English is a west Germanic language originating in England and is the first language for most people in United States, United Kingdom, Canada,Australia , New Zealand , Ireland and Anglophone Caribbean. It is used extensively as a second language and as an official language throughout the world, especially in Commonwealth countries and in many international organisations. Modern English , sometimes described as the first global lingua franca is the dominant international language in communications, science, business, aviation, entertainment, radio and diplomacy. The initial reason for its enormous spread beyond the bounds of the British Isles where it was originally a native tongue was the British Empire, and by the late nineteenth century its influence had won a truly global reach. It is the dominant language in the United States and the growing economic and cultural influence and status as a global superpower since World War II has significantly accelerated adoption of English as a language across the planet.
A working knowledge of English has become a requirement in a number of fields, occupations and professions such as medicine and as a consequence over a billion people speak English to at least a basic level (see English language learning and teaching).
Linguists such as David Crystal recognize that one impact of this massive growth of English, in common with other global languages, has been to reduce native linguistic diversity in many parts of the world historically, most particularly in Australasia and North America, and its huge influence continues to play an important role in language attrition. By a similar token, historical linguists, aware of the complex and fluid dynamics of language change, are always alive to the potential English contains through the vast size and spread of the communities that use it and its natural internal variety, such as in its creoles and pidgins, to produce a new family of distinct languages over time.
English is one of six official languages of the United Nations.
A calculator is device for performing mathematical calculations, distinguished from a computer by having a limited problem solving ability and an interface optimized for interactive calculation rather than programming. Calculators can be hardware or software, and mechanical or electronic, and are often built into devices such as PDAs or mobile phone.
Modern electronic calculators are generally small, digital, (often pocket-sized) and usually inexpensive. In addition to general purpose calculators, there are those designed for specific markets; for example, there are scientific calculators which focus on advanced math like trigonometry and statistics, or even have the ability to do computer algebra. Modern calculators are more portable than most computers, though most PDAs are comparable in size to hand held calculators. In the past, mechanical clerical aids such as abaci, comptometers, Napier's bones, books of mathematical tables, slide rules, or mechanical adding machines were used for numeric work. This semi-manual process of calculation was tedious and error-prone.
Modern calculators are electrically powered (usually by battery and/or solar cell) and vary from cheap, give-away, credit-card sized models to sturdy adding machine-like models with built-in printers. They first became popular in the late 1960s as decreasing size and cost of electronics made possible devices for calculations, avoiding the use of scarce and expensive computer resources. By the 1980s, calculator prices had reduced to a point where a basic calculator was affordable to most. By the 1990s they had become common in math classes in schools, with the idea that students could be freed from basic calculations and focus on the concepts.
Computer operating systems as far back as early Unix have included interactive calculator programs such as dc and hoc, and calculator functions are included in almost all PDA-type devices.
The UEFA Cup, which will be renamed the UEFA Europa League in 2009/10, grew out of an idea conceived by Switzerland's Ernst Thommen who, along with Italy's Ottorino Barrasi and England's Sir Stanley Rous, later FIFA President, created a tournament for representative sides from European cities that regularly held trade fairs.
This forerunner to the UEFA Cup, the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, was founded on 18 April 1955, two weeks after the founding of the European Champion Clubs' Cup. The first Fairs Cup involved teams from Barcelona, Basle, Birmingham, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Lausanne, Leipzig, London, Milan and Zagreb. The original tournament lasted three years, with matches timed to coincide with trade fairs. Barcelona, using players purely from FC Barcelona, beat a London representative side 8-2 on aggregate in the final.
Usain Bolt IPA(born 21 August 1986) is a Jamaican sprinter. Bolt holds the Olympic and world records for the 100 metres at 9.69 seconds, the 200 metres at 19.30 seconds and, along with his teammates, the 4x100 metres relay at 37.10 seconds, all set at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Do you all know that he beat his own record for 100m sprint 9.72 his made in May 2008, record just can hold for 3 month only. He break Michael johnson 12 year record for 200m sprint, what a bolt he has.
for more info just go: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usain_Bolt
Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a large baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regulation (full-size) table is 12 ft × 6 ft (3.6 m x 1.8 m). It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white cue ball, 15 red balls worth one point each, and six balls of different colours yellow (2), green (3), brown (4), blue (5), pink (6) and black (7).[1] A player (or team) wins a frame (individual game) of snooker by scoring more points than the opponent(s), using the cue ball to pot the red and coloured balls. A player wins a match when a certain number of frames have been won.
Snooker is particularly popular in many of the English-speaking and Commonwealth countries,[2] and in China,[3][4] with the top professional players attaining multi-million pound career earnings from the game
Scuba diving is swimming underwater, or taking part in another activity, while using a scuba set.[1] By carrying a source of breathing gas (usually compressed air),[2] the scuba diver is able to stay underwater longer than with the simple breath-holding techniques used in snorkeling and free-diving, and is not hindered by air lines to a remote air source. The scuba diver typically swims underwater by using fins attached to the feet. However, some divers also move around with the assistance of a DPV (diver propulsion vehicle), commonly called a "scooter", or by using surface-tethered devices called sleds pulled by a boat
The Memali Incident followed severely strained relationships between UMNO and PAS, the two major Muslim political parties in Malaysia. Some PAS leaders had concluded that UMNO members were apostate. In 1981, Hadi Awang, a senior PAS politician made claims that to resist UMNO and the UMNO led government that does not practice Islamic Hudud law is a Jihad, and that those who died in the struggle are al-shahid. Pursuant to Hadi’s claims, there was a serious rift in the Malay Muslim community. In Besut, Terengganu for example, communities were split to the extent that communal prayers were done separately for UMNO and for PAS congregations. Ibrahim was a local religious teacher who had received part of his education at the University of Tripoli in Libya, hence his nickname Ibrahim Libya. The police wanted to arrest Ibrahim Mahmud under the Internal Security Act, for creating discord and disharmony, but he refused to give himself up. Ibrahim was also accused of harbouring two brothers Yusof Che Mit and Ramli Che Mit, who were fugitives. Revered by the village folks, who called him Ustaz Ibrahim, they vowed to a man to defend their teacher to the death.
Ibrahim attended Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan Weng in Baling before furthering his studies in Islamic studies at Sekolah Agama Ittifaqiah, Kg Carok Putih, Weng and later to Pondok Al-Khariah, Pokok Sena, Seberang Perai. Ibrahim Mahmud attended the University of Tripoli in Libya. He had also studied in India and at Al-Azhar University in Cairo.
Upon his return, he worked as a preacher with Pusat Islam. He appeared on television to lectures on topics of Islam. Allegedly, Ibrahim was involved in the 1974 Baling Demonstrations along with Anwar Ibrahim. Ibrahim Mahmud’s politics drifted towards those of PAS. His close association with PAS worried the government of Dr. Mahathir Mohamad. In 1978, Ibrahim contested the elections for the seat of Bayu-Baling as a PAS candidate. Ibrahim polled 5,081 votes as opposed to the Barisan Nasional candidate who polled 6,169 votes. In 1982, Ibrahim again contested for the same seat but lost by 100 votes.
Pusat Islam looked into his teachings and thereafter banned him from lecturing in the media or to give lectures in mosques and suraus throughout the nation. Pusat Islam also started making allegations of 'deviationist acts' against him. Ibrahim was called a fanatic who challenged the integrity of the Government.
Death Toll The police action left 14 civilians and four policemen dead. The villagers were armed with a few hunting rifles and spears and other rudimentary weapons. The police used heavy vehicles. At the height of the assault some villagers, men and women, came out in the open in a state of frenzy and hysteria. In an announcement in the media, Acting Prime Minister Musa Hitam (Dr. Mahathir Mohamad was away on a visit to China), who was also Home Affairs Minister announced that 14 'criminals' had been killed in Kampung Memali in clashes with security forces.
In the early 1980s, cheerleading squads not associated with a schools or sports leagues, whose main objective was competition, began to emerge. The first organization to call themselves all stars and go to competitions were the Q94 Rockers from Richmond, Virginia, founded in 1982 by Hilda McDaniel.[12] All-star teams competing prior to 1987 were place into the same divisions as teams that represented schools and sports leagues. In 1986 National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) decided to address this situation by creating a separate division for these teams lacking a sponsoring school or athletic association, calling it the 'All-Star Division' and debuting it at their 1987 competitions. As the popularity of these types of teams grew, more and more of them were formed, attending competitions sponsored by many different types of organizations and companies, all using their own set of rules, regulations and divisions. This situation became one of the chief concerns of gym owners. These inconsistencies caused coaches to keep their routines in a constant state of flux, detracting from time that should be utilized to develop skills and provide personal attention to their athletes. More importantly, because the various companies were constantly vying for the competitive edge, safety standards had becoming more and more lax. In some cases, unqualified coaches and inexperienced squads are attempting dangerous stunts as a result of these “expanded” sets of rules.
The USASF was formed in 2003 by these various competition companies to act as the national governing body for all star cheerleading and to create a standard set of rules and judging standards to be followed by all competitions sanctioned by the Federation and ultimately leading to the Cheerleading Worlds. The USASF hosted the first Cheerleading Worlds on Saturday, April 24, 2004.At the same time, cheerleading coaches from all over the country organize themselves for the same rule making purpose, calling themselves the National All Star Cheerleading Coaches Congress (NACCC). In 2005, the NACCC was absorbed by the USASF to become their rule making body.By late 2006, the USASF was ready to expand its reach even further, by facilitating the creation of the International All-Star Federation (IASF), the first international governing body for the sport of cheerleading.
Currently all-star cheerleading as sanctioned by the USASF involves a squad of 6-36 females and/or males. The squad prepares year-round for many different competition appearances, but they only actually perform for up to 2½ minutes during their routines. The numbers of competitions a team participates in varies from team to team, but generally, most teams tend to participate in eight-twelve competitions a year. These competitions include locals, which are normally taken place in school gymnasiums, nationals, hosted in big venues all around the U.S. with national champions, and the Cheerleading Worlds, taken place at Disney World in Orlando, Florida. During a competition routine, a squad performs carefully choreographed stunting, tumbling, jumping and dancing to their own custom music. Teams create their routines to an eight-count system and apply that to the music so the team members execute the elements with precise timing and synchronization.
Judges at the competition watch for illegal moves from the group or any individual member. Here, an illegal move is something that is not allowed in that division due to difficulty and safety restrictions. More generally, judges look at the difficulty and execution of jumps, stunts and tumbling, synchronization, creativity, the sharpness of the motions, showmanship, and overall routine execution.
All-star cheerleaders are placed into divisions, which are grouped based upon age, size of the team, gender of participants, and ability level. The age levels vary from under 4 year of age to 18 years and over. The divisions used by the USASF/IASF are currently Tiny, Mini, Youth, Junior, Junior International, Junior Coed, Senior, Senior coed, Open International and Open.
If a team places high enough at selected USASF/IASF sanctioned national competitions, they could be included in the Cheerleading Worlds and compete against teams from all over the world, as well as receive money for placing.
Tennis as the modern sport can be dated to two separate roots. Between 1859 and 1865, Major Harry Gem and his friend Augurio Perera developed a game that combined elements of rackets similar to the game of Poona or Badminton many British soldiers brought from being stationed in India and the Basque ball game pelota, which they played on Perera's croquet lawn in Birmingham, United Kingdom.[2][3] In 1872, along with two local doctors, they founded the world's first tennis club in Leamington Spa.[4] The Courier of 23 July 1884 recorded one of the first tennis tournaments, held in the grounds of Shrubland Hall.[5]
In December 1873, Major Walter Clopton Wingfield designed a similar game — which he called sphairistike (Greek: σφάίρίστική, meaning "skill at playing at ball"), and was soon known simply as "sticky" — for the amusement of his guests at a garden party on his estate of Nantclwyd, in Llanelidan, Wales.[6] He based the game on the newer sport of outdoor tennis or real tennis. According to most tennis historians, modern tennis terminology also derives from this period
The first championships at Wimbledon in London were played in 1877.[7] On 21 May 1881, the United States National Lawn Tennis Association (now the United States Tennis Association) was formed to standardize the rules and organize competitions.[8] The U.S. National Men's Singles Championship, now the US Open, was first held in 1881 at Newport, Rhode Island.[9] The U.S. National Women's Singles Championships were first held in 1887.[10] Tennis was also popular in France, where the French Open dates to 1891.[11] Thus, Wimbledon, the US Open, the French Open, and the Australian Open (dating to 1905) became and have remained the most prestigious events in tennis.[7][12] Together these four events are called the Grand Slam (a term borrowed from bridge).[13]
The comprehensive International Lawn Tennis Federation, now known as the International Tennis Federation, rules promulgated in 1924 have remained remarkably stable in the ensuing eighty years, the one major change being the addition of the tiebreaker system designed by James Van Alen.[14]
The Davis Cup, an annual competition between national teams, dates to 1900.[15]
In 1926, promoter C.C. Pyle established the first professional tennis tour with a group of American and French tennis players playing exhibition matches to paying audiences.[12][16] The most notable of these early professionals were the American Vinnie Richards and the Frenchwoman Suzanne Lenglen.[12][17] Once a player turned pro he or she could not compete in the major (amateur) tournaments.[12]
In 1968, commercial pressures and rumors of some amateurs taking money under the table led to the abandonment of this distinction, inaugurating the open era, in which all players could compete in all tournaments, and top players were able to make their living from tennis.[18] With the beginning of the open era, the establishment of an international professional tennis circuit, and revenues from the sale of television rights, tennis's popularity has spread worldwide, and the sport has shed its upper/middle-class English-speaking image[19] (although it is acknowledged that this stereotype still exists).[19][20][21]
In 1954, Van Alen founded the International Tennis Hall of Fame, a non-profit museum in Newport, Rhode Island.[22] The building contains a large collection of tennis memorabilia as well as a hall of fame honoring prominent members and tennis players from all over the world. Each year, a grass-court tournament and an induction ceremony honoring new Hall of Fame members are hosted on its grounds.
One terminal of a cell or battery is positive, while the other is negative. It is convenient to think of current as flowing from positive to negative. This is called conventional current. Current arrows in circuit diagrams always point in the conventional direction. However, you should be aware that this is the direction of flow for a positively-charged particle.In a copper wire, the charge carriers are electrons. Electrons are negatively-charged and therefore flow from negative to positive. This means that electron flow is opposite in direction to conventional current.Current flow in electronic systems often involves charge carriers of both types. For example, in transistors, current can be carried by electrons and also by holes, which behave as positive charge carriers.When the behaviour of a circuit is analysed, what matters is the amount of charge which is being transferred. The effect of the current can be accurately predicted without knowing about whether the charge carriers are positively or negatively charged.A cell provides a steady voltage, so that current flow is always in the same direction. This is called direct current, or d.c. In contrast, the domestic mains provides a constantly changing voltage which reverses in polarity 50 times every second. This gives rise to alternating current, or a.c., in which the charge carriers move backwards and forwards in the circuit.
One terminal of a cell or battery is positive, while the other is negative. It is convenient to think of current as flowing from positive to negative. This is called conventional current. Current arrows in circuit diagrams always point in the conventional direction. However, you should be aware that this is the direction of flow for a positively-charged particle.In a copper wire, the charge carriers are electrons. Electrons are negatively-charged and therefore flow from negative to positive. This means that electron flow is opposite in direction to conventional current.Current flow in electronic systems often involves charge carriers of both types. For example, in transistors, current can be carried by electrons and also by holes, which behave as positive charge carriers.When the behaviour of a circuit is analysed, what matters is the amount of charge which is being transferred. The effect of the current can be accurately predicted without knowing about whether the charge carriers are positively or negatively charged.A cell provides a steady voltage, so that current flow is always in the same direction. This is called direct current, or d.c. In contrast, the domestic mains provides a constantly changing voltage which reverses in polarity 50 times every second. This gives rise to alternating current, or a.c., in which the charge carriers move backwards and forwards in the circuit.
The PlayStation 3 (officially marketed PLAYSTATION 3,[5] commonly abbreviated PS3) is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment, and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii, as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles.
A major feature that distinguishes the PlayStation 3 from its predecessors is its unified online gaming service, the PlayStation Network,[6] which contrasts with Sony's former policy of relying on game developers for online play.[7] Other major features of the console include its robust multimedia capabilities,[8] connectivity with the PlayStation Portable,[9] and its use of a high-definition optical disc format, Blu-ray Disc, as its primary storage medium.[10] The PS3 was also the first Blu-ray 2.0-compliant Blu-ray player on the market.[11]
The PlayStation 3 was first released on November 11, 2006 in Japan,[12] November 17, 2006 in North America,[13] and March 23, 2007 in Europe and Oceania.[14][15] Two SKUs were available at launch: a basic model with a 20 GB hard drive (HDD), and a premium model with a 60 GB hard drive, and several additional features[16] (the 20 GB model was not released in Europe or Oceania).[17] Since then, several revisions have been made to the console's available models and it has faced competition from the other seventh generation consoles.[18] As of July 17, 2008, the PS3 is in third place in US home console sales for its generation.[19]
assalamualaikum.. BADMINTON. Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players (singles) or two opposing pairs (doubles), who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their opponents' half of the court. A rally ends once the shuttlecock has struck the ground, and the shuttlecock may only be struck once by each side before it passes over the net.
The shuttlecock (or shuttle) is a feathered projectile whose unique aerodynamic properties cause it to fly differently from the balls used in most racquet sports; in particular, the feathers create much higher drag, causing the shuttlecock to decelerate more rapidly than a ball. Shuttlecocks have a much higher top speed, when compared to other racquet sports. Because shuttlecock flight is stubbornly affected by wind, competitive badminton is always played indoors. Badminton is also played outdoors as a casual recreational activity, often as a garden or beach game.
