressure gauge to tell the subjects how hard to press down in order to get a successful read. In each trial, volunteers placed their thumbs on the sensors, and researchers took 10 separate readings. Subjects also performed finger-prick tests, drawing blood and using traditional glucometers.
Researchers entered data from both methods into a computer program and looked for patterns within the electromagnetic data that corresponded to the glucose readings from the blood samples.
Although the early results are promising, it remains to be seen how broadly they can be generalized. "We're still working on verifying that the calibrations are truly robust," says Jean. "In other words, the data looks good for the people we've had a lot of experience with, but now we have to make sure that if a new thumb comes along, it works on that one."
What's more, Jean's sample pool tended to exhibit glucose levels within the normal range. To verify the sensor's accuracy, the team needs to test it on volunteers with varying glucose levels. In the next few months, Jean plans to test the sensor on patients at Scott and White Hospital, in Temple, TX, whose glucose readings may be "all over the map."
"If [a monitor] could be developed, it would be enormously promising because it's not just noninvasive but could give continuous data," says Howard Wolpert, director of the Insulin Pump Program at the Joslin Diabetes Center, which is based in Boston. "That's what people are interested in, because with devices today, you're only looking at intermittent time points, and glucose fluctuations can be quite dramatic."
Jean says that while his ultimate goal is to design an accurate sensor cheap enough for patients to carry around with them, he expects that one of the first early uses of the technology will be as screening devices at local drugstores, much like the large commercial monitors that take blood-pressure and heart-rate readings.
"It could provide a useful service for someone who didn't know they're diabetic, and you could say, 'Your blood sugar is kind of high. You should go to the doctor,'" says Jean.
Thanks
"There are many patients that don't monitor because of the pain of monitoring," says John Buse, president of the American Diabetes Association. "So there's certainly the potential to improve the lives of people with diabetes."
According to Randall Jean, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at Baylor, the prototype of the new device matches the performance of conventional glucometers.
"It is accurate enough for people to make decisions about whether or not to inject insulin," says Jean. "That's really the target. It's not to measure glucose within one ppb [part per billion] but to produce an instrument that patients can use to make decisions about externally controlling blood sugar."
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved only one noninvasive glucose monitor, called the GlucoWatch Biographer. Designed by Cygnus, of Redwood City, CA, the device is a wristwatch that uses an electric current to pull small amounts of fluid through the skin without pricking it. A sensor analyzes the fluid for glucose. However, 50 percent of patients who used the watch experienced skin irritation and sores, and the product was discontinued in 2007.
Jean says that the sensor he and his colleagues are developing will be "truly noninvasive" and will not require that any fluid--blood or otherwise--pass through the skin. The sensor itself is a small, spiral-shaped microwave circuit, which acts as a transmission line and emits electromagnetic waves. When a person places her thumb on the spiral, the electrical properties of her thumb change how energy passes through the circuit. Jean and his colleagues measure this change, and in early trials, they seem to have found patterns that correspond to variations in glucose levels.
"The energy does not specifically respond to glucose; it responds to the aggregate effect of blood, muscle, fat, skin, and glucose," says Jean. "What we're hoping is that over a broad enough frequency range, the individual components have unique signatures that allow us to extract the glucose."
The sensor is still in the early stages of development, and Jean has so far tested the prototype on five volunteers in 15 separate trials. The researchers made plastic molds of each subject's thumb, and they fabricated plastic guides to ensure that the subjects placed their thumbs on the sensors in exactly the right position. Jean also added a pressure gauge to tell the subjects how hard to press down in order to get a successful read. In each trial, volunteers placed their thumbs on the sensors, and researchers took 10 separate readings. Subjects also performed finger-prick tests, drawing blood and using traditional glucometers.
Researchers entered data from both methods into a computer program and looked for patterns within the electromagnetic data that corresponded to the glucose readings from the blood samples.
Although the early results are promising, it remains to be seen how broadly they can be generalized. "We're still working on verifying that the calibrations are truly robust," says Jean. "In other words, the data looks good for the people we've had a lot of experience with, but now we have to make sure that if a new thumb comes along, it works on that one."
What's more, Jean's sample pool tended to exhibit glucose levels within the normal range. To verify the sensor's accuracy, the team needs to test it on volunteers with varying glucose levels. In the next few months, Jean plans to test the sensor on patients at Scott and White Hospital, in Temple, TX, whose glucose readings may be "all over the map."
"If [a monitor] could be developed, it would be enormously promising because it's not just noninvasive but could give continuous data," says Howard Wolpert, director of the Insulin Pump Program at the Joslin Diabetes Center, which is based in Boston. "That's what people are interested in, because with devices today, you're only looking at intermittent time points, and glucose fluctuations can be quite dramatic."
Jean says that while his ultimate goal is to design an accurate sensor cheap enough for patients to carry around with them, he expects that one of the first early uses of the technology will be as screening devices at local drugstores, much like the large commercial monitors that take blood-pressure and heart-rate readings.
"It could provide a useful service for someone who didn't know they're diabetic, and you could say, 'Your blood sugar is kind of high. You should go to the doctor,'" says Jean.
Thanks
How to Think
When I applied for my faculty job at the MIT Media Lab, I had to write a teaching statement. One of the things I proposed was to teach a class called "How to Think," which would focus on how to be creative, thoughtful, and powerful in a world where problems are extremely complex, targets are continuously moving, and our brains often seem like nodes of enormous networks that constantly reconfigure. In the process of thinking about this, I composed 10 rules, which I sometimes share with students. I've listed them here, followed by some practical advice on implementation.
1. Synthesize new ideas constantly. Never read passively. Annotate, model, think, and synthesize while you read, even when you're reading what you conceive to be introductory stuff. That way, you will always aim towards understanding things at a resolution fine enough for you to be creative.
2. Learn how to learn (rapidly). One of the most important talents for the 21st century is the ability to learn almost anything instantly, so cultivate this talent. Be able to rapidly prototype ideas. Know how your brain works. (I often need a 20-minute power nap after loading a lot into my brain, followed by half a cup of coffee. Knowing how my brain operates enables me to use it well.)
3. Work backward from your goal. Or else you may never get there. If you work forward, you may invent something profound--or you might not. If you work backward, then you have at least directed your efforts at something important to you.
4. Always have a long-term plan. Even if you change it every day. The act of making the plan alone is worth it. And even if you revise it often, you're guaranteed to be learning something.
5. Make contingency maps. Draw all the things you need to do on a big piece of paper, and find out which things depend on other things. Then, find the things that are not dependent on anything but have the most dependents, and finish them first.
6. Collaborate.
7. Make your mistakes quickly. You may mess things up on the first try, but do it fast, and then move on. Document what led to the error so that you learn what to recognize, and then move on. Get the mistakes out of the way. As Shakespeare put it, "Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt."
8. As you develop skills, write up best-practices protocols. That way, when you return to something you've done, you can make it routine. Instinctualize conscious control.
9. Document everything obsessively. If you don't record it, it may never have an impact on the world. Much of creativity is learning how to see things properly. Most profound scientific discoveries are surprises. But if you don't document and digest every observation and learn to trust your eyes, then you will not know when you have seen a surprise.
10. Keep it simple. If it looks like something hard to engineer, it probably is. If you can spend two days thinking of ways to make it 10 times simpler, do it. It will work better, be more reliable, and have a bigger impact on the world. And learn, if only to know what has failed before. Remember the old saying, "Six months in the lab can save an afternoon in the library."
Two practical notes. The first is in the arena of time management. I really like what I call logarithmic time planning, in which events that are close at hand are scheduled with finer resolution than events that are far off. For example, things that happen tomorrow should be scheduled down to the minute, things that happen next week should be scheduled down to the hour, and things that happen next year should be scheduled down to the day. Why do all calendar programs force you to pick the exact minute something happens when you are trying to schedule it a year out? I just use a word processor to schedule all my events, tasks, and commitments, with resolution fading away the farther I look into the future. (It would be nice, though, to have a software tool that would gently help you make the schedule higher-resolution as time passes...)
The second practical note: I find it really useful to write and draw while talking with someone, composing conversation summaries on pieces of paper or pages of notepads. I often use plenty of color annotation to highlight salient points. At the end of the conversation, I digitally photograph the piece of paper so that I capture the entire flow of the conversation and the thoughts that emerged. The person I've conversed with usually gets to keep the original piece of paper, and the digital photograph is uploaded to my computer for keyword tagging and archiving. This way I can call up all the images, sketches, ideas, references, and action items from a brief note that I took during a five-minute meeting at a coffee shop years ago--at a touch, on my laptop. With 10-megapixel cameras costing just over $100, you can easily capture a dozen full pages in a single shot, in just a second.
Boyden, E. S. "How to Think." Ed Boyden's Blog. Technology Review
Thanks
1. Synthesize new ideas constantly. Never read passively. Annotate, model, think, and synthesize while you read, even when you're reading what you conceive to be introductory stuff. That way, you will always aim towards understanding things at a resolution fine enough for you to be creative.
2. Learn how to learn (rapidly). One of the most important talents for the 21st century is the ability to learn almost anything instantly, so cultivate this talent. Be able to rapidly prototype ideas. Know how your brain works. (I often need a 20-minute power nap after loading a lot into my brain, followed by half a cup of coffee. Knowing how my brain operates enables me to use it well.)
3. Work backward from your goal. Or else you may never get there. If you work forward, you may invent something profound--or you might not. If you work backward, then you have at least directed your efforts at something important to you.
4. Always have a long-term plan. Even if you change it every day. The act of making the plan alone is worth it. And even if you revise it often, you're guaranteed to be learning something.
5. Make contingency maps. Draw all the things you need to do on a big piece of paper, and find out which things depend on other things. Then, find the things that are not dependent on anything but have the most dependents, and finish them first.