Since 1992, badminton has been an Olympic sport with five events: men's and women's singles, men's and women's doubles, and mixed doubles, in which each pair is a man and a woman. At high levels of play, the sport demands excellent fitness: players require aerobic stamina, agility, strength, speed, and precision. It is also a technical sport, requiring good motor coordination and the development of sophisticated racquet movements.
assalamualaikum.. celebration day of fasting. Usually on the eve of the celebrations, family members, especially mothers and housewives, will be busy preparing food, cakes, sweets, biscuits and various delicacies to be served on the day of Hari Raya. Delicacies such as ketupat or rice cake and a meat cuisine called rendang are among the most famous cuisines that are served during this day. Other family members will help in other chores such as decorating and cleaning up the house.
Days before Hari Raya, house compounds, particularly those in the countryside will be lit up with oil lamps known as pelita or panjut. This display of oil lamps will reach its height on the 27th night of Ramadan, called the Tujuh Likur night. 'Likur' literally meaning a figure between 20 and 30, hence 'tujuh likur' means twenty seven. Originally during the early days of the arrival of Islam among the Malays, the purpose of lighting the oil lamps was to attract spirit of passed relatives and angels to descend to people's homes during the night of Lailatulqadar. However after ages has passed, such misconception is regarded counterfactual as much understanding of Islam were obtained. Nowadays the oil lamps are lit solely for decorative purposes.
It is customary for Malays to wear traditional Malay costumes. The dress for men is called baju Melayu while the women's are known as baju kurung and baju kebaya. Traditional textiles such as songket and batik are worn favourably during this day.
Muslims will attend Eid prayer in the morning and consecrate together harmoniously while taking the chance to meet and greet each other. Once the prayer is done, it is also common for Muslims in Malaysia to visit the grave of their loved ones. During this visit, they will clean the grave, perform the recital of the Yasin — a chapter (surah) from the Qur'an and also the tahlil or prayers for the deceased. All these are done in hope that their loved ones are blessed by God and they are spared from the punishment in the grave.
The rest of the day is spent visiting relatives or serving visitors. Hari Raya is a very joyous day for children for this is the day where adults are extra generous. Children will be given token sums of money, also known as duit raya from their parents and elders.
During the night, there are often celebrations with sparklers and firecrackers, albeit restrictions on playing firecrackers enforced by the authorities. Most firecracker stocks are purchased and smuggled illegally from black markets. Safety issues, especially among children are raised and alarming cases relating to injuries caused by playing firecrackers are often reported, which initially led to the banning of playing firecrackers. Despite of the enforcement of banning firecrackers, more Malay children turn to home-made firecrackers such as meriam buluh (bamboo cannon) as alternatives to commercial fireworks. Usually the lighting of firecrackers begins a few days before the end of Ramadan, and continues for about a week afterwards.
hello everybody.. i want to talk about materialistic.Do you know about it?Actually,materialistic describes a person who is markedly more concerned with material things than with spiritual, intellectual, or cultural values.Nowadays, some of people like that.Malaysians are only interested in making money. Unfortunately, we are a very materialistic people. Perhaps, this is a remnant of the culture that was brought in by the Chinese and Indians who came here primarily to make money. Gradually over the years, the Malays, too, have changed their outlook on life by learning from them.Thats all.
Our existing history books have wrong information about so many things -- blaming the British for everything -- but never looking at our own faults.
A stunt performer is someone who performs dangerous stunts, such as jumping from buildings and being launched out of cannons while mounted on flaming BMX mountain bikes over a pit of gasoline-soaked bears, and through a hoop constructed out of cans of Mountain Dew and chainsaws, often as a career. These stunts are sometimes rigged so that they look dangerous while still having safety mechanisms, but often they are as dangerous as they appear to be. There is an inherent risk in the performance of all stunt work in film, television and stage work. Daredevil performers are distinct from stunt performers and stunt doubles, as they perform their stunts purely for the sake of the stunt itself, often before an audience for their entertainment and personal monetary gain for the event, while a stunt performer, or stunt double typically performs stunts intended for use in a motion pictures or dramatized television (although one person could certainly be both, as was the case with Harry Houdini, Jackie Chan, Christian Bale, Tony Jaa, Chuck Norris, and Nick Lowe among others). Stunt performers and stunt doubles are generally skilled at performing physical action in character for film and television.
Taken in pill form, users sometimes take Ecstasy at "raves," clubs and other parties to keep on dancing and for mood enhancement.
What are its short-term effects?
Users report that Ecstasy produces intensely pleasurable effects – including an enhanced sense of self-confidence and energy. Effects include feelings of peacefulness, acceptance and empathy. Users say they experience feelings of closeness with others and a desire to touch others. Other effects can include involuntary teeth clenching, a loss of inhibitions, transfixion on sights and sounds, nausea, blurred vision, chills and/or sweating. Increases in heart rate and blood pressure, as well as seizures, are also possible. The stimulant effects of the drug enable users to dance for extended periods, which when combined with the hot crowded conditions usually found at raves, can lead to severe dehydration and hyperthermia or dramatic increases in body temperature. This can lead to muscle breakdown and kidney, liver and cardiovascular failure. Cardiovascular failure has been reported in some of the Ecstasy-related fatalities.
After-effects can include sleep problems, anxiety and depression.
What are its long-term effects?
Repeated use of Ecstasy ultimately may damage the cells that produce serotonin, which has an important role in the regulation of mood, appetite, pain, learning and memory. There already is research suggesting Ecstasy use can disrupt or interfere with memory.
Michael Jordan's basketball talent was clear from his rookie season. In his first game in Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks, Jordan received a prolonged standing ovation, a rarity for an opposing player. After Jordan scored a playoff record 63 points against the Boston Celtics in 1986, Celtics star Larry Bird described him as "God disguised as Michael Jordan." Jordan led the NBA in scoring in 10 seasons (NBA record) and tied Wilt Chamberlain's record of seven consecutive scoring titles. He was also a fixture on the NBA All-Defensive First Team, making the roster nine times (NBA record). Jordan also holds the top career and playoff scoring averages of 30.1 and 33.4 points per game, respectively. By 1998, the season of his Finals-winning shot against the Jazz, he was well known throughout the league as a clutch performer. In the regular season, Jordan was the Bulls' primary threat in the final seconds of a close game and in the playoffs, Jordan would always demand the ball at crunch time. Jordan's total of 5,987 points in the playoffs is the highest in NBA history. He retired with 32,292 points, placing him third on the NBA's all-time scoring list behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone. With five regular-season MVPs, six Finals MVPs (NBA record), and three All-Star MVPs, Jordan is the most decorated player ever to play in the NBA. Jordan finished among the top three in regular-season MVP voting a record 10 times, and was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996. Many of Jordan's contemporaries label Jordan as the greatest basketball player of all time. An ESPN survey of journalists, athletes and other sports figures ranked Jordan the greatest North American athlete of the 20th century, above icons such as Babe Ruth and Muhammad Ali. Jordan placed second to Babe Ruth in the Associated Press's list of 20th century athletes. In addition, the Associated Press voted him as the basketball player of the 20th century. Jordan has also appeared on the front cover of Sports Illustrated a record 49 times. In the September 1996 issue of Sport, which was the publication's 50th anniversary issue, Jordan was named the greatest athlete of the past 50 years Jordan's athletic leaping ability, highlighted in his back-to-back slam dunk contest championships in 1987 and 1988, is credited by many with having influenced a generation of young players. Several current NBA All-Stars have stated that they considered Jordan their role model while growing up, including LeBron Jamesand Dwyane Wade. In addition, commentators have dubbed a number of next-generation players "the next Michael Jordan" upon their entry to the NBA, including Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway, Grant Hill, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Vince Carter, and Dwyane Wade. Although Jordan was a well-rounded player, his "Air Jordan" image is also often credited with inadvertently decreasing the jump shooting skills, defense, and fundamentals of young players, a fact which Jordan himself has lamented. Although Jordan has done much to increase the status of the game, some of his impact on the game's popularity in America appears to be fleeting. Television ratings in particular increased only during his time in the league and have subsequently lowered each time he left the game.
The iPod Touch (trademarked and marketed as the iPod touch and sometimes colloquially referred to as the iTouch) is a portable media player and Wi-Fi mobile platform designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The product was launched on September 5, 2007 through an event called The Beat Goes On. The iPod Touch adds the Multi-Touch graphical user interface to the iPod line and is available with 8, 16, or 32 GB of flash memory. It includes Apple's Safari web browser and is the first iPod with wireless access to the iTunes Store. With a software update, which is sold by Apple, it also has access to Apple's App Store. The second generation iPod Touch, featuring external volume controls, an external speaker, a contoured back and built-in Nike+ support, was unveiled on September 9, 2008 at the Let's Rock keynote presentation. The iPod Touch has the iPhone's multi-touch interface, with a physical home button off the touch screen. The home screen has a list of buttons for the available applications. All iPod Touch models have included the applications Music, Videos, and Photos as collectively duplicating the standard functions of the iPod classic, iTunes are providing access to the Wi-Fi Music Store, Safari, YouTube, Calendar, Contacts, Clock, Calculator, and Settings. Later models added Mail (accessing POP/IMAP/SMTP e-mail), Maps, Stocks, Notes, and Weather,[6] which could also be added to the earlier models with the purchase of a software upgrade. Direct links to web sites can be added to the home screen by the user. New applications including a VPN client, scientific calculator and access to third party applications were released for an upgrade fee.
PSP Slim & Lite as it is known in the PAL territoriesis the current model of the PlayStation Portable handheld game console released and manufactured by Sony Computer Entertainment. At E3 2007, Sony released information about a slimmer and lighter version of the PlayStation Portable. The new PSP is 33% lighter (reduced to 189 grams [6.66 ounces] from 280 grams [9.87 ounces]) and 22% slimmer (reduced to 18mm from 23mm) than the original PSP system. The model numbers have changed to PSP-2000, following the previous region-based numbering scheme (cf. the PSP-1000 numbering scheme of the "old" PSP model). It was released on September 5, 2007 in Europe, on September 6, 2007 in North America, September 7, 2007 in South Korea and September 12, 2007 in Australia. The PSP Slim & Lite offers a 22% slimmer and 33% lighter system than the original PSP system. Internal changes to achieve this include the removal of a metal chassis (used to reduce damage in the event of sudden trauma to the system resulting from the user dropping the system on a hard surface), improved WLAN modules and Micro-controller, and a thinner and much brighter LCD. The PSP Slim & Lite offers several other tweaks and improvements from the older generation. To target the original PSP generation's poor load times for UMD games, the internal memory (RAM and Flash ROM) was doubled from 32 MB to 64 MB, which also improved the web browser's performance. Sony has added a TV output for the PSP Slim available through Firmware 3.60. The PSP can output in a conventional aspect ratio (4:3), and widescreen (16:9). It also offers a screensaver if the PSP is inactive for a set amount of time. It is able to output games, videos, and other media. To achieve TV output on the Slim model, Composite, S-Video, Component and D-Terminal cables are sold separately by Sony. Games are output as a progressive scan signal, which can only be carried by the component video and D-Terminal cables, and can only be displayed on a television which supports progressive scan. Although the user needs Component cables and a TV that supports 480p (mainly found in HDTVs), a homebrew plugin called "FuSa" allows anyone with a Slim PSP to view their games on any SDTV or HDTV using Composite or Component cables. It's also advantageous to those with TVs that do support 480p because it allows a full screen (1:1 ratio) viewing of games. The maximum resolution through TV output is 720x480 pixels, and composite video uses NTSC color encoding (no PAL composite signal is available, although it works on a NTSC compatible TV in Europe). The old Playstation Portable (PSP-1000) is not capable of this feature due to a slightly different port. As a result, original PSP accessories (using the connector) will not work with the Slim and the Slim's accessories will not work with the original PSP. Sony has released a new version of the remote control accessory designed for the Slim as a result. The PSP Slim can still use 3.5mm headphones, like the old PlayStation Portable. Sony confirmed their GPS Accessory for the United States at Sony CES 2008. The GPS is to be retailed for the new Slim PSP models. It will feature maps on a UMD, and offer driving directions and city guides.
So many promises you gave to me. So many left and now will never be.
We where going to go fishing but that was a lie. You said that you will never leave yet here I am saying goodbye.
There is so much you left undone. So many battles you left un-won.
But I am wondering if I am a bad person for blaming you. For you leaveing and making sis want to join you.
For forcing me to become a man thou I was only nine. For giving reasons for people to give fake smiles while faults they find.
For making me grow up to be all by myself. Watch mom grow weak and decline in her health.
And I still remember mom and sis crying each and every night. There screams through the walls while tears I tried to fight.
The mornings mom would walk by but only a shell. The words of comfort she gave which always felt stale.
Days and days of me sitting crying and feeling so sad. Pleading to God to please just send me back my dad.
The horror inside knowing that I was all alone. Knowing in this world I had no place called home.
But that was twenty years and three days ago. Yet whenever I think of you my soul sink so low.
So I came by to tell you that my daughter has just turned four. And when I think of you I don't cry as much anymore.
So I want to apologize for blaming you in each and every one of my breaths. Although I knew good and well that you could not control meeting your death.
Harsh words & violent blows Hidden secrets nobody knows Eyes are open, hands are fisted Deep inside I'm warped & twisted So many tricks & so many lies Too many whens & too many whys Nobody's special, nobody's gifted I'm just me, warped & twisted Sleeping awake & choking on a dream Listening loudly to a silent scream Call my mind, the number's unlisted Lost in someone so warped & twisted On my knees, alive but dead Look at the invisible blood I've bled I'm not gone, my mind has drifted Don't expect much, I'm warped & twisted Burnt out, wasted, empty, & hollow Today's just yesterday's tomorrow The sun died out, the ashes sifted I'm still here, warped & twisted
The train rocked on its rails, a sleepy sway like a weary drunken sailor, lolling its way down the tracks in no particular hurry to reach its destination. Which suited me just fine; I longed for the blissful Maw of Morpheus, having been deprived of all but a scant four hours of slumber the night before, and the gentle cradle-swing motion helped me drift between the living and the spectral world of dreams.
As my head knocked against the car's dense window and my back screamed for a more comfortable position, I waded through foggy awareness and bordered the realm of hypnogogia. The passengers seemed as sleepy and quiet as I, and voices never penetrated the gloom of my peaceful isolation. Occasionally, the conductor whisked through seeking fares and clacked his rapid-fire hole-punch through someone's ticket. He passed as a phantom below me and banged through the separator doors of the car. Some time before the train reached port I roused from my semi-slumber enough to stand, shoulder my pack and disembark.
What happened next, I don't know. I didn't notice an especially jostling or large crowd. I didn't see any extraordinary density of humanity on the platform. But when the door slid open to allow the bustle of humanity to spill from the cavernous train bank into the station, pandemonium ensued.
A whitewater river of people crossed paths through the train station, crashing like a fast-moving estuary, some headed for one exit, some across their paths toward escalators to another. Neither band of traffic was willing to yield to the other, for yielding meant doom -- given the weakness of courtesy the denizens of trainville plowed ahead one after the other until the one showing courtesy must abandon all civility and charge ahead or never reach their destination. The seeming endless swath of humanity pouring as a dam gate from my left and the one of which I was a part collided in the confines of the hall like two spiral galaxies merging in space. Destruction, chaos, eruptions of matter and energy on massive, incomprehensible scales.
Hesitance cost several dearly. They got shoved aside, cut off, nudged with prejudice right and left. I lowered my head, my body still asleep, my mind refusing to accept its predicament. I plodded ahead at the same speed, ignoring the bumper-car pinballing as my shoulders swatted left, right, torquing my body side to side, tipping me forward or pushing me back. I dipped my shoulders and held my elbows tight to my sides, hands tucked into pockets, and pressed on. It was like trying to drag a side of beef through a pack of ravenous wolves. Snarling, frothing muzzles bared and snapped, icteric canines dripping spit.
Ah, good morning.
I passed through the current of human debris and emerged into a less crowded corridor. Impatient commuters huffed angry sounds of agitation as they stomped around an elderly woman frantically pushing a squeaking, squealing walker ahead of her, tiny sounds of fear drifting from her toothless mouth, eyes panicked and desperate. A blind man tapped a vicious warning tattoo on the stone floor, swung his long, supple white cane to and fro at the feet of the oncoming army of drones, clearing his path with vindictive deliberation. Groggy, I yawned and rode the escalator to the street above, and came out into the crisp snap of cool morning air. The clammy slap of slipstream as the doors parted to the outside woke me a little, circulated my blood and reminded me of standing on the deck of a ferry crossing the San Francisco bay, though the smell of salt mist and brine was replaced with exhaust fumes and wet asphalt. Taxis immersed in dirty brown water nearly halfway up their tires stood alongside the curb in a miniature lake. The tiny ocean stretched from corner to corner along the front of the buzzing hive of the train station, and I perched a brow in curiosity at what caused the deluge. I lost interest a second later.
The manic press of people on the street struck me as unusual. It's Monday, and Mondays are slower, less populace than other days. I always assumed masses took Mondays off from work, either by hooky or by request, to recover from weekends spent indulging in the great pastime of The Big City: drinking. Today, not so. The hoard of suit-clad, heel-clicking automatons rushed along the streets. I stepped aside at the tramp of running high heels, and a petite woman threaded through commuters and slalomed to the corner, thwarted by the streetlight. I waded into the mob behind her a moment later, her dance of anticipation and frenetic toe-tap wearing on my nerves. At last the light changed and she bolted like a thoroughbred racehorse through a starting gate, click-clacking away down the cobbled and pitted concrete sidewalk.