6. Collaborate.
7. Make your mistakes quickly. You may mess things up on the first try, but do it fast, and then move on. Document what led to the error so that you learn what to recognize, and then move on. Get the mistakes out of the way. As Shakespeare put it, "Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt."
8. As you develop skills, write up best-practices protocols. That way, when you return to something you've done, you can make it routine. Instinctualize conscious control.
9. Document everything obsessively. If you don't record it, it may never have an impact on the world. Much of creativity is learning how to see things properly. Most profound scientific discoveries are surprises. But if you don't document and digest every observation and learn to trust your eyes, then you will not know when you have seen a surprise.
10. Keep it simple. If it looks like something hard to engineer, it probably is. If you can spend two days thinking of ways to make it 10 times simpler, do it. It will work better, be more reliable, and have a bigger impact on the world. And learn, if only to know what has failed before. Remember the old saying, "Six months in the lab can save an afternoon in the library."
Two practical notes. The first is in the arena of time management. I really like what I call logarithmic time planning, in which events that are close at hand are scheduled with finer resolution than events that are far off. For example, things that happen tomorrow should be scheduled down to the minute, things that happen next week should be scheduled down to the hour, and things that happen next year should be scheduled down to the day. Why do all calendar programs force you to pick the exact minute something happens when you are trying to schedule it a year out? I just use a word processor to schedule all my events, tasks, and commitments, with resolution fading away the farther I look into the future. (It would be nice, though, to have a software tool that would gently help you make the schedule higher-resolution as time passes...)
The second practical note: I find it really useful to write and draw while talking with someone, composing conversation summaries on pieces of paper or pages of notepads. I often use plenty of color annotation to highlight salient points. At the end of the conversation, I digitally photograph the piece of paper so that I capture the entire flow of the conversation and the thoughts that emerged. The person I've conversed with usually gets to keep the original piece of paper, and the digital photograph is uploaded to my computer for keyword tagging and archiving. This way I can call up all the images, sketches, ideas, references, and action items from a brief note that I took during a five-minute meeting at a coffee shop years ago--at a touch, on my laptop. With 10-megapixel cameras costing just over $100, you can easily capture a dozen full pages in a single shot, in just a second.
Boyden, E. S. "How to Think." Ed Boyden's Blog. Technology Review
Thanks
Global Classroom to link students in Doha and Washington
The Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar has rolled out a Polycom video conferencing suite that will enable the school to link to its US campus to share lectures and seminars.The Global Classroom initiative will be used to deliver lectures between the two campuses, to ensure a consistent learning experience for undergraduate students.Polycom's RealPresence Experience High Definition (RPXTMHD) technology includes high-definition displays, low profile microphones, controls and cameras, and special dual lens camera technology that enables speakers in different locations to make realistic eye contact during sessions, to improve communications.James Reardon-Anderson, dean of the School of Foreign Service in Qatar commented: "The point of the global classroom is to enable students and teachers in separate locations to experience learning as if they were in the same room. This gives students from different countries and cultures an opportunity to talk directly to one another, and it weaves together the two Georgetown campuses in ways that have not been possible in the past."The Global Classroom was rolled out by Polycom partner Techno Q, who will also provide service for the video suite.
Youssef Saleh, vice president and general manager of telepresence and vertical solutions at Polycom said: "Georgetown University's Global Classroom is a great example of how Polycom telepresence solutions can erase the collaboration barriers caused by distance and create wonderful new opportunities. The flexible nature of this technology makes it ideal for a broad range of industries and interactive applications. We look forward to seeing how the progressive educators at Georgetown will use this system to continue to enhance their curriculum for students of international affairs."
Thanks
Youssef Saleh, vice president and general manager of telepresence and vertical solutions at Polycom said: "Georgetown University's Global Classroom is a great example of how Polycom telepresence solutions can erase the collaboration barriers caused by distance and create wonderful new opportunities. The flexible nature of this technology makes it ideal for a broad range of industries and interactive applications. We look forward to seeing how the progressive educators at Georgetown will use this system to continue to enhance their curriculum for students of international affairs."
Thanks
One free dialysis a day for underprivileged patients
The TANKER (an acronym for Tamilnad Kidney Research)Foundation is a registered, non - profit charitable trust, founded on 30th June 1993. TANKER aims to provide health care and financial assistance to those who have kidney problems and do not have the wherewithal to seek medical attention.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
How to Work Less and Get More Accomplished
Working less while accomplishing more isn’t easy. It requires creative thinking creatively and a willingness to open yourself to the possibility that your methods aren’t as efficient as they could be. Once you do that, though, there are some ways that you can do it, including:
The 80/20 Rule
Only 20 percent of your work contributes to a large output. Be ruthless in cutting time in the less important 80 percent.
Parkinson’s Law
Parkinson’s Law states that “work will fill the time available for its completion.” Give yourself strict deadlines and cultivate a desire to finish projects.