Everywhere as I strode, determined to neither rush nor tarry, there seemed an extra urgency, an added sense of worry and agitation. Everyone seemed to move faster, to push harder to reach their unknown points of arrival. Their journeys stopped intersecting mine at last when I found a gap between clots of them. For some reason, despite being stalled at another streetlight for a few minutes, none of them overtook me on their way in my direction, and I never caught up to those ahead of me. I never do. I never want to, truth be told. I walked in solitude with an unobtrusive companion of breeze chilling my face and reminding me of a place I've not seen in years.
When I got to work I waddled into the sundry store for my coffee and water, and found I too lacked the patience to wait for the store attendant woman who annoys me day-in, day-out with her propensity to leave me standing at the counter while she finishes whatever menial task she's tending, unmindful of my need to keep working or get to work so she can be paid. Today another attendant minded the counter while she tagged refrigerated beverages on condensation-covered plastic bottles. She sang her good morning and I returned it with a smile, then reached around her body and opened a refrigerator case's sliding door, forcing her to extract her hands from the other side of the cabinet or have them smashed by the double-doors. She was trying to ask me to wait, but I was sick of waiting for her, sick of her cavalier attitude with the time of others, sick of her self-important demeanor and attempts to make executives and officers of the company kowtow to her. She had to ask me to let her re-tag the bottle in my hand, the prices were changing she said, and I paused my motion long enough for her to swipe her price tag gun over the old sticker. The new one was twelve cents more. I grabbed my coffee, and went out.
As I write this, I have no idea what was special about this morning, why the normal quiet of a Monday collapsed to a frenzied crush of hurried, harried attitudes and running commuters. I have no idea why the idyllic slumber of the train was shattered by the cacophony of the train station's bustle, or why I was irritated with the sundry store woman and her price gun.
All I know is this week dawned dark and brooding, a rousing beast within a dank and murky cave, baleful eyes glowing red and angry, wet nostrils spewing acrid, moist smoke. I hear scales clattering and talons scratch on the floor.
Or maybe I'm just sleepy and it's all my imagination. Whichever.
I sat there smoking, watched my cigarette scream in agony with each gulping drag I pulled from it, then listened to it pop and sizzle and beg for mercy before ashing over to droop at the end of my fingers. Nothing special on my mind, really. It was the last dregs of my weekend, which means the anticipation of what the following workweek brings squatted in my frontal lobes like a cannibal in front of a spit fire.
It'd been a pretty good weekend to that point. Lots of time with the family, not so much time with the computer, didn't have to watch the tattered remnants of the Patriots play, and broke out of our diet in a major, caloric-orgy way. For me, that means burgers - with the bun, thankyouverymuch - with a real, honest-to-fructose Coke, beer, crackers, and of course, something chocolatey and cakey ... like a chocolate cake, for example.
I knew I'd tossed weeks and weeks of work out the window, and stared down the barrel of no less than two more weeks of hard, stringent dieting to get back into the hormonal cycle for weight loss, but it was worth it. The decadence, the hours of gorging, the euphoric release of endorphins ... yeah, worth it. I smiled and hit the cigarette again, all the while thinking I need to quit this habit before it kills me for the umpteenth time.
The tiny voice drifted through the door over the wheezing exhaust fan, and drew a smile from me.
"Daddy?" My three-year-old daughter's voice, sweet, melodic, dripping sugar and love. She must want something.
"Yes, love?" I said, pushing as much of the joy and emotion in my heart out through my throat as I could. My love for my kids overwhelms me a lot, and when I speak to them - that is, when I'm not yelling at them to, ironically, be quiet or settle down - I try to convey that in word and in tone.
"Daddy, can I borrow your cake?"
I stopped, weighed the implications.
"Know what, honey? You can have the cake. Go ‘head and keep it. Daddy's not going to want it back when you're finished with it."
"That's him! He's number thirteen on his football team. I swear, I remember from the photos," my sister said. I went back to the facebook page to view his photos. Sure enough, we found the same picture with the number thirteen jersey.
"We've got him," I said giving my sister a high five. "His real name is EJ. We should message him," I said.
"Yeah, but that's creepy and how do you say it? Someone stole your pictures off your facebook and is pretending to be you under a different name. Like it'll be creepy," she said.
"If someone was pretending to be you to try to hit on girls, wouldn't you want to know about it?" I asked her.
"Well, ya. But how do we explain it?" she asked. She started typing something and erased it and typed something again. She erased that draft too.
"Here, I'll do it. Just make it plain and simple at first. I started typing to him the basics of what happened:
Hey! I'm sorry to bother you and I know that I don't know you, but I think that someone is using your photos to pretend to be someone else. One of my friends was "going out" with him, but something about him wasn't right. He's using the name Robert Ashton Cowen if you want to look him up.
She looked it over before finally submitting it. "Now for the hard part. We have to tell Emily," I said.
"I can't tell Emily," she told me. "Maybe this kid will write something on his wall and be like that's not really you that's me or something. Besides she just "broke up" with him."
"Maybe, but still we don't know who he is. He could be a sketchy fifty year old guy. We know that he's lying to her, no matter who he is," I said.
"Not now though, let the EJ kid respond," she said.
"But you knew something was wrong. You knew that he was fake since everyone he talked about had the same names as people from the O.C. and it was just too much of a coincidence that he happened to live in California," I said. Her cell phone rang and I picked it up. It was Kerrianne.
"Hey," I said.
"Amanda! What's up? Why did Kathleen call?" she asked.
"It's a long story, but Emily's ex-boyfriend isn't real," I said.
"What? How did you figure that out?" she asked.
"Well Kathleen thought it was weird that all his "brothers" and stuff were character's names from the O.C. So I told her that I could prove that he was fake. I went through his pictures and saw that the school name was on his football jersey and a town name was on a baseball jersey. I googled the two of them and they both came out as being in the middle of nowhere Indiana. So whoever he was, he really wasn't from California. So I searched facebook for groups from the kid's school and I found one for the football team. Kathleen helped me identify him and the boy from the picture's name is EJ," I said.
"Do you know who the real Robert is?" she asked.
"I have a theory, but it's nothing I could really prove. There's only one kid who claims to know Robert and his network shows that he goes to the school in Indiana, not California. And he's facebook friends with EJ so he would have access to all his pictures," I said.
"It's scary. It could be anybody really," she said. Kathleen was motioning for me to hand her over the phone.
"Here Kathleen wants to talk to you," I said handing the phone to my sister. I left the room part of me feeling like a stalker the other part feeling happy that we had figured it out. Maybe I wasn't going to make such a bad journalist after all.
The bus steals a his sense of smell daily and rewards him with warmth in all four seasons except summer. This time he would have wished to close his eyes and concentrate less to the other commuters conjuring skills so he hesitates and looks out of the window. The school children makes it so unpleasant especially when perspiration looms so intermittently. Heidi defies all the invites to welcoming seats and goes straight to sit next to the orchestra of engine hums and six lead musicals all blending lugubriously to Antoine. He jostles most awkward to create a friendly boundary for a most welcome neighbour.
Heidi is an expert in torture at these delicate times of the morning. This ritual saves the dire job of securing bustling bureaucrat daily in this pointless building of pain. It pays to slouch and gawp at the monitor on a four hourly basis with occasional cigarette or lunch. There had been several warnings about punctual habits of a tired individual toiling for a measly funds guest appearing in a bank account for the overcharge scrammble of the carcass! There seems rewards that only souls and sweat glands know about and Heidi not only saved the first time buy-to-let landlord his wild empire but those time wasting unimportant insecure philistines the pain of uncertainty.
‘Oh no...I will lose my job!'
‘Traffic eases just before I get off...I mean I ..am security...!'
‘The roadworks...when will they...I am heidi by the way...'
‘I know you...Remember..I have to get off...'
‘Nice to see you!'
A few gender stereotypes darted from the direction of the engine choir members and Antoine's words got the weaker part of that transmission. It was so awful for a talking mans man to be rid of words in a vital part of meeting. The office meerkats always stressed the essence of composure at presentations and this could well be the ramification of his position in success food chain. Thrusting big vein infested arms in the tight fitted blue uniform for checkin in pass and wallet he became a dog going in circles till finally yielded to the possibility. Manually doing things in this wonderful cohesive world led to suppressed protests from inferior superiors but none would face this bulky gentle mastiff so hints of sarcasm got sporadically used.
The day couldn't have gone faster with the help of a yearning fellow darting between drones to a bus stop like a stunt man with a mission. The bus lane seemed morose and the usually upbeat enviroment sluggish nature impeded Antoines comprehension. Suddenly, a jingle from the media shop attracted his attention to the evening news and the victim of an earlier crash. It was a female and it was not clear how it happened. The reporters constant interuption and the jittery camera man would have excited anybody. Antoine wondered why they got the job or anybody who wouldn't do things the right way were so gifted. Fools, fools, lucky fools that get away with luck!
There was an image, a familiar adhesive interpretation that had magnetic powers and was solely responsible to the unusual sprint. A big man majestically moves in a chess game of life or in times when hastily approachin mature settling down age, one needed a success appealing composure. Not that eager behaviour that lets opportunities pass and let those imbeciles have more peace of mind at waste shop. That was an image of Heidi and the possibilities arrived like happy hour. Sorrows and a pound for the bus journey. This time her smell blended with the rain drop smudged window images that Antoine saw. A typical unwanted music by the latest whining pop star screeched on a nearby car turned the gates even further.
The doors of the bus hissed open, he turned left to a neon colour direction with a twenty four hour drink sign aggressively flashing it could have as well been slitting excess holes for alcohol consumption. The usual offers on drinks in the brightest colour cards next to a harmonic freezer that had befriended Antoine. Like a mother wistfully giving up her loved ones for abortion he perched the drinks in his armpit four beer cans in each wing. The pleasantries and payment on the tab he rustled past feeling nothing.
At the traffic light light footsteps kept up pace, then a loving hug from behind accompanied by the familiar perfume. A sweet eager lady that had known this French man for the best part of two years. She got him that job he hated and gave him that heart he loved but on this night she would fail because he just found out how to keep a secret. Secrets and simple men made this sweet lady mad. She walked briskly and muttered something about persistent drink or lack of vision.
Passing the theatre of emotions Antoine stopped and looked around the corner as if to expect a long lost lover, but she had gone for the last twelve minutes. Now a familiar oily smell aromatic with lemon zest and hints of ginger. A slight laughter darting in and out of relief smothered with a good old fashioned no nonsense smile, Heidi had just arrived. Clangs of beer cans followed by a hug and dry tears. It was not embarrassing but thoroughly awkward. She explained as she handed the bellongings. She also metioned the arrival of her sweet boyfriend who had with him a bunch of roses. The misunderstanding had been a local affair and for an attractive lady it was not so shocking the cascading effect. He had thanked Antoineand mentioned clearing a tab after he had been following since the news broke. He had travelled up and down searching till finally caught up. A playful kiss on the robust cheeks of a mellow grizzly bear soothed the forthcoming embarrassment.
‘Go home to her...she is a lucky lady and thank you!'
The beer cans and footsteps in coherent rapport obvious feelings of love that seemed like a routine in a relationship emerged. The pace quickened. Why had he been victim to unnecessary pace only prone to disorganised folk that plateaued in that role he so much loathed. Why was the door open and the lights on? How long was he at the scene? Why was there a farmilia automobile with a broken woman in it?
Why was the good woman gone? Oh well, sports never leaves a man especially when eager beer cans glisten seductive sweat that runs cold as if slipping and there was eight enough to kick start the thinking process of the day to follow. It doesn't matter how lessons or however long it takes the most important thing is that mistakes are not repeated. Antoine chose to watch sports and worry about a new route to work and the prospect of a new career, afterall that's what men did. Fifth beer on empty stomach makes decisions so easy. It was just to be empty cans and a fumble with the alarm clock. He lingered towards the dresser, cracked a smile when he found all the photos had gone. This was easier than he thought. More focus on employment and heavy sediment of drink. He cluttered once more and passed out.
What kind of world is this This world I call my own Were even a young child Is afraid of going home A world in which a man Will take innocence from a child Now their lives are lived in fear The memories going wild What kind of world is this This world I call my own Where you'll only be accepted If your a freaking clone A world so full of crap
A world so full of lies Can you spot the liars? Can you see it in their eyes? A world where self expression Is pushed and made to fall Despised and destroyed To boost the egos of them all A world where daddys hit A world where mommys scream Both killing their children Killing their hopes killing their dreams A world that makes you crazy But does that make you insane? A world thats without morals A world thats without shame A world that seems so dark A world that seems so cold A world that kills the young A world that scars the old A world that kills our hopes Shoots them out of the sky A world that kills us all And makes us want to die.
Tennis as the modern sport can be dated to two separate roots. Between 1859 and 1865, Major Harry Gem and his friend Augurio Perera developed a game that combined elements of rackets similar to the game of Poona or Badminton many British soldiers brought from being stationed in India and the Basque ball game pelota, which they played on Perera's croquet lawn in Birmingham, United Kingdom.[2][3] In 1872, along with two local doctors, they founded the world's first tennis club in Leamington Spa.[4] The Courier of 23 July 1884 recorded one of the first tennis tournaments, held in the grounds of Shrubland Hall.[5]
In December 1873, Major Walter Clopton Wingfield designed a similar game — which he called sphairistike (Greek: σφάίρίστική, meaning "skill at playing at ball"), and was soon known simply as "sticky" — for the amusement of his guests at a garden party on his estate of Nantclwyd, in Llanelidan, Wales.[6] He based the game on the newer sport of outdoor tennis or real tennis. According to most tennis historians, modern tennis terminology also derives from this period, as Wingfield borrowed both the name and much of the French vocabulary of real tennis and applied them to his new game.[citation needed]
The first championships at Wimbledon in London were played in 1877.[7] On 21 May 1881, the United States National Lawn Tennis Association (now the United States Tennis Association) was formed to standardize the rules and organize competitions.[8] The U.S. National Men's Singles Championship, now the US Open, was first held in 1881 at Newport, Rhode Island.[9] The U.S. National Women's Singles Championships were first held in 1887.[10] Tennis was also popular in France, where the French Open dates to 1891.[11] Thus, Wimbledon, the US Open, the French Open, and the Australian Open (dating to 1905) became and have remained the most prestigious events in tennis.[7][12] Together these four events are called the Grand Slam (a term borrowed from bridge).[13]
The comprehensive International Lawn Tennis Federation, now known as the International Tennis Federation, rules promulgated in 1924 have remained remarkably stable in the ensuing eighty years, the one major change being the addition of the tiebreaker system designed by James Van Alen.[14]
The Davis Cup, an annual competition between national teams, dates to 1900.[15]
In 1926, promoter C.C. Pyle established the first professional tennis tour with a group of American and French tennis players playing exhibition matches to paying audiences.[12][16] The most notable of these early professionals were the American Vinnie Richards and the Frenchwoman Suzanne Lenglen.[12][17] Once a player turned pro he or she could not compete in the major (amateur) tournaments.[12]
In 1968, commercial pressures and rumors of some amateurs taking money under the table led to the abandonment of this distinction, inaugurating the open era, in which all players could compete in all tournaments, and top players were able to make their living from tennis.[18] With the beginning of the open era, the establishment of an international professional tennis circuit, and revenues from the sale of television rights, tennis's popularity has spread worldwide, and the sport has shed its upper/middle-class English-speaking image[19] (although it is acknowledged that this stereotype still exists).[19][20][21]
In 1954, Van Alen founded the International Tennis Hall of Fame, a non-profit museum in Newport, Rhode Island.[22] The building contains a large collection of tennis memorabilia as well as a hall of fame honoring prominent members and tennis players from all over the world. Each year, a grass-court tournament and an induction ceremony honoring new Hall of Fame members are hosted on its grounds.
Music is an art form in which the medium is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch (which governs melody and harmony), rhythm (and its associated concepts tempo, meter, and articulation), dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture. The word derives from Greek μουσική (mousike), "(art) of the Muses".[1]
The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of music vary according to culture and social context. Music ranges from strictly organized compositions (and their recreation in performance), through improvisational music to aleatoric forms. Music can be divided into genres and subgenres, although the dividing lines and relationships between music genres are often subtle, sometimes open to individual interpretation, and occasionally controversial. Within "the arts", music may be classified as a performing art, a fine art, and auditory art.
To people in many cultures, music is inextricably intertwined into their way of life. Greek philosophers and ancient Indians defined music as tones ordered horizontally as melodies and vertically as harmonies. Common sayings such as "the harmony of the spheres" and "it is music to my ears" point to the notion that music is often ordered and pleasant to listen to. However, 20th-century composer John Cage thought that any sound can be music, saying, for example, "There is no noise, only sound."[2] According to musicologist Jean-Jacques Nattiez, "the border between music and noise is always culturally defined—which implies that, even within a single society, this border does not always pass through the same place; in short, there is rarely a consensus.… By all accounts there is no single and intercultural universal concept defining what music might be, except that it is 'sound through time'."
It is difficult to identify any one device as the earliest computer, partly because the term "computer" has been subject to varying interpretations over time. Originally, the term "computer" referred to a person who performed numerical calculations (a human computer), often with the aid of a mechanical calculating device.
The history of the modern computer begins with two separate technologies - that of automated calculation and that of programmability.
Examples of early mechanical calculating devices included the abacus, the slide rule and arguably the astrolabe and the Antikythera mechanism (which dates from about 150-100 BC). Hero of Alexandria (c. 10–70 AD) built a mechanical theater which performed a play lasting 10 minutes and was operated by a complex system of ropes and drums that might be considered to be a means of deciding which parts of the mechanism performed which actions and when.[3] This is the essence of programmability.