Energy Management
Think of results as a function of energy, not time invested. Working intensely for a short period of time can accomplish more than working for days, tired and distracted.
Only Use Sharp Tools
Skill saves time. Don’t waste your time doing things you don’t intend to be excellent at. Delegate them to someone else.
Rule With Numbers
Assumptions are the biggest waste of your time. When your intuitions don’t match the way the world works, you can never be efficient. Combat false assumptions by testing them and paying attention to the numbers.
The Marginal Rule of Quality
Whenever extra input you invest perfecting something exceeds the output gained, stop working on that task.
Thanks
The 80/20 Rule
Only 20 percent of your work contributes to a large output. Be ruthless in cutting time in the less important 80 percent.
Parkinson’s Law
Parkinson’s Law states that “work will fill the time available for its completion.” Give yourself strict deadlines and cultivate a desire to finish projects.
Energy Management
Think of results as a function of energy, not time invested. Working intensely for a short period of time can accomplish more than working for days, tired and distracted.
Only Use Sharp Tools
Skill saves time. Don’t waste your time doing things you don’t intend to be excellent at. Delegate them to someone else.
Rule With Numbers
Assumptions are the biggest waste of your time. When your intuitions don’t match the way the world works, you can never be efficient. Combat false assumptions by testing them and paying attention to the numbers.
The Marginal Rule of Quality
Whenever extra input you invest perfecting something exceeds the output gained, stop working on that task.
Thanks
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Filter Out Unwanted Noise to Get Some Sleep
Does that slow drip in the sink keep you awake at night? Do you ever find yourself hearing a sound outside of your home and while getting used to it, staying up anticipating the next moment you will hear it again? Would you like to filter out annoying and disturbing sounds and get a good sound rest?
The Sound Screen by Marpac aims to mute out undesired noises and give you a calm tone, so you can rest and sleep as you deserve. You filter out the amount of “white noise” by simply rotating the top cap of the device and relax while focusing on the silence.
Can you think of someone this gadget is good for? Anyone you know that would love some external tech product to give them some peace and quiet?
Whether you work late, crazy shifts, have a hard time getting used to all the noise at different times of the day, or simply looking for an easy remedy to help you sleep…Marpac aims to grant that
Thanks
The Sound Screen by Marpac aims to mute out undesired noises and give you a calm tone, so you can rest and sleep as you deserve. You filter out the amount of “white noise” by simply rotating the top cap of the device and relax while focusing on the silence.
Can you think of someone this gadget is good for? Anyone you know that would love some external tech product to give them some peace and quiet?
Whether you work late, crazy shifts, have a hard time getting used to all the noise at different times of the day, or simply looking for an easy remedy to help you sleep…Marpac aims to grant that
Thanks
Dollar Collapse Imminent
The US Dollar Collapse is Imminent and there will be global economic catastrohpe when it is rejected as the currency for trade, former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad said on Tuesday. The US dollar was retaining some value because of fears of a global economic catastrophe if it was rejected, he told a conference of some 650 chief executives from 30 countries at a conference in Kota Kinabalu on Borneo."But the catastrophe will come one day because even the most powerful country in the world cannot repay loans amounting to seven trillion dollars," Mahathir said.He said, Central banks worldwide were reducing their US dollar reserves and he suspected that Malaysia was also switching to other currencies.The huge deficit meant that the US dollar had no backing but it continued to be used internationally because some people still accepted payments in US dollars, he said."But there will come a time when we will switch away from the US dollar and we have suggested the use of gold for international trade," he said.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Lion Cells
Founded in 2006, this Silicon Valley start-up aims to make small but powerful lithium ion batteries--which discharge energy as lithium ions move from an anode to a cathode--for power tools, but also has its eye on larger devices like motorcycles and cars. The three-pronged sell: higher energy density (the amount of charge the battery holds), higher power density (strength to rev up larger devices) and increased cycles (the number of times the battery can be recharged). The batteries also offer a vent to release potentially dangerous pressure that builds up from heat generated by those bouncing ions. Backed by Battery Ventures, Lion licenses its technology from SRI, a non-profit sponsor of technology development. According to Chief Executive Jeff Depew, the company's products should hit the market in 2009, if not sooner.
Dubai to Build World’s Largest Arch Bridge
Dubai is set to spend $817-million on building the world’s largest arch bride, at 617-feet tall and 1-mile in length. Expect it to be in service by 2012.Link
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Robot as good as real dog at easing lonely hours
A friendly dog can make older people feel less isolated--and it appears to make little difference if that wagging tail belongs to a robot doggie or the real thing. Researchers at Saint Louis University in Missouri compared a 35-pound floppy-eared mutt named Sparky with Aibo, a far-from-lifelike robot dog, to see how residents of three U.S. nursing homes would respond."The most surprising thing is they worked almost equally well in terms of alleviating loneliness and causing residents to form attachments," said Dr. William Banks, a professor of geriatric medicine who worked on the study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Directors Association.
Banks said pets have been shown to help older people feel less isolated. "It really improves loneliness considerably," he said in a telephone interview.
But many senior citizens are too frail to care for a pet or have had to give up their own animals when they went to the nursing home. "They really miss that bond," he said.
Banks and colleagues decided to see if a faux fido might offer some comfort.
The researchers studied 38 nursing home residents who were divided into three groups. One got regular visits from Banks' pet Sparky, another got visits from the Aibo Entertainment Robot, a shiny robot dog formerly made by Sony that used artificial intelligence to interact with its environment and express emotion.
The third group got no visits from either dog.
Banks said he had been sure Sparky would have the edge, but to his surprise, both dogs provided virtually equal comfort after seven weeks of visits.
While Aibo has been discontinued, Banks thinks similar robots could offer companionship for older people and might even be programmed to keep tabs on their owners, alerting emergency workers of a sudden fall.
"Loneliness is common in nursing homes," Banks said. "Robots may be very useful for people who cannot for whatever reason have access to a living dog."
Story Copyright © 2008 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
©2007 CNET Networks, Inc. All rights reserved. CNET , CNET.com , and the CNET logo are registered trademarks of CNET Networks, Inc. Used by permission.
Seeds of Future Agriculture Enter Doomsday Deep Freeze
A barren, treeless island in the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard may prove to be the last, best hope of agriculture in warmer, more fertile parts of the world. The first batch of 100 million of the most important agricultural seeds were placed into the doomsday repository there today. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is buried deep within a frozen mountainside near the Norwegian town of Longyearbyen that perpetually cools it to –18 degrees Celsius (–0.4 degree Fahrenheit) with or without permafrost. Built to withstand all foreseeable disasters, including a recent earthquake that was the biggest in Norwegian history, it has room to protect at least 4.5 million samples (2.25 billion seeds) in its three man-made caverns.
"The opening of the seed vault marks a historic turning point in safeguarding the world's crop diversity," says Cary Fowler, executive director of the Rome-based Global Crop Diversity Trust, which led the project. "Crop diversity will soon prove to be our most potent and indispensable resource for addressing climate change, water and energy supply constraints, and for meeting the food needs of a growing population.
"Rice was the first staple to be stored in the vault—strains from 104 countries around the globe. Sealed in airtight foil packages and encased in boxes, the seeds will remain viable but dormant in the low temperature and humidity conditions.
Wheat, maize, potato, bean and even watermelon seeds will be placed in Svalbard in coming weeks. All told, 268,000 different varieties from Canada, Columbia, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Syria, among others, will be the first to enter the deep freeze.
The vault is designed to protect against global-scale disasters—human or natural—that could potentially wipe out agriculture. Similar local seed banks have allowed farmers to recover from recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq as well as provided new varieties capable of growing in changed conditions, such as rice strains that thrive in fields that had been inundated with saltwater after the Asian tsunami in 2004.
"Gene banks are not seed museums but the repositories of vital, living resources that are used almost every day in the never-ending battle against major threats to food production," says Emile Frison, director general of Bioversity International. "We're going to need this diversity to breed new varieties that can adapt to climate change, new diseases and other rapidly emerging threats.
"Such gene banks are themselves vulnerable. For example, a typhoon in 2006 wiped out the Philippines's national rice seed repository. "Unfortunately, these kinds of national gene bank horror stories are fairly common," Fowler says.The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is meant to be the backup of last resort, stocked with copies of different crops from national seed storage facilities. For example, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Germplasm System plans to send more than a million seeds to the vault, including sweet pepper, squash and tomatoes.In the vault's cold isolation, the seeds can keep for hundreds and thousands of years—the grain sorghum alone can last for 20,000 years—effectively allowing agriculture to be restarted in the event of a global calamity, such as nuclear war or catastrophic climate change. But the vault will require some vestiges of human civilization to persist, if only to build the transportation to bring the seeds back out of their new icy home."The world's crop gene pool contained in seeds is essential for increasing crop productivity; mitigating climate change, pests and diseases; and ensuring a genetic resource base for the future," said Jacques Diouf, director general of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, in remarks prior to the opening of the vault. "Seeds are the vehicle of life."
"The opening of the seed vault marks a historic turning point in safeguarding the world's crop diversity," says Cary Fowler, executive director of the Rome-based Global Crop Diversity Trust, which led the project. "Crop diversity will soon prove to be our most potent and indispensable resource for addressing climate change, water and energy supply constraints, and for meeting the food needs of a growing population.
"Rice was the first staple to be stored in the vault—strains from 104 countries around the globe. Sealed in airtight foil packages and encased in boxes, the seeds will remain viable but dormant in the low temperature and humidity conditions.
Wheat, maize, potato, bean and even watermelon seeds will be placed in Svalbard in coming weeks. All told, 268,000 different varieties from Canada, Columbia, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Syria, among others, will be the first to enter the deep freeze.