The "castle clock", an astronomical clock invented by Al-Jazari in 1206, is considered to be the earliest programmable analog computer.[4] It displayed the zodiac, the solar and lunar orbits, a crescent moon-shaped pointer travelling across a gateway causing automatic doors to open every hour,[5][6] and five robotic musicians who play music when struck by levers operated by a camshaft attached to a water wheel. The length of day and night could be re-programmed every day in order to account for the changing lengths of day and night throughout the year.
The end of the Middle Ages saw a re-invigoration of European mathematics and engineering, and Wilhelm Schickard's 1623 device was the first of a number of mechanical calculators constructed by European engineers. However, none of those devices fit the modern definition of a computer because they could not be programmed.
In 1801, Joseph Marie Jacquard made an improvement to the textile loom that used a series of punched paper cards as a template to allow his loom to weave intricate patterns automatically. The resulting Jacquard loom was an important step in the development of computers because the use of punched cards to define woven patterns can be viewed as an early, albeit limited, form of programmability.
It was the fusion of automatic calculation with programmability that produced the first recognizable computers. In 1837, Charles Babbage was the first to conceptualize and design a fully programmable mechanical computer that he called "The Analytical Engine".[7] Due to limited finances, and an inability to resist tinkering with the design, Babbage never actually built his Analytical Engine.
Large-scale automated data processing of punched cards was performed for the U.S. Census in 1890 by tabulating machines designed by Herman Hollerith and manufactured by the Computing Tabulating Recording Corporation, which later became IBM. By the end of the 19th century a number of technologies that would later prove useful in the realization of practical computers had begun to appear: the punched card, Boolean algebra, the vacuum tube (thermionic valve) and the teleprinter.
During the first half of the 20th century, many scientific computing needs were met by increasingly sophisticated analog computers, which used a direct mechanical or electrical model of the problem as a basis for computation. However, these were not programmable and generally lacked the versatility and accuracy of modern digital computers.
FASHION The habit of people continually changing the style of clothing worn, which is now worldwide, at least among urban populations, is generally held by historians to be a distinctively Western one.[dubious – discuss] At other periods in Ancient Rome and other cultures changes in costume occurred, often at times of economic or social change, but then a long period without large changes followed. In 8th century Cordoba, Spain, Ziryab, a famous musician - a star in modern terms - is said to have introduced sophisticated clothing styles based on seasonal and daily timings from his native Baghdad and his own inspiration.
The beginnings of the habit in Europe of continual and increasingly rapid change in styles can be fairly clearly dated to the middle of the 14th century, to which historians including James Laver and Fernand Braudel date the start of Western fashion in clothing.[2][3] The most dramatic manifestation was a sudden drastic shortening and tightening of the male over-garment, from calf-length to barely covering the buttocks, sometimes accompanied with stuffing on the chest to look bigger. This created the distinctive Western male outline of a tailored top worn over leggings or trousers which is still with us today.
The pace of change accelerated considerably in the following century, and women and men's fashion, especially in the dressing and adorning of the hair, became equally complex and changing. Art historians are therefore able to use fashion in dating images with increasing confidence and precision, often within five years in the case of 15th century images. Initially changes in fashion led to a fragmentation of what had previously been very similar styles of dressing across the upper classes of Europe, and the development of distinctive national styles, which remained very different until a counter-movement in the 17th to 18th centuries imposed similar styles once again, finally those from Ancien Régime in France.[4] Though fashion was always led by the rich, the increasing affluence of early modern Europe led to the bourgeoisie and even peasants following trends at a distance sometimes uncomfortably close for the elites - a factor Braudel regards as one of the main motors of changing fashion.[5]
The fashions of the West are generally unparalleled either in antiquity or in the other great civilizations of the world. Early Western travellers, whether to Persia, Turkey, Japan or China frequently remark on the absence of changes in fashion there, and observers from these other cultures comment on the unseemly pace of Western fashion, which many felt suggested an instability and lack of order in Western culture. The Japanese Shogun's secretary boasted (not completely accurately) to a Spanish visitor in 1609 that Japanese clothing had not changed in over a thousand years.[6] However in Ming China, for example, there is considerable evidence for rapidly changing fashions in Chinese clothing.
Ten 16th century portraits of German or Italian gentlemen may show ten entirely different hats, and at this period national differences were at their most pronounced, as Albrecht Dürer recorded in his actual or composite contrast of Nuremberg and Venetian fashions at the close of the 15th century (illustration, right). The "Spanish style" of the end of the century began the move back to synchronicity among upper-class Europeans, and after a struggle in the mid 17th century, French styles decisively took over leadership, a process completed in the 18th century.[8]
Though colors and patterns of textiles changed from year to year,[9] the cut of a gentleman's coat and the length of his waistcoat, or the pattern to which a lady's dress was cut changed more slowly. Men's fashions largely derived from military models, and changes in a European male silhouette are galvanized in theatres of European war, where gentleman officers had opportunities to make notes of foreign styles: an example is the "Steinkirk" cravat or necktie.
The pace of change picked up in the 1780s with the increased publication of French engravings that showed the latest Paris styles; though there had been distribution of dressed dolls from France as patterns since the 16th century, and Abraham Bosse had produced engravings of fashion from the 1620s. By 1800, all Western Europeans were dressing alike (or thought they were): local variation became first a sign of provincial culture, and then a badge of the conservative peasant.[10]
Although tailors and dressmakers were no doubt responsible for many innovations before, and the textile industry certainly led many trends, the history of fashion design is normally taken to date from 1858, when the English-born Charles Frederick Worth opened the first true haute couture house in Paris. Since then the professional designer has become a progressively more dominant figure, despite the origins of many fashions in street fashion.
Modern Westerners have a wide choice available in the selection of their clothes. What a person chooses to wear can reflect that person's personality or likes. When people who have cultural status start to wear new or different clothes a fashion trend may start. People who like or respect them may start to wear clothes of a similar style.
Fashions may vary considerably within a society according to age, social class, generation, occupation sexual orientation, and geography as well as over time. If, for example, an older person dresses according to the fashion of young people, he or she may look ridiculous in the eyes of both young and older people. The terms "fashionista" or "fashion victim" refer to someone who slavishly follows the current fashions.
Culture is manifested in human artifacts and activities such as music, literature, lifestyle, food, painting and sculpture, theater and film.[5] Although some scholars identify culture in terms of consumption and consumer goods (as in high culture, low culture, folk culture, or popular culture),[6] anthropologists understand "culture" to refer not only to consumption goods, but to the general processes which produce such goods and give them meaning, and to the social relationships and practices in which such objects and processes become embedded. For them, culture thus includes art, science, as well as moral systems.
Various definitions of culture reflect differing theories for understanding, or criteria for evaluating, human activity. Writing from the perspective of social anthropology in the UK, Tylor in 1874 described culture in the following way: "Culture or civilization, taken in its wide ethnographic sense, is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society."[7]
More recently, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) (2002) described culture as follows: "... culture should be regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs".[8]
While these two definitions cover a range of meaning, they do not exhaust the many uses of the term "culture." In 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions.[9]
These definitions, and many others, provide a catalog of the elements of culture. The items catalogued (e.g., a law, a stone tool, a marriage) each have an existence and life-line of their own. They come into space-time at one set of coordinates and go out of it another. While here, they change, so that one may speak of the evolution of the law or the tool.
A culture, then, is by definition at least, a set of cultural objects. Anthropologist Leslie White asked: "What sort of objects are they? Are they physical objects? Mental objects? Both? Metaphors? Symbols? Reifications?" In Science of Culture (1949), he concluded that they are objects "sui generis"; that is, of their own kind. In trying to define that kind, he hit upon a previously unrealized aspect of symbolization, which he called "the symbolate"—an object created by the act of symbolization. He thus defined culture as "symbolates understood in an extra-somatic context."[10] The key to this definition is the discovery of the symbolate.
HOW BOYS AND GIRLS LEARN DIFFERENTLY Male and female eyes are not organized in the same way, he explains. The composition of the male eye makes it attuned to motion and direction. Boys interpret the world as objects moving through space.The teacher should move around the room constantly and be that object. The male eye is also drawn to cooler colors like silver, blue, black, grey, and brown. It’s no accident boys tend to create pictures of moving objects like spaceships, cars, and trucks in dark colors instead of drawing the happy colorful family, like girls in their class. The female eye, on the other hand, is drawn to textures and colors. It’s also oriented toward warmer colors—reds, yellow, oranges—and visuals with more details, like faces. To engage girls, Chadwell says, the teacher doesn’t need to move as much, if at all. Girls work well in circles, facing each other. Using descriptive phrases and lots of color in overhead presentations or on the chalkboard gets their attention. Boys and girls also hear differently. “When someone speaks in a loud tone, girls interpret it as yelling, “They think you’re mad and can shut down.” Girls have a more finely tuned aural structure; they can hear higher frequencies than boys and are more sensitive to sounds. He advises girls’ teachers to watch the tone of their voices. Boys’ teachers should sound matter of fact, even excited. Chadwell’s voice sounds much more forceful . Chadwell continues. A boy’s autonomic nervous system causes them to be more alert when they’re standing, moving, and the room temperature is around 69 degrees. Stress in boys, , tends to increase blood flow to their brains, a process that helps them stay focused. This won’t work for girls, who are more focused seated in a warmer room around 75 degrees. Girls also respond to stress differently. When exposed to threat and confrontation, blood goes to their guts, leaving them feeling nervous or anxious. “Boys will rise to a risk and tend to overestimate their abilities,” he says. Teachers can help them by getting them to be more realistic about results,” he says. “Girls at this age shy away from risk, which is exactly why lots of girls’ programs began in the private sector. Teachers can help them learn to take risks in an atmosphere where they feel confident about doing .
REFER to the article “ Revise policy for three reasons” (Education Star Sept 28). The reasons given by the writer Prof Dr Rosnani Hashim are so typical of one who sits in the ivory tower and professes herself an authority on what is going on in schools.
I have been teaching in secondary schools for the past 21years and I am a product of Universiti Malaya. I have been an ETeMS (English Teaching of Maths and Science) trainer since the policy was implemented and I can vouch for many of my colleagues that Science and Maths should be continued to be taught in English.
This is by far the wisest move made by policy-makers on education in Malaysia.
Billions of ringgit have been spent over the last six years and we, school teachers (not professors in universities), have committed ourselves to improving and developing our pedagogical skills and knowledge on the teaching of Science and Maths with the incorporation of ICT in the classroom.
As a trainer and facilitator, I found there were initial teething problems as well as rejection from some teachers who were reluctant to make the switch. However, generally speaking, most teachers are happy and confident of their abilities to use English as the medium of instruction.
Professor Dr.Rosnani’s three reasons are precisely why we will never be able to excel or compete with our neighbouring countries.
Since she is from International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), she should know the proficiency level of Malaysians and those who come from countries where the school curriculum is in English.
I have tested IIUM’s matriculation students and UiTM students for the MUET (Malaysian University English Test) speaking component, and am shocked by the deplorable standards!
Ironically, she herself has mentioned that Science and Maths “involves concepts that require clear explanation and cannot be learnt by just reading textbooks alone”.
Students need to do research and refer to books and materials that are mostly found in the English language. Has Dr Rosnani forgotten that there are other races in Malaysian schools (urban and rural) and universities too?
Is teaching these two subjects in English in our schools tantamount to losing our culture and identity?
She also mentions that our scholars have succeeded in entering Harvard, MIT and Oxford. How many percent is that? Only 1,200 scholars from 450,000 SPM candidates!
Those aspiring to enter Australian and British universities have to sit for the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) tests and many fail to get the required minimum standards. With a situation like this, colleges are forced to run intensive classes by the British Council and IDP on how to pass the IELTS, especially the speaking component.
Ask any private company interviewing our local graduates about the English language proficiency of these graduates and they will tell you about their disappointment.
We also have graduates from local universities who have degrees but cannot be employed as engineers in the private sector because they can’t speak English. Since they have no choice, many of them are retrained and end up as teachers in local schools.
By the way, does Britain recognise those with medical degrees from Malaysian universities?
Dr Rosnani’s suggestion that students read and understand science journals written in English is absurd, since her intention is for them to study the subject in Bahasa Malaysia.
Students in rural areas and in non-premier schools will remain where they are, whether they are taught Science or Maths in Bahasa Malaysia (BM) or in English.
What they lack is the infrastructure and the commitment by the students, their parents and, above all, the system itself.
There is too much emphasis on exams and results. There is no fun in learning and no love for learning.
There are many of us who studied all subjects (except BM) in English. Are we misfits? Have we lost our culture? Aren’t we still proficient in BM and patriotic?
Wasn’t the civil service excellent before because all of them, regardless of race, could read, write and communicate in good English?
There has been an improvement in the standard of English in schools over the last three years.
Students are more confident to speak the language, they are able to use Power Point presentations in English and have learnt a lot while surfing the Internet, to complete research projects at secondary school-level.
Please give us teachers and our students a chance to improve, and to prove that it was an excellent move to introduce the teaching of Science and Maths in English.
It will be a pleasure for educators like Dr Rosnani to teach these young people who are well-versed in English at IIUM or other universities.
The role of BM will forever remain supreme to all Malaysians while English will certainly give us a competitive edge on the global scene when we can speak with the same eloquence as the students from the old school.
What about the other components of plastic? Are they dangerous too?
More and more research is being done on this and new findings are coming to light. The danger is we are constantly in contact with plastic every single day of our lives, especially when plastic is being used to wrap our food and store our water and drinks.
The US FDA now calls the plastic used to wrap your food as “Food Contact Substances” but they have always assumed that plastics will migrate toxins into your food. They would only approve a manufacturer which can show that these plastic migrations must fall below an acceptable range.
The worst plastic, it is said, to store food or drink in is polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
There has been a lot of debate about plastic toys as well, especially those for toddlers which are put into the mouth.
There still has to be more research before matured conclusions can be made about the subject of plastic in contact with our food and its migration in minimal amounts. But it is certain that if you swallow or inhale plastic casting resin products, such as a plastic resin hardener, you may experience epoxy or resin poisoning.
What will happen in epoxy or resin poisoning?
If you inhale too much epoxy, you may experience breathing difficulties. You may have a severe pain in your throat, which might lead to throat swelling, burning pain in your nose, eyes, ears, lips or tongue. You can also have severe abdominal pain and vomiting, sometimes of blood. Blood may also appear in your faeces. You can develop low blood pressure and have a circulatory collapse.
If you get it on your skin, there may be irritation or burning. Your skin can be destroyed and holes may appear.
This particular poisoning is an emergency and you must seek help immediately.
Help your teen foster a sense of responsibility. AS teenagers become more mature physically, they demand to be treated in adult ways. Though teenagers strive to rely more on themselves and less on their parents in making decisions, the parent-teen relationship remains vital in helping your child to become an independent, responsible individual. The urbanised environment exposes the adolescent to the negative influences of modern society. As a result, the adolescents’ power of reasoning often gives rise to family tensions. Parent-teenager disagreements are usually centred around mundane issues such as clothing styles, dating, friendships and school work. However, beneath these disputes lies the parents’ concern to protect their teens from poor school performance, auto accidents, substance abuse and teen sex. Throughout your child’s adolescent years, the quality of the parent-child relationship is crucial to teen’s mental health. In well-functioning families, teenagers remain attached to parents and seek their advice, but do so in the context of greater freedom. They tend to spend more time with friends and in social activities. Consistent parental monitoring of the teenager’s activities through a cooperative relationship in which the teen willingly discloses information, will favour the latter’s smooth transition to independence. This also helps foster the psychological well-being of the adolescent. To prevent communication gaps, the parent should remain a respected role model and confidant, while protecting the teen from the negative aspects of peer pressure and modern society. This is best accomplished through an assertive parenting style. There are three different styles of parenting: authoritarian, assertive and permissive. Authoritarian parenting will leave your teenager feeling no sense of self-growth or independence. Authoritarian parents do not trust their teenagers. They are always checking on their child, and making decisions for them. In turn, this leaves the teenager feeling dependent on his parents or very rebellious. Permissive parenting is the opposite of authoriatarian parenting. Permissive parenting will leave your teenager with too much decision-making on his own which he is not mature enough to handle. As a result, the teenager does not learn appropriate boundaries. Assertive parenting will build trust, communication between parents and teenagers, and a sense of autonomy and self-control within the teenager. It will validate the teen as a responsible person, and develop a parent-child relationship which is safe. The teen feels free to air his concern to his parents without being judged, ridiculed or belittled. Assertive parents set appropriate boundaries, but give the teenager freedom within the boundaries. They educate (not lecture) their teenager about the dangers of drugs, sex and delinquency. This enables the teenager to keep himself safe from negative peer pressure. Assertive parents know their teenager’s friends and friend’s family, monitors school work and progress, knows the teachers and works as a team with the teachers. More importantly, assertive parents realise that teenagers need guidance and are willing to balance their career and social schedules to accommodate this need. Assertive parenting should be practised throughout the entire span of child development. Let’s look at how we can implement assertive parenting during the teenage years. An assertive parent will: •acknowledge and except the natural interests and abilities of the teenager. If his teenager wants to take guitar lessons instead of piano lessons which are the wishes of the parents, this has to be OK. •celebrate when his teenager is doing his best and improving in the academic sphere, though he may not be doing as well as his siblings or peers. •unconditionally accept the teenager as a unique individual and not compare him to other people. •encourage the teenager to choose his own hobbies. If your son wants to take ballet lessons instead of joining the soccer team, he needs to do so with your best wishes. •encourage and facilitate the teenager’s exploration of higher education and career choices. Allow the teenager to make his own decisions, provided the decisions are based on a mature understanding of himself, his strengths, interests and goals. •have a sense of self-satisfaction and does not try to live out what he missed in his youth, through his children. Remember, it is never too late for parents to take piano lessons or join a soccer team. •not use his teenager as a buddy or confidante when struggling with adult issues. •not load the teenager with too many responsibilities such as taking care of younger siblings or doing household chores. •work as a team with his spouse in making decisions in the child’s best interest. •be an advocate of his teenager’s schooling and not allow him to be treated unfairly by teachers and other authority figures. •not rescue his teenager, but allow him to experience the consequences for his actions.