The vault is designed to protect against global-scale disasters—human or natural—that could potentially wipe out agriculture. Similar local seed banks have allowed farmers to recover from recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq as well as provided new varieties capable of growing in changed conditions, such as rice strains that thrive in fields that had been inundated with saltwater after the Asian tsunami in 2004.
"Gene banks are not seed museums but the repositories of vital, living resources that are used almost every day in the never-ending battle against major threats to food production," says Emile Frison, director general of Bioversity International. "We're going to need this diversity to breed new varieties that can adapt to climate change, new diseases and other rapidly emerging threats.
"Such gene banks are themselves vulnerable. For example, a typhoon in 2006 wiped out the Philippines's national rice seed repository. "Unfortunately, these kinds of national gene bank horror stories are fairly common," Fowler says.The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is meant to be the backup of last resort, stocked with copies of different crops from national seed storage facilities. For example, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Germplasm System plans to send more than a million seeds to the vault, including sweet pepper, squash and tomatoes.In the vault's cold isolation, the seeds can keep for hundreds and thousands of years—the grain sorghum alone can last for 20,000 years—effectively allowing agriculture to be restarted in the event of a global calamity, such as nuclear war or catastrophic climate change. But the vault will require some vestiges of human civilization to persist, if only to build the transportation to bring the seeds back out of their new icy home."The world's crop gene pool contained in seeds is essential for increasing crop productivity; mitigating climate change, pests and diseases; and ensuring a genetic resource base for the future," said Jacques Diouf, director general of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, in remarks prior to the opening of the vault. "Seeds are the vehicle of life."
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Treasure hunters dig for Hitler's gold
DEUTSCHNEUDORF, Germany (CNN) -- Digging has resumed at a site in the southeastern German town of Deutschneudorf, where treasure hunters believe there are almost 2 tons of Nazi gold and possibly clues to the whereabouts of the legendary Amber Room, a prize taken from a Russian castle during World War II.
Treasure hunters began drilling again Tuesday to try to locate the lost Nazi gold.
Heinz Peter Haustein, one of the two treasure hunters and a member of Germany's parliament, said: "We have already hit a hollow area under the surface, it's filled with water and we are not sure if it is the cave we are looking for."
Digging was stopped more than a week ago amid safety concerns, as authorities and the treasure hunters feared that the shaft might collapse and that the cave -- if it is there -- may be rigged with explosives or poisonous booby traps.
At a news conference Friday, Christian Hanisch, the other treasure hunter, said that geological surveying equipment had located a possible cave about 30 feet under the surface containing "precious metals that can only be either gold or silver. The instruments would not have reacted to any other metal like copper." See photos from hunt for lost Nazi gold »
Hanisch pointed out that his father, who was a navigator in the Luftwaffe, the Nazi air force, was one of the troops said to have been involved in hiding art, gold and silver as the Nazis realized that they would lose the war.
He said that when his father died, he left coordinates leading to the spot in Deutschneudorf.
"It's not about getting the reward," Hanisch said at the site. "I just want to know if my father was right and if my instincts were right."
Thanks
Treasure hunters began drilling again Tuesday to try to locate the lost Nazi gold.
Heinz Peter Haustein, one of the two treasure hunters and a member of Germany's parliament, said: "We have already hit a hollow area under the surface, it's filled with water and we are not sure if it is the cave we are looking for."
Digging was stopped more than a week ago amid safety concerns, as authorities and the treasure hunters feared that the shaft might collapse and that the cave -- if it is there -- may be rigged with explosives or poisonous booby traps.
At a news conference Friday, Christian Hanisch, the other treasure hunter, said that geological surveying equipment had located a possible cave about 30 feet under the surface containing "precious metals that can only be either gold or silver. The instruments would not have reacted to any other metal like copper." See photos from hunt for lost Nazi gold »
Hanisch pointed out that his father, who was a navigator in the Luftwaffe, the Nazi air force, was one of the troops said to have been involved in hiding art, gold and silver as the Nazis realized that they would lose the war.
He said that when his father died, he left coordinates leading to the spot in Deutschneudorf.
"It's not about getting the reward," Hanisch said at the site. "I just want to know if my father was right and if my instincts were right."
Thanks
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
American University in Dubai streamlines student records
The American University in Dubai (AUD) has streamlined its student record processing, with the deployment of a document management system,The university has integrated Perceptive Software's ImageNow document management solution with its existing CampusVue administration system, to provide secure management of electronic documents.
The system also includes solutions for document capture and workflow, to improve productivity in the university's administration.
Frank Seifaee, information technology services manager at the AUD said: "Our students records system was a very paper-heavy process. Because documents have to be viewed across different departments we wanted to find a more efficient way of providing controlled access. ImageNow meets all our needs - it's quick to implement, simple to use and has an affiliation with CampusVue.
"Perceptive Software's director of sales, EMEA, Paul Hunt, said: "We're delighted to add The American University in Dubai to our international client list. Perceptive Software is already a leading document management solution for the higher education sector in the U.S., and it's good to know our reputation is spreading on a global scale."
Link
Roadside cameras that detect BLOOD will catch lone drivers who abuse car-sharing lanes
Motorists will be targeted by a new generation of road cameras which work out how many people are in a car by measuring the amount of bodily fluid it contains.The latest snooping device on the nation's roads aims to penalise lone drivers who abuse car-sharing lanes, and is part of a Government effort to combat congestion at busy times.
The cameras work by sending an infrared beam through the windscreen of vehicles which detects the unique make-up of blood and water content in human skin.
The system's inventors believe it will catch out motorists who try to fool existing CCTV road cameras by placing mannequins in passenger seats or fixing photographs to windscreens.
It will at first be used to police car-sharing lanes in Leeds, but councils across the country have already expressed an interest in using them.
Professor John Tyrer, who headed the Loughborough University team which created the device, said it would reduce congestion.
"It allows you to automatically count people," he said.
"That pools through to the congestion charging, so they can charge differently or reduce the rates dramatically if you've got more people in the cars."
But motoring organisations claim the cameras are a further intrusion on private lives and say car-sharing lanes – which are already in operation in Birmingham and Leeds and are being built on the M1 in Hertfordshire – do not work.
AA president Edmund King said: "Most of us work flexible hours. We don't go to work or come home from work at the same time.
"Car-sharing lanes are incredibly difficult to enforce and, if not many people use them, they're actually a waste of road capacity."
Roads Minister Rosie Winterton said last night she encouraged "innovative solutions" to the problems created by congestion.
Thanks
Monday, February 25, 2008
A mysterious dark energy fills the universe
Dark energy makes the universe fly apart like a runaway freight train and keeps space-time flat as a pancake, but what is it?Hypothetical 'dark energy' is the most popular way of explaining why the universe is expanding at an ever increasing rate. Dark energy plays a massive part in shaping our reality however nobody seems certain of what the dang stuff actually is. Future space missions hope to solve this mystery and shake up our current understanding of the universe.
The discovery of 'Dark Energy'
In 1998 two rival groups of scientists embarked on research projects to measure the effects of gravity on the expansion of the universe. Since the Big Bang 13.7 billion years ago, the universe had been expanding. What was unknown was would this expansion go on forever. Was there too little mass in the universe to slow down the expansion - and it would continue forever? Or was the amount of mass in the universe sufficient to not only slow down the growth of the universe, but to eventually pull it all back together to one point?
Both teams got startling results. Instead of slowing or continuing at a steady rate, the universe was expanding faster and faster. A mysterious energy was causing the universe to fly apart.
We have since established that the acceleration of the expansion of the universe begun about 9 billion years ago when dark energy dominated the force of gravity and begun to push the universe apart at an ever increasing rate. These findings were understandably shocking to scientists who thought it most likely we lived in a universe which was gently slowing down due to gravitational attraction.
How do scientists determine how fast the universe is expanding?
Scientists use 'standard candles' to measure the rate of expansion of the universe. These are objects which we know always have the same total brightness. The most reliable standard candles are type 1a supernovae. These are created when a white dwarf star consumes matter from a neighbouring star until it reaches a certain critical mass and it suddenly explodes into a supernova. Because the mass of a star which becomes a Type 1a supernova is always the same, we know how bright the explosion which follows will be - and as well, the characteristic pattern of the dimming of this light.
By measuring how much fainter the light from a Type 1a supernova appears to us on earth we know how far away it must be. However, we still need a way to measure the rate at which these standard candles are moving away from us. To do this, scientists look at the redshift of the light they emitted from the parent galaxy in which the Type 1a supernova appeared. Redshift is the effect of the 'stretching' of light which has travelled a long distance to reach us.
We know that light always travels at the same speed through a vacuum - and that this speed doesn't change over time. However, the amount of energy in the light does change. If the object which emits the light is moving away from us, the wavelength of the light will be 'stretched' which means the energy of the light is decreased. An analogy for this is the change in sound you hear when an ambulance passes. When it begins to move away from you the sound waves are 'stretched' which makes the pitch of the siren lower. The faster the ambulance moves away from you, the more the pitch will change. Distant galaxies are moving away from us as the universe expands, so the light they emit is 'stretched' so it's energy is reduced. The further away the object is from us here on earth, the faster it is moving away from us so the lower the energy of the light we receive.
The scientists who were researching the expansion of the universe in 1998 found that when they compared the light from distant Type 1a supernovae to the redshift of the light in the galaxy in which it was located that it was dimmer than expected. Something was causing the expansion of the universe to accelerate! A 'dark' unknown energy was at work.
Is our universe 'flat'? Read on to learn more...
Etisalat sets up SMS spam blocking service
Etisalat is taking steps to block the flow of SMS spam, with the deployment of a spam blocking solution from Irish mobile security company Etisalat customers to be protected from mobile spam with AdaptiveMobile solution AdpativeMobile.