Depression in women: Understanding the gender g Family. Career. Coping with menstruation, pregnancy and menopause. As a woman, you certainly have plenty of issues to handle. But there's one more you might face someday: depression Biological factors affecting depression in women The female body itself may influence the development of depression. That's because hormones and related factors may alter mood through various stages of life. Puberty Before girls and boys reach puberty, they share similar rates of depression. It's only after puberty that the gender disparity in depression and related disorders truly becomes pronounced. And because girls typically reach puberty before boys do, they may develop depression earlier. By age 15, for example, girls are almost twice as likely as boys to have developed depression. Because this depression gender gap coincides with puberty and disappears after menopause, some researchers believe that hormonal factors increase a woman's risk of developing depression. On the other hand, puberty is also often associated with other changes that could play a role in depression, such as emerging sexuality and identity issues, parental conflicts and evolving social expectations. These psychosocial factors could interact with hormonal changes during puberty and result in an increased risk of depression. Premenstrual problems Many women know all too well the physical and emotional changes that can occur before menstruation, when abdominal bloating, breast tenderness, headache, anxiety, irritability or a blue mood herald the notorious symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS). For most women with PMS, the associated symptoms are minor and short-lived. But a small percentage of women have such severe and disabling mood-related symptoms that their lives, jobs and relationships are disrupted. At that point, PMS crosses the line into premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), which tends to respond best to treatment with hormones or psychiatric medications such as antidepressants. Although the exact interaction between depression and premenstrual syndrome remains unclear, some researchers believe that cyclical changes in estrogen, progesterone and other hormones can disrupt the function of brain chemicals that control mood, such as serotonin. Other research indicates that androgens - so-called male hormones that women also naturally produce at a lower level - may play a role. Still, because such hormonal changes occur in all women, but not all women develop depression, hormonal changes alone can't be responsible for the increased risk of depression in women. Genetic predisposition or other factors also may influence depression. Pregnancy Dramatic hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy, along with life, work and relationship changes, affect mood and in some cases may trigger depression during pregnancy. Other factors that can increase the risk of depression during pregnancy include previous episodes of depression or PMDD, marital strife, insufficient social support and ambivalence about being pregnant. Other issues surrounding pregnancy can also lead to depression, such as infertility, miscarriage or an unwanted pregnancy. Postpartum depression About half of new mothers find themselves sad, angry, irritable and prone to tears soon after giving birth. These feelings - sometimes called the baby blues - are normal and generally subside within a week or two. But if they don't subside quickly, if symptoms are severe, if they're accompanied by an inability to care for your baby or thoughts of harming your baby, or if you have feelings of anxiety, low self-esteem, agitation or thoughts of suicide, you might have postpartum depression. This is a serious medical condition requiring prompt treatment. Postpartum depression isn't merely a matter of being unable to cope with having a new baby. Rather, it's probably associated with major hormonal fluctuations that influence mood as well as an underlying predisposition to depression. Perimenopause and menopause The risk of depression may also be heightened during the transition to menopause, a stage called perimenopause, when hormone levels fluctuate erratically. And it may also be heightened in early menopause or after menopause, both times when estrogen levels are significantly reduced. Most women who experience uncomfortable menopausal symptoms don't develop depression. But for women whose sleep is disrupted for long periods of time or who have a history of depression, this is a vulnerable time. Hysterectomy with removal of the ovaries can lead to an abrupt onset of menopause with more severe symptoms, including mood changes and sometimes depression.
Summary from book "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus"
Recently, we read the book Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, by John Gray, Ph.D. This informative book explained how to improve communication and to get what you want in relationships. The book focuses on understanding the differences between men and women, and learning how to use the information to change your relationships permanently.
“Once upon a time Martians and Venusians met, fell in love, and had happy relationships together because they respected and accepted their differences. Then they came to Earth and amnesia set in: They forgot they were from different planets.”
Dr. Gray uses this metaphor to explain the conflicts that commonly occur between men and women. In his book, he teaches how to avoid the problems caused by the differences that come between the sexes, and shows how we can all achieve fulfilling, loving relationships. Two of the main topics are how men and women deal with stress, and how men and women speak different languages.
How men and women deal with stress is a very important factor in relationships. Dr. Gray believes that men become withdrawn and very focused, while women become overwhelmed and very emotionally involved. Men don’t burden others with their problems, instead, they feel that they should solve them alone. They are capable of losing their awareness of everything and everyone around them and become distant, unresponsive, and forgetful. Although women resent this, they must try to have patience.
On the other hand, for women, sharing problems with others is a sign of trust. They can openly share their feelings of frustration and hopelessness. Women are not looking for immediate solutions, but want to be understood. When women talk about problems, men feel that they are being held responsible. Instead of trying to offer explanations or solutions, he should listen to understand.
Gray says that because men and women can learn to respect and understand each other’s different ways of dealing with stress, there is an opening for a greater understanding in their relationships with each other. Without placing blame on each other, they cope differently with their problems. If done correctly, there will be peace between the sexes.
The next important point mentioned is how men and women speak different languages. The languages that men and women use have the same words but different and often confusing meanings. Women speak in metaphors and generalizations. For example, “when a woman says “I feel like you never listen,” she does not expect the word never to be taken literally. Using the word never is just a way of expressing the frustration she is feeling at the moment.”
If men speak at all, it is very literal and they interpret women in the same literal way. Because of this, misinterpretations happen very easily and are quite frequent. A man talks only to convey information. A woman talks for many different reasons and complain that men don’t talk enough. However, one of the most challenging things for men to do is to correctly interpret and support a woman when she is talking about her feelings. Gray guides both men and women onto the path of understanding. By describing both sexes’ behavior in detail, he explains that we can learn to understand each other.
The most important point taught is the Art of Listening. As men and women learn to listen and interpret each other’s behavior and feelings, communication becomes easier. When a misunderstanding occurs, we must remember that we speak different languages and we should take the time to translate to our partners what we really mean and want to say.
By reading this guide, it is hoped that the communication between men and women will become stronger. Dr. Gray stresses that we must listen and work hard to accomplish this goal. By reading Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, it is believed that both sexes are taking a step in direction of success
A Hare having ridiculed the slow movements of a Tortoise, was challenged by the latter to run a race, a Fox to go to the goal and be the judge. They got off well together, the hare at the top of her speed, the Tortoise, who had no other intention than making his antagonist exert herself, going very leisurely. After sauntering along for some time he discovered the Hare by the wayside, apparently asleep, and seeing a chance to win pushed on as fast as he could, arriving at the goal hours afterward, suffering from extreme fatigue and claiming the victory. "Not so," said the Fox; "the Hare was here long ago, and went back to cheer you on your way."
My friend Natalie can't see the point in you. She says that all you do is burp, fart, dribble, grin inanely and emit a series if unintelligible noises. Admittedly she hasn't seen you at your best, but I still think that's a little harsh.
The first time Natalie came to visit you were asleep on your back, gurgling little spit bubbles, a thin strand of drool running down your chin. Natalie just stared at you as if you were a creature from another planet. She made no secret of the fact that she wasn't impressed.
The second time she came to visit you crawled across the carpet towards her and vomited on her expensive new shoes. I tried to make light of it, explaining that it's mainly just liquid and wipes off easily, but she really did look quite appalled.
Natalie likes being a career woman, rushing between meetings in her power suit, clutching her Starbucks Coffee and her laptop. She's never wanted a husband or a baby, but if she could see you on a good day I'm sure she'd feel differently. If she could see the way you clap your hands and squeal with excitement when Scooby-Doo comes on the telly then she'd find you just as adorable as I do.
Instead she thinks you're smelly and have a strange shaped head. She looked revolted when I said you like putting your toes in your mouth, and finds it disturbing that you're always staring greedily at my breasts. It upsets her even more when you stare greedily at her breasts. I tried to explain that you're a man and that's what men do, but she wasn't having any of it.
If I'm honest, I think you could have made a bit more of an effort when Natalie first visited our house. I know it was the morning after Spongey's stag do, but I thought you could have at least lugged yourself into the bedroom instead of lying sprawled on the sofa in a curly wig, a pair of women's shoes and a t-shirt with a photo of Spongey's bare bottom on the front. If you'd had some trousers on it might not have been so bad. Natalie and I were comfortable enough perched on the wooden chairs, but it was quite distracting to have you snoring over our conversation, and I think Natalie was a bit uncomfortable when you started mumbling and fiddling with yourself.
When Natalie left, giving me a kiss on the cheek and a look of pity before rushing off for an appointment with her personal trainer, I removed your stilettos, covered you with a blanket and wiped the drool from your chin. Later, when you woke up screaming about a pain in your head which you assumed must be a brain haemorrhage, I gently explained that you had simply consumed an excessive amount of alcohol. I then sat by your side, holding your hand and stroking your forehead in a bid to reassure you. Three days later when you had recovered, I firmly reiterated this link between lager and suffering and said I hoped you had learnt your lesson. You looked ashamed, said you wouldn't do it again and then promptly went out and got wasted.
I'd secretly hoped that things would be better the next time Natalie came to visit. I thought she might like you better if you had your trousers on and were conscious. To be fair you didn't let me down on either of those counts, but if I'm going to be picky then I wish you'd been sober and hadn't vomited on her.
I assumed that when I told you she was coming for dinner you would come home from the pub before ten o'clock, but of course you bumped into Spongey down at the Queens Head and the two of you decided to celebrate the fact that you were wearing the same socks. I understand how important these things are to you, and I do appreciate the fact that you phoned me from the pub six times with a string of terrible excuses, but could you not have come for the Chicken Chasseur I had prepared? Instead you fell through the front door three hours late, addressed Natalie as Bob, crawled towards her on all fours and then chucked up all over her feet. It wiped off just as I said it would, but I don't think that made Natalie like you any better.
Once Natalie had left - which she did at great pace - I cleared up the mess and sat you down at the kitchen table. You clutched my fingers tightly and tried to put one of them in your mouth, mistaking it for the digestive biscuit I offered you. I should have been furious, but when you grinned stupidly at me, your mouth surrounded by biscuit crumbs, my heart softened and I forgave you. At the end of the day, however badly you behave, you're mine and I still love you.
I can understand why Nathalie thinks you're an idiot, but it's easy for her to judge. She already has everything she ever desired. I never wanted the impressive job title, the sports car or the big flashy house. All I ever really wanted was to be a mother. You might not be the most sophisticated man in the world, but you have a good heart and all the other necessary parts to help me fulfil that dream.
I know exactly why having a baby is so important to me: I want someone I can take care of. I find it incredible that another flailing, helpless human being could rely on me to look after them. Babies are so utterly incapable of looking after themselves, so dependent on others for their wellbeing. From their failure to control their bodily functions to their inability to use their tiny undeveloped brains, they are so completely useless without someone to care for them. I want to be needed like that.
Natalie says I don't need a baby to fulfil my dream. She says I'm already there. I have no idea what she means. I just don't think these career women understand.
A miser sold all that he had and bought a lump of gold, which he buried in a hole in the ground by the side of an old wall and went to look at daily. One of his workmen observed his frequent visits to the spot and decided to watch his movements. He soon discovered the secret of the hidden treasure, and digging down, came to the lump of gold, and stole it. The Miser, on his next visit, found the hole empty and began to tear his hair and to make loud lamentations. A neighbor, seeing him overcome with grief and learning the cause, said, "Pray do not grieve so; but go and take a stone, and place it in the hole, and fancy that the gold is still lying there. It will do you quite the same service; for when the gold was there, you had it not, as you did not make the slightest use of it."
My friends say I am very suggestible. I think they're right. As evidence of this, they bring up a little incident that I was involved in last Thursday.
That morning I was reading a horror novel and, although it was broad daylight, I fell victim to the power of suggestion. This suggestion implanted in me the idea that there was a bloodthirsty murderer in the kitchen; and this bloodthirsty murderer, brandishing an enormous dagger, was waiting for me to enter the kitchen so he could leap upon me and plunge the knife into my back. So, in spite of my being seated directly across from the kitchen door, in spite of the fact that no one could have gone into the kitchen without my having seen him, and that there was no other access to the kitchen but that door; in spite of all these facts, I, nonetheless, was fully convinced that the murderer lurked behind the closed door.
So I fell victim to the power of suggestion and did not have the courage to enter the kitchen. This worried me, because lunch time was approaching and it would be indispensable for me to go into the kitchen. Then the doorbell rang.
"Come in!" I yelled without standing up. "It's not locked." The building superintendent came in, with two or three letters. "My leg fell asleep," I said. "Could you go to the kitchen and bring me a glass of water?"
The super said, "Of course," opened the kitchen door and went in. I heard a cry of pain and the sound of a body that, in collapsing, dragged with it dishes or bottles. Then I leaped from my chair and ran to the kitchen. The super, half his body on the table and an enormous dagger plunged into his back, lay dead. Now, calmed down, I was able to determine that, of course, there was no murderer in the kitchen.
-Your presence is a present to the world. -You're unique and one of a kind. -Your life can be what you want it to be. -Take the days just one at a time. -Count your blessings, not your troubles. -You'll make it through whatever comes along. -Within you are so many answers. -Understand, have courage, be strong. -Don't put limits on yourself. -So many dreams are waiting to be realized. -Decisions are too important to leave to chance. -Reach for your peak, your goal, and your prize. -Nothing wastes more energy than worrying. -The longer one carries a problem, the heavier it gets. -Don't take things too seriously. -Live a life of serenity, not a life of regrets. -Remember that a little love goes a long way. -Remember that a lot goes forever. -Remember that friendship is a wise investment. -Life's treasures are people -- together. -Realize that nothing is ever too late. -Do ordinary things in an extraordinary way. -Have health and hope and happiness. -Take the time to wish upon a star. ... And don't ever forget -- for even a day -- how very special you are.
A friend that is unique A friend that is one of a kind A friend that is perfect A type friend who is hard to find A friend that is sweet A friend that is perpetually fair A friend that you know Will always be there A friend with an amazing spirit A friend with a striking heart A friend that is trustworthy A friend that is smart A friend that assuages your pain A friend that can dry your tears A friend with unrestricted love A friend that can alleviate your fears A friend with an exquisite smile That could never be ignored A friend that’s never been hurtful A friend that is easily adored A friend that is respectful A friend who is loved by all A friend that is relied upon A friend to never let fall A friend you can talk to Her compassion is known by a glistening glow Just by sparking her remarkable light The whole world will know What a great and amazing person she is A friend I shall never forget She is the greatest ever been known Best of all the friends I’ve ever met..
Is someone that everyone needs A friend Is that special one A friend Is someone you tell EVERYTHING A friend Is someone you never lie to A friend Can be a boy or a girl A friend Is someone that is always their A friend Will always listen to you A friend Always has input to give A friend Will never leave you in the dust A friend Will help you through the thick and the thin A friend Will always stand by your side A friend Will never let you down A friend Is someone everyone needs What would you do if you didnt have a friend?
Is someone that everyone needs A friend Is that special one A friend Is someone you tell EVERYTHING A friend Is someone you never lie to A friend Can be a boy or a girl A friend Is someone that is always their A friend Will always listen to you A friend Always has input to give A friend Will never leave you in the dust A friend Will help you through the thick and the thin A friend Will always stand by your side A friend Will never let you down A friend Is someone everyone needs What would you do if you didnt have a friend?
Ready to quit smoking? Here are 10 tips to help ensure your success.
1 - Identify your smoking triggers. Keep a record of when you smoke to identify your triggers so then you can make a plan to manage triggers without smoking.
2 - Talk to your doctor. Consult your doctor before you quit smoking. Modern pharmaceutical treatments can make quitting easier. Moreover, tobacco may impact the way your body processes certain medications.
3 - Get support from your family and friends. Let them know you are quitting and that you want their help. 4- Make a clean start. Throw away your cigarettes, hide your ashtrays, clean the house, your clothes, and the car if they smell like smoke -- anything to help make a break from the past.
5- Make a list of reasons to quit. Look at it every time you are tempted to have a smoke.
6- Keep objects around that you can put in your mouth. Items such as carrots, hard candy, even straws can give you something to do when you really crave a cigarette.
7- Drink lots of water. Water will help flush nicotine from your system and reduce the intensity of withdrawal symptoms.
8- Exercise. Not only will it make controlling your weight easier, it also gives you more energy and helps keep your mind off smoking.
9- Get a hair cut. Anything you can do to draw a clear line between your life as a smoker and your new life as a non smoker will make quitting easier and making you more likely to stay smoke free.
1. No Breakfast - People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level. This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.
2. Over-eating - It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power.
3. Smoking - It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.
4. High Sugar Consumption - Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients causing malnutrition and may interfere with brain development. 5. Air Pollution - The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our body. Inhaling polluted air deceases the supply of oxygen to the brain, bringing about a decrease in brain efficiency.
6. Sleep Deprivation - Sleep allows our brain to rest. Long term deprivation from sleep will accelerate the death of brain cells.
7. Head covered while sleeping - Sleeping with the head covered, increases the concentration of carbon dioxide and decrease concentration of oxygen that may lead to brain damaging fects.
8. Working your brain during illness - Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in effectiveness of the brain as well as damage the brain.
9. Lacking in stimulating thoughts - Thinking is the best way to train our brain, lacking in brain stimulation thoughts may cause brain shrinkage.
10. Talking Rarely - Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain.
Football is the word given to a number of similar team sports, all of which involve kicking a ball with the foot in an attempt to score a goal. The most popular of these sports worldwide is association football, also known as "soccer" and most commonly just "football". The English language word "football" is also applied to "gridiron football" (a name associated with the North American sports, especially American football and Canadian football), Australian football, Gaelic football, rugby football (rugby league and rugby union), and related games. Each of these codes (specific sets of rules, or the games defined by them) is referred to as "football". These games involve: • Two teams of usually between 11 and 18 players. Note that versions with fewer players have varying degrees of popularity: 1) Six-man, eight-man, and nine-man football, derived from American football, are also played mainly at scholastic level in less-populated parts of the United States. Small schools in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan also play nine-man football, derived from the country's own code. 2) Rugby sevens, a version of rugby union with seven players per side instead of 15, is especially well-developed, with its own World Cup, a prominent annual international competition, and an entrenched position in the Commonwealth Games. 3) Although the sevens format also exists in rugby league, a different abbreviated format, rugby league nines, is more popular. In most codes, there are rules restricting the movement of players offside, and players scoring a goal must put the ball either under or over a crossbar between the goalposts. Other features common to several football codes include: points being mostly scored by players carrying the ball across the goal line and; players receiving a free kick after they take a mark/make a fair catch. Peoples from around the world have played games which involved kicking and/or carrying a ball, since ancient times. However, most of the modern codes of football have their origins in England.
Assalamualaikum to all of you. Today I want to talk about motorcycle. The first motorcycle was designed and built by the German inventors Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach in Bad Cannstatt (since 1905 a city district of Stuttgart) in 1885. The first petroleum powered vehicle, it was essentially a motorized bicycle, although the inventors called their invention the Reitwagen ("riding car"). However, if a two-wheeled vehicle with steam propulsion is considered a motorcycle, then the first one may have been American. One such machine was demonstrated at fairs and circuses in the eastern U.S. in 1867, built by Sylvester Howard Roper of Roxbury, Massachusetts.
In 1894, Hildebrand & Wolfmüller became the first motorcycle available for purchase. In the early period of motorcycle history, many producers of bicycles adapted their designs to accommodate the new internal combustion engine. As the engines became more powerful and designs outgrew the bicycle origins, the number of motorcycle producers increased.
Until the First World War, the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world was Indian, producing over 20,000 bikes per year. By 1920, this honor went to Harley-Davidson, with their motorcycles being sold by dealers in 67 countries. In 1928, DKW took over as the largest manufacturer.
After the Second World War, the BSA Group became the largest producer of motorcycles in the world, producing up to 75,000 bikes per year in the 1950s. The German company NSU Motorenwerke AG held the position of largest manufacturer from 1955 until the 1970s
In the 1950s, streamlining began to play an increasing part in the development of racing motorcycles and held out the possibility of radical changes to motorcycle design. NSU and Moto-Guzzi were in the vanguard of this development both producing very radical designs well ahead of their time. NSU produced the most advanced design, but because of the deaths of four NSU riders in the 1954–1956 seasons, they abandoned further development and quit Grand Prix motorcycle racing. Moto-Guzzi produced competitive race machines, and by 1957 nearly all the Grand Prix races were being won by streamlined machine.
From the 1960s through the 1990s, small two-stroke motorcycles were popular worldwide, partly as a result of East German Walter Kaaden's engine work in the 1950s.
Today, the Japanese manufacturers, Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, and Yamaha dominate the motorcycle industry, although Harley-Davidson still maintains a high degree of popularity in the United States. Apart from these high capacity motorcycles, there is a very huge market for low capacity (less then 300 cc) motorcycles, mostly concentrated in Asian and African countries. This area is dominated by mostly Indian companies with Hero Honda being the world's largest manufacturer of two wheelers. Its Hero Honda Splendor model is the highest selling motorcycle in automotive history, having sold more then 8.5 million to date.
Assalamualaikum. I want to share with all of about history of electricity.Long before any knowledge of electricity existed people were aware of shocks from electric fishes. Ancient Egyptian texts dating from 2750 BC referred to these fish as the "Thunderer of the Nile", and described them as the "protectors" of all other fish. They were again reported millennia later by ancient Greek, Roman and Arabic naturalists and physicians. Several ancient writers, such as Pliny the Elder and Scribonius Largus, attested to the numbing effect of electric shocks delivered by catfish and torpedo rays, and knew that such shocks could travel along conducting objects. Patients suffering from ailments such as gout or headache were directed to touch electric fish in the hope that the powerful jolt might cure them. Possibly the earliest and nearest approach to the discovery of the identity of lightning, and electricity from any other source, is to be attributed to the Arabs, who before the 15th century had the Arabic word for lightning (raad) applied to the electric ray. That certain objects such as rods of amber could be rubbed with cat's fur and attract light objects like feathers was known to ancient cultures around the Mediterranean. Thales of Miletos made a series of observations on static electricity around 600 BC, from which he believed that friction rendered amber magnetic, in contrast to minerals such as magnetite, which needed no rubbing. Thales was incorrect in believing the attraction was due to a magnetic effect, but later science would prove a link between magnetism and electricity. According to a controversial theory, the Parthians may have had knowledge of electroplating, based on the 1936 discovery of the Baghdad Battery, which resembles a galvanic cell, though it is uncertain whether the artifact was electrical in nature. Electricity would remain little more than an intellectual curiosity for millennia until 1600, when the English physician William Gilbert made a careful study of electricity and magnetism, distinguishing the lodestone effect from static electricity produced by rubbing amber. He coined the New Latin word electricus ("of amber" or "like amber", from ήλεκτρον [elektron], the Greek word for "amber") to refer to the property of attracting small objects after being rubbed.This association gave rise to the English words "electric" and "electricity", which made their first appearance in print in Thomas Browne's Pseudodoxia Epidemica of 1646. Further work was conducted by Otto von Guericke, Robert Boyle, Stephen Gray and C. F. du Fay. In the 18th century, Benjamin Franklin conducted extensive research in electricity, selling his possessions to fund his work. In June 1752 he is reputed to have attached a metal key to the bottom of a dampened kite string and flown the kite in a storm-threatened sky. He observed a succession of sparks jumping from the key to the back of his hand, showing that lightning was indeed electrical in nature.
Assalamualaikum. A computer is a machine that manipulates data according to a list of instructions. The first devices that resemble modern computers date to the mid-20th century (1940–1945), although the computer concept and various machines similar to computers existed earlier. Early electronic computers were the size of a large room, consuming as much power as several hundred modern personal computers (PC). Modern computers are based on tiny integrated circuits and are millions to billions of times more capable while occupying a fraction of the space. Today, simple computers may be made small enough to fit into a wristwatch and be powered from a watch battery. Personal computers, in various forms, are icons of the Information Age and are what most people think of as "a computer"; however, the most common form of computer in use today is the embedded computer. Embedded computers are small, simple devices that are used to control other devices for example, they may be found in machines ranging from fighter aircraft to industrial robots, digital cameras, and children's toys. The ability to store and execute lists of instructions called programs makes computers extremely versatile and distinguishes them from calculators. The Church–Turing thesis is a mathematical statement of this versatility: any computer with a certain minimum capability is, in principle, capable of performing the same tasks that any other computer can perform. Therefore, computers with capability and complexity ranging from that of a personal digital assistant to a supercomputer are all able to perform the same computational tasks given enough time and storage capacity.
Assalamualaikum. The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as jellyfishes and starfishes have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all. In vertebrates, the brain is located in the head, protected by the skull and close to the primary sensory apparatus of vision, hearing, balance, taste, and smell. Brains can be extremely complex. The human brain contains roughly 100 billion neurons, linked with up to 10,000 synaptic connections each. These neurons communicate with one another by means of long protoplasmic fibers called axons, which carry trains of signal pulses called action potentials to distant parts of the brain or body and target them to specific recipient cells. From a philosophical point of view, it might be said that the most important function of the brain is to serve as the physical structure underlying the mind. From a biological point of view, though, the most important function is to generate behaviors that promote the welfare of an animal. Brains control behavior either by activating muscles, or by causing secretion of chemicals such as hormones. Not all behaviors require a brain. Even single-celled organisms may be capable of extracting information from the environment and acting in response to it. Sponges, which lack a central nervous system, are capable of coordinated body contractions and even locomotion. In vertebrates, the spinal cord by itself contains neural circuitry capable of generating reflex responses as well as simple motor patterns such as swimming or walking. However, sophisticated control of behavior on the basis of complex sensory input requires the information-integrating capabilities of a centralized brain. Despite rapid scientific progress, much about how brains work remains a mystery. The operations of individual neurons and synapses are now understood in considerable detail, but the way they cooperate in ensembles of thousands or millions has been very difficult to decipher. Methods of observation such as EEG recording and functional brain imaging tell us that brain operations are highly organized, but these methods do not have the resolution to reveal the activity of individual neurons. Thus, even the most fundamental principles of neural network computation may to a large extent remain for future investigators to discover.
Firecrackers are commonly used in celebration of holidays or festivals, such as Shab-e-Barat In Pakistan, Halloween, Independence Day in the United States of America, Diwali in India, Hari Raya in Malaysia, and especially the celebration of Chinese New Year by Chinese communities around the world and Spanish Fallas. Firecrackers are also used by the Vietnamese during their Tết festival especially at midnight Giao Thừa (New Year's Eve). Firecrackers, as well as other types of explosives, in United States are subject to various laws, depending on location. Firecrackers themselves are not considered illegal contraband material. It is the sale, possession, and use of firecrackers that are subject to laws. Some states or local governments require a permit to legally sell, possess, or use firecrackers; sometimes with different permits for different actions, e.g., a permit required to sell, with a separate permit required to use. Prior to December 6, 1976, the legal limit in the United States for firecrackers was a maximum of 2 grains of blackpowder (130 mg); after this date, the legal limit in the United States was reduced to 50 mg (0.77 grains) of flash powder. Virtually all firecrackers are scientifically classed as "low explosives" which burn through deflagration, as opposed to "high explosives" such as dynamite and ANFO which actually produce a supersonic detonation wave. Some legal definitions nevertheless define banned firecrackers (such as the M-80 in the United States) as "Class B Explosives" which requires their storage in an explosives magazine and an ATF high explosives license for their manufacture. The legal status of firecrackers typically stems from their notable effect on noise pollution as well as the issue of their safety, especially when used by children. Devices which are designed to explode at ground level are seen as more dangerous than those with a prolonged burn time and/or an aerial explosion. Proponents of firecracker sales sometimes question the consistency of these laws, pointing out that legal fireworks can also be dangerous due to the risk of high-temperature burns (as in the case of sparklers), and that projectile fireworks intended for aerial use can often legally incorporate a noise making explosive device as a last stage. In Malaysia, playing with firecrackers is now illegal as stated from Malaysian Explosive Act which was revised in 1991 as a result of the increasing injuries among children (especially
Recycling involves processing used materials into new products in order to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from land filling) by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virgin production. Recycling is a key component of modern waste management and is the third component of the "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" waste hierarchy. Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, metal, plastics, textiles, and electronics Aluminum (e.g., cell phones and computers). Although similar in effect, the composting or other reuse of biodegradable waste – such as food or garden waste – is not typically considered recycling. Materials to be recycled are either brought to a collection center or picked up from the curbside, then sorted, cleaned, and reprocessed into new materials bound for manufacturing. In a strict sense, recycling of a material would produce a fresh supply of the same material, for example used office paper to more office paper, or used foamed polystyrene to more polystyrene. However, this is often difficult or too expensive (compared with producing the same product from raw materials or other sources), so "recycling" of many products or materials involves their reuse in producing different materials (e.g., cardboard) instead. Another form of recycling is the salvage of certain materials from complex products, either due to their intrinsic value (e.g., lead from car batteries, or gold from computer components), or due to their hazardous nature (e.g., removal and reuse of mercury from various items). Critics of recycling claim that it often wastes more resources than it saves, especially in cases where it is mandated by government. Note here that municipal recycling may nevertheless still be worthwhile if the net cost is less than the landfill or other disposal costs for the same amount of material
A helicopter is an aircraft that is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors, each rotor consisting of two or more rotor blades. Helicopters are classified as rotorcraft or rotary-wing aircraft to distinguish them from fixed-wing aircraft because the helicopter achieves lift with the rotor blades which rotate around a mast. The word 'helicopter' is adapted from the French hélicoptère, coined by Gustave de Ponton d'Amecourt in 1861, which originates from the Greek helix/helik- (ἕλικ-) = "spiral" or "turning". The primary advantage of a helicopter is from the rotor which provides lift without the aircraft needing to move forward, allowing the helicopter take off and land vertically without a runway. For this reason, helicopters are often used in congested or isolated areas where fixed-wing aircraft cannot take off or land. The lift from the rotor also allows the helicopter to hover in one area and more efficiently than other forms of vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft, allowing it to accomplish tasks that fixed-wing aircraft cannot perform. Although helicopters were developed and built during the first half-century of flight, some even reaching limited production; it was not until 1942 that a helicopter designed by Igor Sikorsky reached full-scale production, with 131 aircraft built. Even though most previous designs used more than one main rotor, it was the single main rotor with ant torque tail rotor configuration of this design that would come to be recognized worldwide as the helicopter.
Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985, in Croxteth, Liverpool, Merseyside) is an English footballer who currently plays for English Premier League club Manchester United and the England national team. Rooney is the first child of Thomas Wayne and Jeanette Marie Rooney (née Morrey). He was raised in Croxteth with younger brothers Graeme and John, and all three attended De La Salle School. Wayne grew up supporting local club Everton F.C., and his childhood hero was Duncan Ferguson. Rooney became the youngest player to play for England when he earned his first cap in a friendly against Australia on 12 February 2003 at seventeen, the same age in which he also became the youngest player to score an England goal. Arsenal youngster Theo Walcott broke Rooney's appearance record by 36 days in June 2006. His first tournament action was at Euro 2004, in which he became the youngest scorer in competition history on 17 June 2004, when he scored twice against Switzerland; however, this record was topped by Swiss midfielder Johan Vonlanthen four days later. Rooney suffered an injury in the quarterfinal match against Portugal as England was eliminated on penalties. Following a foot injury in an April 2006 Premier League match, Rooney faced a race to fitness for the 2006 World Cup. England attempted to hasten his recovery with the use of an oxygen tent, which allowed Rooney to enter a group match against Trinidad and Tobago and start the next match against Sweden. However, he never got back into game shape and went scoreless as England bowed out in the quarterfinals, again on penalty kicks. Rooney was red-carded in the 62nd minute of the quarterfinal for stomping on Portugal defender Ricardo Carvalho as both attempted to gain possession of the ball, an incident that occurred right in front of referee Horacio Elizondo. Rooney's united teammate Cristiano Ronaldo openly protested his actions, and was in turn shoved by Rooney. Elizondo sent Rooney off, after which Ronaldo was seen winking at the Portugal bench. Rooney denied intentionally targeting Carvalho in a statement on 3 July, adding, "I bear no ill feeling to Cristiano but am disappointed that he chose to get involved. I suppose I do, though, have to remember that on that particular occasion we were not teammates. Elizondo confirmed the next day that Rooney was dismissed solely for the infraction on Carvalho. Rooney was fined CHF5,000 for the incident.
Creativity Would you like to enhance your creativity? Do you think that increased creativity is something that would improve your life?
Before you answer yes or no to that question, take some time to explore what the word “creativity” means to you.
If you think that creativity is something that you only need if you’re an artist, while you happen to be a middle-manager in a corporation, you may decide that increased creativity is not really important to you. But creativity is actually something far broader than artistic expression, and it’s required in many areas of life.
Your idea of a creative person might be someone who lives in a loft, painting gigantic canvases all day long. Or perhaps a writer at her computer, working on a long novel. Or a musician, actor, or singer performing on stage to an audience. All these people are expressing themselves artistically, and they can all rightly be said to be creative people, even if no one else enjoys their art.
But what about an entrepreneur who has an idea for a new product, who forms a new company to produce and distribute it, eventually employing hundreds of people? Doesn’t this also require creativity?
What about a research scientist toiling in a lab, developing new compounds in an effort to cure disease? Isn’t this creative? What about a single mother who manages to come up with healthy delicious meals on a tiny budget? Isn’t that creativity?
To one person, creativity can mean gluing seashells to a picture frame. To another, creativity might mean solving a grand unified theory in physics. And to another person, being creative might mean coming up with an ingenious new way to speed up a factory assembly line.
When we define creativity only in terms of artistic expression, we miss a lot of other potential applications for creative thinking and problem solving.
An artist painting a picture, or a writer working on a novel, both have something in common with the researcher in the lab, and the entrepreneur, and the person gluing seashells to picture frames.
They are all working on problems and devising solutions that didn’t exist before. These people are using their minds to imagine fresh ways of doing something, putting together existing forms and ideas in new ways.
They may be creating a new idea, a new look, a new product, or new technique. Sometimes the ability to be more creative can lead to personal fame and fortune; sometimes it just provides a deep sense of personal satisfaction.
Can we improve our ability to be creative? Yes, in fact, learning to be more creative can be quite enjoyable and easy to do. Most of us were very creative as children, before we learned the official rules about how things are supposed to be. We can resurrect our ability to be more creative by exploring some of the many techniques that have been developed to improve creative and artistic ability, as well as to improve creative problem solving.
Some of the techniques that are used to improve creativity include brainstorming, mind-mapping, various forms of hypnosis and meditation, and guided imagery.
The techniques that have been developed to try enhance creativity all have one thing in common. They are all trying to bypass the inner “judge” or “critic” we have in our minds.
Most of us have an inner voice that is running a constant commentary on everything we think and do. We might barely notice this inner voice much of the time, yet it has a great impact on what we can accomplish in our life.