The UAE telco will roll out AdaptiveMobile's PolicyFilter SMS to automatically cut out spam sent from outside the Emirates, to protect Etisalat's 6.4 customers from unwanted text messages. The solution has been customized to screen both English and Arabic language messages, although it will only block spam SMS sent from outside the country.
Essa AlHaddad, Etisalat's chief marketing officer commented: "Etisalat is extremely vigilant towards the protection of the individual and we rely heavily on the technology delivered by companies such as AdaptiveMobile to offer our customers total peace of mind. Our subscribers do not want to receive SMS SPAM and Etisalat's pro-active approach to security compels us to continually look at measures that can be adopted to maintain the quality of service on our network and that will support us in ensuring the well-being and satisfaction of our customers."
Lorcan Burke, AdaptiveMobile CEO said: "As mobile operators worldwide continue to vie for customer attention, it is key that customers can feel instantly comfortable and protected through their choice of provider. These sorts of products can give an immediate competitive advantage within such a crowded market."
The UAE telco will roll out AdaptiveMobile's PolicyFilter SMS to automatically cut out spam sent from outside the Emirates, to protect Etisalat's 6.4 customers from unwanted text messages. The solution has been customized to screen both English and Arabic language messages, although it will only block spam SMS sent from outside the country.
Essa AlHaddad, Etisalat's chief marketing officer commented: "Etisalat is extremely vigilant towards the protection of the individual and we rely heavily on the technology delivered by companies such as AdaptiveMobile to offer our customers total peace of mind. Our subscribers do not want to receive SMS SPAM and Etisalat's pro-active approach to security compels us to continually look at measures that can be adopted to maintain the quality of service on our network and that will support us in ensuring the well-being and satisfaction of our customers."
Lorcan Burke, AdaptiveMobile CEO said: "As mobile operators worldwide continue to vie for customer attention, it is key that customers can feel instantly comfortable and protected through their choice of provider. These sorts of products can give an immediate competitive advantage within such a crowded market."
How to Increase Your Metabolism
If you've trying to lose weight and think your metabolism might be the culprit, there are changes you can make to improve it. But with the commercialism surrounding "metabolism-enhancing" products, it can be hard to separate fact from fiction (or advertising) and pin down techniques that are scientifically proven to change one's metabolism.Sunday, February 24, 2008
Laughometer measures
For those who believe laughter is the best medicine, now there is a way to measure the dosage. Researchers at Kansai University have developed a machine that can scientifically measure the quantity of a person’s laughter, as well as distinguish between the real and the fake.The laughter measurement system, which the researchers say will help scientists conduct more detailed research into the physiological effects of laughter on the immune system, relies on a series of electrode sensors that monitor the tiny amounts of bioelectricity generated by certain muscles that flex when you chuckle. The sensors, which attach to a person’s cheeks, chest and abdomen, take 3,000 measurements per second. Sensor data is relayed to a computer, where it is analyzed by special software that determines the nature of the laugh and assigns a numerical score based on the quantity.
The laughter quantity is expressed in terms of “aH” — a unit of measurement developed by the research team. According to chief researcher Yoji Kimura, a Kansai University professor, 1 second of explosive laughter amounts to 5 aH.
The system distinguishes between real and fake laughter by closely monitoring the movement of the diaphragm — the thin sheet of muscle extending across the bottom of the rib cage, which separates the chest organs from those of the abdomen. According to Kimura, the diaphragm does not vibrate significantly when a person pretends to laugh, even when the person’s voice and facial expression appear genuine. On the other hand, when one laughs at something they truly find funny, the diaphragm generates 2 to 5 distinct vibrational waves per second.
At Kansai University on February 21, the researchers publicly demonstrated the system by measuring the laughter of a 30-something-year-old woman and her 5-year-old daughter as they watched a performance by Yoshimoto comedians. The mother, who apparently found no humor in the comedy routine, experienced only slightly more than 0 aH of laughter, while her amused daughter experienced a hearty 42 aH.
The researchers, who spent over a year developing the system, are aiming to create a portable version of the system for use in health and entertainment devices.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
-
കേരളത്തിലെ യുവാക്കളിലെ സമീപകാല അക്രമവും മയക്കുമരുന്ന് ദുരുപയോഗവും: കുടുംബങ്ങൾക്ക് ഒരു ദീർഘകാല പരിഹാര സന്ദേശം കേരളം, ഒരുകാലത്ത് ഉയർന്ന സാക്ഷര...
-
മികച്ച ആരോഗ്യ സംവിധാനവും ഉയർന്ന ആയുസ്സും ഉള്ള കേരളത്തിൽ വൃക്ക രോഗികളുടെ എണ്ണം ഞെട്ടിക്കുന്ന വേഗത്തിൽ വർധിക്കുന്നു. സംസ്ഥാനത്ത് 50,000 ത്തിലധ...