In many of us this inner voice is usually very negative. No matter what we want think about, or want to do, this inner voice is running like a tape in the background of our minds, criticizing our ideas, our performance, and our ability to be successful.
When we come up with a new idea, our inner voice may be saying, “This idea is stupid.” Or it might tell us, “I should never be mediocre or average, I must be brilliant and perfect all the time. All my ideas should be totally brilliant and innovative. If my ideas aren’t perfect right from the start, I am a failure and it’s better not to even try”.
Our negative inner critic does not always appear as a voice. Sometimes we see visual images of ourselves failing. Or we may have physical sensations of fear and embarrassment that stop us from pursuing new ideas or new actions.
Your inner critic isn’t being evil when it criticizes you, or when it tells you your ideas are not very good. Your critic is actually trying to protect you from being ashamed or embarrassed by the potentially negative comments and reactions of other people to your ideas.
Our inner critic is trying to make us perfect and safe, but it can have an unforeseen damaging effect.
If our inner judgmental dialogue is mostly negative, our creative abilities will suffer.
Instead of helping us to come up with better ideas, this endless barrage of negative inner commentary will hurt our ability to come up with new ideas.
You can’t be creative, and be critical at the same time. These two processes require different ways of thinking. The critical, judgmental, analytical function of the brain is not the part that knows how to generate creative ideas.
Even the types of brainwaves that you generate when you are being rational and analytical are quite different than the brainwaves that go with maximum creativity.
When it’s time for you to be creative, you have to send your “inner critic” out for a walk.
Hot tips writing resume 1. What IS a resume anyway? Remember: a Resume is a self-promotional document that presents you in the best possible light, for the purpose of getting invited to a job interview. It's not an official personnel document. It's not a job application. It's not a "career obituary"! And it's not a confessional.
2. What should the resume content be about? It's not just about past jobs! It's about YOU, and how you performed and what you accomplished in those past jobs--especially those accomplishments that are most relevant to the work you want to do next. A good resume predicts how you might perform in that desired future job.
3. What's the fastest way to improve a resume? Remove everything that starts with "responsibilities included" and replace it with on-the-job accomplishments. (See Tip 11 for one way to write them.)
4. What is the most common resume mistake made by job hunters? Leaving out their Job Objective! If you don't show a sense of direction, employers won't be interested. Having a clearly stated goal doesn't have to confine you if it's stated well.
5. What's the first step in writing a resume? Decide on a job target (or "job objective") that can be stated in about 5 or 6 words. Anything beyond that is probably "fluff" and indicates a lack of clarity and direction.
6. How do you decide whether to use a Chronological resume or a Functional one? The Chronological format is widely preferred by employers, and works well if you're staying in the same field (especially if you've been upwardly-mobile). Only use a Functional format if you're changing fields, and you're sure a skills-oriented format would show off your transferable skills to better advantage; and be sure to include a clear chronological work history!
7. What if you don't have any experience in the kind of work you want to do? Get some! Find a place that will let you do some volunteer work right away. You only need a brief, concentrated period of volunteer training (for example, 1 day a week for a month) to have at least SOME experience to put on your resume. Also, look at some of the volunteer work you've done in the past and see if any of THAT helps
65 comments:
English is a west Germanic language originating in England and is the first language for most people in United States, United Kingdom, Canada,Australia , New Zealand , Ireland and Anglophone Caribbean. It is used extensively as a second language and as an official language throughout the world, especially in Commonwealth countries and in many international organisations.
Modern English , sometimes described as the first global lingua franca is the dominant international language in communications, science, business, aviation, entertainment, radio and diplomacy. The initial reason for its enormous spread beyond the bounds of the British Isles where it was originally a native tongue was the British Empire, and by the late nineteenth century its influence had won a truly global reach. It is the dominant language in the United States and the growing economic and cultural influence and status as a global superpower since World War II has significantly accelerated adoption of English as a language across the planet.
A working knowledge of English has become a requirement in a number of fields, occupations and professions such as medicine and as a consequence over a billion people speak English to at least a basic level (see English language learning and teaching).
Linguists such as David Crystal recognize that one impact of this massive growth of English, in common with other global languages, has been to reduce native linguistic diversity in many parts of the world historically, most particularly in Australasia and North America, and its huge influence continues to play an important role in language attrition. By a similar token, historical linguists, aware of the complex and fluid dynamics of language change, are always alive to the potential English contains through the vast size and spread of the communities that use it and its natural internal variety, such as in its creoles and pidgins, to produce a new family of distinct languages over time.
English is one of six official languages of the United Nations.
BY
R.THEN MOLI
A calculator is device for performing mathematical calculations, distinguished from a computer by having a limited problem solving ability and an interface optimized for interactive calculation rather than programming. Calculators can be hardware or software, and mechanical or electronic, and are often built into devices such as PDAs or mobile phone.
Modern electronic calculators are generally small, digital, (often pocket-sized) and usually inexpensive. In addition to general purpose calculators, there are those designed for specific markets; for example, there are scientific calculators which focus on advanced math like trigonometry and statistics, or even have the ability to do computer algebra. Modern calculators are more portable than most computers, though most PDAs are comparable in size to hand held calculators.
In the past, mechanical clerical aids such as abaci, comptometers, Napier's bones, books of mathematical tables, slide rules, or mechanical adding machines were used for numeric work. This semi-manual process of calculation was tedious and error-prone.
Modern calculators are electrically powered (usually by battery and/or solar cell) and vary from cheap, give-away, credit-card sized models to sturdy adding machine-like models with built-in printers. They first became popular in the late 1960s as decreasing size and cost of electronics made possible devices for calculations, avoiding the use of scarce and expensive computer resources. By the 1980s, calculator prices had reduced to a point where a basic calculator was affordable to most. By the 1990s they had become common in math classes in schools, with the idea that students could be freed from basic calculations and focus on the concepts.
Computer operating systems as far back as early Unix have included interactive calculator programs such as dc and hoc, and calculator functions are included in almost all PDA-type devices.
BY
R.THEN MOLI
UEFA Cup
The UEFA Cup, which will be renamed the UEFA Europa League in 2009/10, grew out of an idea conceived by Switzerland's Ernst Thommen who, along with Italy's Ottorino Barrasi and England's Sir Stanley Rous, later FIFA President, created a tournament for representative sides from European cities that regularly held trade fairs.
This forerunner to the UEFA Cup, the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, was founded on 18 April 1955, two weeks after the founding of the European Champion Clubs' Cup. The first Fairs Cup involved teams from Barcelona, Basle, Birmingham, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, Lausanne, Leipzig, London, Milan and Zagreb. The original tournament lasted three years, with matches timed to coincide with trade fairs. Barcelona, using players purely from FC Barcelona, beat a London representative side 8-2 on aggregate in the final.
Usain Bolt IPA(born 21 August 1986) is a Jamaican sprinter. Bolt holds the Olympic and world records for the 100 metres at 9.69 seconds, the 200 metres at 19.30 seconds and, along with his teammates, the 4x100 metres relay at 37.10 seconds, all set at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Do you all know that he beat his own record for 100m sprint 9.72 his made in May 2008, record just can hold for 3 month only. He break Michael johnson 12 year record for 200m sprint, what a bolt he has.
for more info just go:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usain_Bolt
Snooker is a cue sport that is played on a large baize-covered table with pockets in each of the four corners and in the middle of each of the long side cushions. A regulation (full-size) table is 12 ft × 6 ft (3.6 m x 1.8 m). It is played using a cue and snooker balls: one white cue ball, 15 red balls worth one point each, and six balls of different colours yellow (2), green (3), brown (4), blue (5), pink (6) and black (7).[1] A player (or team) wins a frame (individual game) of snooker by scoring more points than the opponent(s), using the cue ball to pot the red and coloured balls. A player wins a match when a certain number of frames have been won.
Snooker is particularly popular in many of the English-speaking and Commonwealth countries,[2] and in China,[3][4] with the top professional players attaining multi-million pound career earnings from the game
Scuba diving is swimming underwater, or taking part in another activity, while using a scuba set.[1] By carrying a source of breathing gas (usually compressed air),[2] the scuba diver is able to stay underwater longer than with the simple breath-holding techniques used in snorkeling and free-diving, and is not hindered by air lines to a remote air source. The scuba diver typically swims underwater by using fins attached to the feet. However, some divers also move around with the assistance of a DPV (diver propulsion vehicle), commonly called a "scooter", or by using surface-tethered devices called sleds pulled by a boat
MEMALI INCIDENT
The Memali Incident followed severely strained relationships between UMNO and PAS, the two major Muslim political parties in Malaysia. Some PAS leaders had concluded that UMNO members were apostate. In 1981, Hadi Awang, a senior PAS politician made claims that to resist UMNO and the UMNO led government that does not practice Islamic Hudud law is a Jihad, and that those who died in the struggle are al-shahid. Pursuant to Hadi’s claims, there was a serious rift in the Malay Muslim community. In Besut, Terengganu for example, communities were split to the extent that communal prayers were done separately for UMNO and for PAS congregations.
Ibrahim was a local religious teacher who had received part of his education at the University of Tripoli in Libya, hence his nickname Ibrahim Libya. The police wanted to arrest Ibrahim Mahmud under the Internal Security Act, for creating discord and disharmony, but he refused to give himself up. Ibrahim was also accused of harbouring two brothers Yusof Che Mit and Ramli Che Mit, who were fugitives. Revered by the village folks, who called him Ustaz Ibrahim, they vowed to a man to defend their teacher to the death.
Ibrahim attended Sekolah Rendah Kebangsaan Weng in Baling before furthering his studies in Islamic studies at Sekolah Agama Ittifaqiah, Kg Carok Putih, Weng and later to Pondok Al-Khariah, Pokok Sena, Seberang Perai. Ibrahim Mahmud attended the University of Tripoli in Libya. He had also studied in India and at Al-Azhar University in Cairo.
Upon his return, he worked as a preacher with Pusat Islam. He appeared on television to lectures on topics of Islam. Allegedly, Ibrahim was involved in the 1974 Baling Demonstrations along with Anwar Ibrahim. Ibrahim Mahmud’s politics drifted towards those of PAS. His close association with PAS worried the government of Dr. Mahathir Mohamad. In 1978, Ibrahim contested the elections for the seat of Bayu-Baling as a PAS candidate. Ibrahim polled 5,081 votes as opposed to the Barisan Nasional candidate who polled 6,169 votes. In 1982, Ibrahim again contested for the same seat but lost by 100 votes.
Pusat Islam looked into his teachings and thereafter banned him from lecturing in the media or to give lectures in mosques and suraus throughout the nation. Pusat Islam also started making allegations of 'deviationist acts' against him. Ibrahim was called a fanatic who challenged the integrity of the Government.
Death Toll
The police action left 14 civilians and four policemen dead. The villagers were armed with a few hunting rifles and spears and other rudimentary weapons. The police used heavy vehicles. At the height of the assault some villagers, men and women, came out in the open in a state of frenzy and hysteria. In an announcement in the media, Acting Prime Minister Musa Hitam (Dr. Mahathir Mohamad was away on a visit to China), who was also Home Affairs Minister announced that 14 'criminals' had been killed in Kampung Memali in clashes with security forces.
-CHEERLEADING-
In the early 1980s, cheerleading squads not associated with a schools or sports leagues, whose main objective was competition, began to emerge. The first organization to call themselves all stars and go to competitions were the Q94 Rockers from Richmond, Virginia, founded in 1982 by Hilda McDaniel.[12] All-star teams competing prior to 1987 were place into the same divisions as teams that represented schools and sports leagues. In 1986 National Cheerleaders Association (NCA) decided to address this situation by creating a separate division for these teams lacking a sponsoring school or athletic association, calling it the 'All-Star Division' and debuting it at their 1987 competitions. As the popularity of these types of teams grew, more and more of them were formed, attending competitions sponsored by many different types of organizations and companies, all using their own set of rules, regulations and divisions. This situation became one of the chief concerns of gym owners. These inconsistencies caused coaches to keep their routines in a constant state of flux, detracting from time that should be utilized to develop skills and provide personal attention to their athletes. More importantly, because the various companies were constantly vying for the competitive edge, safety standards had becoming more and more lax. In some cases, unqualified coaches and inexperienced squads are attempting dangerous stunts as a result of these “expanded” sets of rules.
The USASF was formed in 2003 by these various competition companies to act as the national governing body for all star cheerleading and to create a standard set of rules and judging standards to be followed by all competitions sanctioned by the Federation and ultimately leading to the Cheerleading Worlds. The USASF hosted the first Cheerleading Worlds on Saturday, April 24, 2004.At the same time, cheerleading coaches from all over the country organize themselves for the same rule making purpose, calling themselves the National All Star Cheerleading Coaches Congress (NACCC). In 2005, the NACCC was absorbed by the USASF to become their rule making body.By late 2006, the USASF was ready to expand its reach even further, by facilitating the creation of the International All-Star Federation (IASF), the first international governing body for the sport of cheerleading.
Currently all-star cheerleading as sanctioned by the USASF involves a squad of 6-36 females and/or males. The squad prepares year-round for many different competition appearances, but they only actually perform for up to 2½ minutes during their routines. The numbers of competitions a team participates in varies from team to team, but generally, most teams tend to participate in eight-twelve competitions a year. These competitions include locals, which are normally taken place in school gymnasiums, nationals, hosted in big venues all around the U.S. with national champions, and the Cheerleading Worlds, taken place at Disney World in Orlando, Florida. During a competition routine, a squad performs carefully choreographed stunting, tumbling, jumping and dancing to their own custom music. Teams create their routines to an eight-count system and apply that to the music so the team members execute the elements with precise timing and synchronization.
Judges at the competition watch for illegal moves from the group or any individual member. Here, an illegal move is something that is not allowed in that division due to difficulty and safety restrictions. More generally, judges look at the difficulty and execution of jumps, stunts and tumbling, synchronization, creativity, the sharpness of the motions, showmanship, and overall routine execution.
All-star cheerleaders are placed into divisions, which are grouped based upon age, size of the team, gender of participants, and ability level. The age levels vary from under 4 year of age to 18 years and over. The divisions used by the USASF/IASF are currently Tiny, Mini, Youth, Junior, Junior International, Junior Coed, Senior, Senior coed, Open International and Open.
If a team places high enough at selected USASF/IASF sanctioned national competitions, they could be included in the Cheerleading Worlds and compete against teams from all over the world, as well as receive money for placing.
-JAYCELYNE LEMBA JERRY-
-EC08055-
Tennis as the modern sport can be dated to two separate roots. Between 1859 and 1865, Major Harry Gem and his friend Augurio Perera developed a game that combined elements of rackets similar to the game of Poona or Badminton many British soldiers brought from being stationed in India and the Basque ball game pelota, which they played on Perera's croquet lawn in Birmingham, United Kingdom.[2][3] In 1872, along with two local doctors, they founded the world's first tennis club in Leamington Spa.[4] The Courier of 23 July 1884 recorded one of the first tennis tournaments, held in the grounds of Shrubland Hall.[5]
In December 1873, Major Walter Clopton Wingfield designed a similar game — which he called sphairistike (Greek: σφάίρίστική, meaning "skill at playing at ball"), and was soon known simply as "sticky" — for the amusement of his guests at a garden party on his estate of Nantclwyd, in Llanelidan, Wales.[6] He based the game on the newer sport of outdoor tennis or real tennis. According to most tennis historians, modern tennis terminology also derives from this period
The first championships at Wimbledon in London were played in 1877.[7] On 21 May 1881, the United States National Lawn Tennis Association (now the United States Tennis Association) was formed to standardize the rules and organize competitions.[8] The U.S. National Men's Singles Championship, now the US Open, was first held in 1881 at Newport, Rhode Island.[9] The U.S. National Women's Singles Championships were first held in 1887.[10] Tennis was also popular in France, where the French Open dates to 1891.[11] Thus, Wimbledon, the US Open, the French Open, and the Australian Open (dating to 1905) became and have remained the most prestigious events in tennis.[7][12] Together these four events are called the Grand Slam (a term borrowed from bridge).[13]
The comprehensive International Lawn Tennis Federation, now known as the International Tennis Federation, rules promulgated in 1924 have remained remarkably stable in the ensuing eighty years, the one major change being the addition of the tiebreaker system designed by James Van Alen.[14]
The Davis Cup, an annual competition between national teams, dates to 1900.[15]
In 1926, promoter C.C. Pyle established the first professional tennis tour with a group of American and French tennis players playing exhibition matches to paying audiences.[12][16] The most notable of these early professionals were the American Vinnie Richards and the Frenchwoman Suzanne Lenglen.[12][17] Once a player turned pro he or she could not compete in the major (amateur) tournaments.[12]
In 1968, commercial pressures and rumors of some amateurs taking money under the table led to the abandonment of this distinction, inaugurating the open era, in which all players could compete in all tournaments, and top players were able to make their living from tennis.[18] With the beginning of the open era, the establishment of an international professional tennis circuit, and revenues from the sale of television rights, tennis's popularity has spread worldwide, and the sport has shed its upper/middle-class English-speaking image[19] (although it is acknowledged that this stereotype still exists).[19][20][21]
In 1954, Van Alen founded the International Tennis Hall of Fame, a non-profit museum in Newport, Rhode Island.[22] The building contains a large collection of tennis memorabilia as well as a hall of fame honoring prominent members and tennis players from all over the world. Each year, a grass-court tournament and an induction ceremony honoring new Hall of Fame members are hosted on its grounds.
One terminal of a cell or battery is positive, while the other is negative. It is convenient to think of current as flowing from positive to negative. This is called conventional current. Current arrows in circuit diagrams always point in the conventional direction. However, you should be aware that this is the direction of flow for a positively-charged particle.In a copper wire, the charge carriers are electrons. Electrons are negatively-charged and therefore flow from negative to positive. This means that electron flow is opposite in direction to conventional current.Current flow in electronic systems often involves charge carriers of both types. For example, in transistors, current can be carried by electrons and also by holes, which behave as positive charge carriers.When the behaviour of a circuit is analysed, what matters is the amount of charge which is being transferred. The effect of the current can be accurately predicted without knowing about whether the charge carriers are positively or negatively charged.A cell provides a steady voltage, so that current flow is always in the same direction. This is called direct current, or d.c. In contrast, the domestic mains provides a constantly changing voltage which reverses in polarity 50 times every second. This gives rise to alternating current, or a.c., in which the charge carriers move backwards and forwards in the circuit.
One terminal of a cell or battery is positive, while the other is negative. It is convenient to think of current as flowing from positive to negative. This is called conventional current. Current arrows in circuit diagrams always point in the conventional direction. However, you should be aware that this is the direction of flow for a positively-charged particle.In a copper wire, the charge carriers are electrons. Electrons are negatively-charged and therefore flow from negative to positive. This means that electron flow is opposite in direction to conventional current.Current flow in electronic systems often involves charge carriers of both types. For example, in transistors, current can be carried by electrons and also by holes, which behave as positive charge carriers.When the behaviour of a circuit is analysed, what matters is the amount of charge which is being transferred. The effect of the current can be accurately predicted without knowing about whether the charge carriers are positively or negatively charged.A cell provides a steady voltage, so that current flow is always in the same direction. This is called direct current, or d.c. In contrast, the domestic mains provides a constantly changing voltage which reverses in polarity 50 times every second. This gives rise to alternating current, or a.c., in which the charge carriers move backwards and forwards in the circuit.
-adha-
-ec 08080-
-e06-
The PlayStation 3 (officially marketed PLAYSTATION 3,[5] commonly abbreviated PS3) is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment, and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii, as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles.
A major feature that distinguishes the PlayStation 3 from its predecessors is its unified online gaming service, the PlayStation Network,[6] which contrasts with Sony's former policy of relying on game developers for online play.[7] Other major features of the console include its robust multimedia capabilities,[8] connectivity with the PlayStation Portable,[9] and its use of a high-definition optical disc format, Blu-ray Disc, as its primary storage medium.[10] The PS3 was also the first Blu-ray 2.0-compliant Blu-ray player on the market.[11]
The PlayStation 3 was first released on November 11, 2006 in Japan,[12] November 17, 2006 in North America,[13] and March 23, 2007 in Europe and Oceania.[14][15] Two SKUs were available at launch: a basic model with a 20 GB hard drive (HDD), and a premium model with a 60 GB hard drive, and several additional features[16] (the 20 GB model was not released in Europe or Oceania).[17] Since then, several revisions have been made to the console's available models and it has faced competition from the other seventh generation consoles.[18] As of July 17, 2008, the PS3 is in third place in US home console sales for its generation.[19]
-adha-
-ec 08080-
-e06-
assalamualaikum..
BADMINTON.
Badminton is a racquet sport played by either two opposing players (singles) or two opposing pairs (doubles), who take positions on opposite halves of a rectangular court that is divided by a net. Players score points by striking a shuttlecock with their racquet so that it passes over the net and lands in their opponents' half of the court. A rally ends once the shuttlecock has struck the ground, and the shuttlecock may only be struck once by each side before it passes over the net.
The shuttlecock (or shuttle) is a feathered projectile whose unique aerodynamic properties cause it to fly differently from the balls used in most racquet sports; in particular, the feathers create much higher drag, causing the shuttlecock to decelerate more rapidly than a ball. Shuttlecocks have a much higher top speed, when compared to other racquet sports. Because shuttlecock flight is stubbornly affected by wind, competitive badminton is always played indoors. Badminton is also played outdoors as a casual recreational activity, often as a garden or beach game.
Since 1992, badminton has been an Olympic sport with five events: men's and women's singles, men's and women's doubles, and mixed doubles, in which each pair is a man and a woman. At high levels of play, the sport demands excellent fitness: players require aerobic stamina, agility, strength, speed, and precision. It is also a technical sport, requiring good motor coordination and the development of sophisticated racquet movements.
assalamualaikum..
celebration day of fasting.
Usually on the eve of the celebrations, family members, especially mothers and housewives, will be busy preparing food, cakes, sweets, biscuits and various delicacies to be served on the day of Hari Raya. Delicacies such as ketupat or rice cake and a meat cuisine called rendang are among the most famous cuisines that are served during this day. Other family members will help in other chores such as decorating and cleaning up the house.
Days before Hari Raya, house compounds, particularly those in the countryside will be lit up with oil lamps known as pelita or panjut. This display of oil lamps will reach its height on the 27th night of Ramadan, called the Tujuh Likur night. 'Likur' literally meaning a figure between 20 and 30, hence 'tujuh likur' means twenty seven. Originally during the early days of the arrival of Islam among the Malays, the purpose of lighting the oil lamps was to attract spirit of passed relatives and angels to descend to people's homes during the night of Lailatulqadar. However after ages has passed, such misconception is regarded counterfactual as much understanding of Islam were obtained. Nowadays the oil lamps are lit solely for decorative purposes.
It is customary for Malays to wear traditional Malay costumes. The dress for men is called baju Melayu while the women's are known as baju kurung and baju kebaya. Traditional textiles such as songket and batik are worn favourably during this day.
Muslims will attend Eid prayer in the morning and consecrate together harmoniously while taking the chance to meet and greet each other. Once the prayer is done, it is also common for Muslims in Malaysia to visit the grave of their loved ones. During this visit, they will clean the grave, perform the recital of the Yasin — a chapter (surah) from the Qur'an and also the tahlil or prayers for the deceased. All these are done in hope that their loved ones are blessed by God and they are spared from the punishment in the grave.
The rest of the day is spent visiting relatives or serving visitors. Hari Raya is a very joyous day for children for this is the day where adults are extra generous. Children will be given token sums of money, also known as duit raya from their parents and elders.
During the night, there are often celebrations with sparklers and firecrackers, albeit restrictions on playing firecrackers enforced by the authorities. Most firecracker stocks are purchased and smuggled illegally from black markets. Safety issues, especially among children are raised and alarming cases relating to injuries caused by playing firecrackers are often reported, which initially led to the banning of playing firecrackers. Despite of the enforcement of banning firecrackers, more Malay children turn to home-made firecrackers such as meriam buluh (bamboo cannon) as alternatives to commercial fireworks. Usually the lighting of firecrackers begins a few days before the end of Ramadan, and continues for about a week afterwards.
hello everybody..
i want to talk about materialistic.Do you know about it?Actually,materialistic describes a person who is markedly more concerned with material things than with spiritual, intellectual, or cultural values.Nowadays, some of people like that.Malaysians are only interested in making money. Unfortunately, we are a very materialistic people. Perhaps, this is a remnant of the culture that was brought in by the Chinese and Indians who came here primarily to make money. Gradually over the years, the Malays, too, have changed their outlook on life by learning from them.Thats all.
Our existing history books have wrong information about so many things -- blaming the British for everything -- but never looking at our own faults.
A stunt performer is someone who performs dangerous stunts, such as jumping from buildings and being launched out of cannons while mounted on flaming BMX mountain bikes over a pit of gasoline-soaked bears, and through a hoop constructed out of cans of Mountain Dew and chainsaws, often as a career. These stunts are sometimes rigged so that they look dangerous while still having safety mechanisms, but often they are as dangerous as they appear to be. There is an inherent risk in the performance of all stunt work in film, television and stage work. Daredevil performers are distinct from stunt performers and stunt doubles, as they perform their stunts purely for the sake of the stunt itself, often before an audience for their entertainment and personal monetary gain for the event, while a stunt performer, or stunt double typically performs stunts intended for use in a motion pictures or dramatized television (although one person could certainly be both, as was the case with Harry Houdini, Jackie Chan, Christian Bale, Tony Jaa, Chuck Norris, and Nick Lowe among others). Stunt performers and stunt doubles are generally skilled at performing physical action in character for film and television.
Ecstacy pills.
How is it used?
Taken in pill form, users sometimes take Ecstasy at "raves," clubs and other parties to keep on dancing and for mood enhancement.
What are its short-term effects?
Users report that Ecstasy produces intensely pleasurable effects – including an enhanced sense of self-confidence and energy. Effects include feelings of peacefulness, acceptance and empathy. Users say they experience feelings of closeness with others and a desire to touch others. Other effects can include involuntary teeth clenching, a loss of inhibitions, transfixion on sights and sounds, nausea, blurred vision, chills and/or sweating. Increases in heart rate and blood pressure, as well as seizures, are also possible. The stimulant effects of the drug enable users to dance for extended periods, which when combined with the hot crowded conditions usually found at raves, can lead to severe dehydration and hyperthermia or dramatic increases in body temperature. This can lead to muscle breakdown and kidney, liver and cardiovascular failure. Cardiovascular failure has been reported in some of the Ecstasy-related fatalities.
After-effects can include sleep problems, anxiety and depression.
What are its long-term effects?
Repeated use of Ecstasy ultimately may damage the cells that produce serotonin, which has an important role in the regulation of mood, appetite, pain, learning and memory. There already is research suggesting Ecstasy use can disrupt or interfere with memory.
NBA’s legendary person… Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan's basketball talent was clear from his rookie season. In his first game in Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks, Jordan received a prolonged standing ovation, a rarity for an opposing player. After Jordan scored a playoff record 63 points against the Boston Celtics in 1986, Celtics star Larry Bird described him as "God disguised as Michael Jordan."
Jordan led the NBA in scoring in 10 seasons (NBA record) and tied Wilt Chamberlain's record of seven consecutive scoring titles. He was also a fixture on the NBA All-Defensive First Team, making the roster nine times (NBA record). Jordan also holds the top career and playoff scoring averages of 30.1 and 33.4 points per game, respectively. By 1998, the season of his Finals-winning shot against the Jazz, he was well known throughout the league as a clutch performer. In the regular season, Jordan was the Bulls' primary threat in the final seconds of a close game and in the playoffs, Jordan would always demand the ball at crunch time. Jordan's total of 5,987 points in the playoffs is the highest in NBA history. He retired with 32,292 points, placing him third on the NBA's all-time scoring list behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone.
With five regular-season MVPs, six Finals MVPs (NBA record), and three All-Star MVPs, Jordan is the most decorated player ever to play in the NBA. Jordan finished among the top three in regular-season MVP voting a record 10 times, and was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History in 1996.
Many of Jordan's contemporaries label Jordan as the greatest basketball player of all time. An ESPN survey of journalists, athletes and other sports figures ranked Jordan the greatest North American athlete of the 20th century, above icons such as Babe Ruth and Muhammad Ali. Jordan placed second to Babe Ruth in the Associated Press's list of 20th century athletes. In addition, the Associated Press voted him as the basketball player of the 20th century. Jordan has also appeared on the front cover of Sports Illustrated a record 49 times. In the September 1996 issue of Sport, which was the publication's 50th anniversary issue, Jordan was named the greatest athlete of the past 50 years
Jordan's athletic leaping ability, highlighted in his back-to-back slam dunk contest championships in 1987 and 1988, is credited by many with having influenced a generation of young players. Several current NBA All-Stars have stated that they considered Jordan their role model while growing up, including LeBron Jamesand Dwyane Wade. In addition, commentators have dubbed a number of next-generation players "the next Michael Jordan" upon their entry to the NBA, including Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway, Grant Hill, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Vince Carter, and Dwyane Wade. Although Jordan was a well-rounded player, his "Air Jordan" image is also often credited with inadvertently decreasing the jump shooting skills, defense, and fundamentals of young players, a fact which Jordan himself has lamented.
Although Jordan has done much to increase the status of the game, some of his impact on the game's popularity in America appears to be fleeting. Television ratings in particular increased only during his time in the league and have subsequently lowered each time he left the game.
by chio thiam wei
The iPod Touch
The iPod Touch (trademarked and marketed as the iPod touch and sometimes colloquially referred to as the iTouch) is a portable media player and Wi-Fi mobile platform designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The product was launched on September 5, 2007 through an event called The Beat Goes On. The iPod Touch adds the Multi-Touch graphical user interface to the iPod line and is available with 8, 16, or 32 GB of flash memory. It includes Apple's Safari web browser and is the first iPod with wireless access to the iTunes Store. With a software update, which is sold by Apple, it also has access to Apple's App Store. The second generation iPod Touch, featuring external volume controls, an external speaker, a contoured back and built-in Nike+ support, was unveiled on September 9, 2008 at the Let's Rock keynote presentation.
The iPod Touch has the iPhone's multi-touch interface, with a physical home button off the touch screen. The home screen has a list of buttons for the available applications. All iPod Touch models have included the applications Music, Videos, and Photos as collectively duplicating the standard functions of the iPod classic, iTunes are providing access to the Wi-Fi Music Store, Safari, YouTube, Calendar, Contacts, Clock, Calculator, and Settings. Later models added Mail (accessing POP/IMAP/SMTP e-mail), Maps, Stocks, Notes, and Weather,[6] which could also be added to the earlier models with the purchase of a software upgrade. Direct links to web sites can be added to the home screen by the user.
New applications including a VPN client, scientific calculator and access to third party applications were released for an upgrade fee.
by, chio thiam wei
PSP Slim & Lite
PSP Slim & Lite as it is known in the PAL territoriesis the current model of the PlayStation Portable handheld game console released and manufactured by Sony Computer Entertainment. At E3 2007, Sony released information about a slimmer and lighter version of the PlayStation Portable. The new PSP is 33% lighter (reduced to 189 grams [6.66 ounces] from 280 grams [9.87 ounces]) and 22% slimmer (reduced to 18mm from 23mm) than the original PSP system. The model numbers have changed to PSP-2000, following the previous region-based numbering scheme (cf. the PSP-1000 numbering scheme of the "old" PSP model).
It was released on September 5, 2007 in Europe, on September 6, 2007 in North America, September 7, 2007 in South Korea and September 12, 2007 in Australia.
The PSP Slim & Lite offers a 22% slimmer and 33% lighter system than the original PSP system. Internal changes to achieve this include the removal of a metal chassis (used to reduce damage in the event of sudden trauma to the system resulting from the user dropping the system on a hard surface), improved WLAN modules and Micro-controller, and a thinner and much brighter LCD.
The PSP Slim & Lite offers several other tweaks and improvements from the older generation. To target the original PSP generation's poor load times for UMD games, the internal memory (RAM and Flash ROM) was doubled from 32 MB to 64 MB, which also improved the web browser's performance.
Sony has added a TV output for the PSP Slim available through Firmware 3.60. The PSP can output in a conventional aspect ratio (4:3), and widescreen (16:9). It also offers a screensaver if the PSP is inactive for a set amount of time. It is able to output games, videos, and other media. To achieve TV output on the Slim model, Composite, S-Video, Component and D-Terminal cables are sold separately by Sony. Games are output as a progressive scan signal, which can only be carried by the component video and D-Terminal cables, and can only be displayed on a television which supports progressive scan. Although the user needs Component cables and a TV that supports 480p (mainly found in HDTVs), a homebrew plugin called "FuSa" allows anyone with a Slim PSP to view their games on any SDTV or HDTV using Composite or Component cables. It's also advantageous to those with TVs that do support 480p because it allows a full screen (1:1 ratio) viewing of games. The maximum resolution through TV output is 720x480 pixels, and composite video uses NTSC color encoding (no PAL composite signal is available, although it works on a NTSC compatible TV in Europe). The old Playstation Portable (PSP-1000) is not capable of this feature due to a slightly different port. As a result, original PSP accessories (using the connector) will not work with the Slim and the Slim's accessories will not work with the original PSP. Sony has released a new version of the remote control accessory designed for the Slim as a result. The PSP Slim can still use 3.5mm headphones, like the old PlayStation Portable.
Sony confirmed their GPS Accessory for the United States at Sony CES 2008. The GPS is to be retailed for the new Slim PSP models. It will feature maps on a UMD, and offer driving directions and city guides.
by chio thiam wei
I MISS MY DADDY
So many promises you gave to me.
So many left and now will never be.
We where going to go fishing but that was a lie.
You said that you will never leave yet here I am saying goodbye.
There is so much you left undone.
So many battles you left un-won.
But I am wondering if I am a bad person for blaming you.
For you leaveing and making sis want to join you.
For forcing me to become a man thou I was only nine.
For giving reasons for people to give fake smiles while faults they find.
For making me grow up to be all by myself.
Watch mom grow weak and decline in her health.
And I still remember mom and sis crying each and every night.
There screams through the walls while tears I tried to fight.
The mornings mom would walk by but only a shell.
The words of comfort she gave which always felt stale.
Days and days of me sitting crying and feeling so sad.
Pleading to God to please just send me back my dad.
The horror inside knowing that I was all alone.
Knowing in this world I had no place called home.
But that was twenty years and three days ago.
Yet whenever I think of you my soul sink so low.
So I came by to tell you that my daughter has just turned four.
And when I think of you I don't cry as much anymore.
So I want to apologize for blaming you in each and every one of my breaths.
Although I knew good and well that you could not control meeting your death.
SECRETS OF THE HEART
Harsh words & violent blows
Hidden secrets nobody knows
Eyes are open, hands are fisted
Deep inside I'm warped & twisted
So many tricks & so many lies
Too many whens & too many whys
Nobody's special, nobody's gifted
I'm just me, warped & twisted
Sleeping awake & choking on a dream
Listening loudly to a silent scream
Call my mind, the number's unlisted
Lost in someone so warped & twisted
On my knees, alive but dead
Look at the invisible blood I've bled
I'm not gone, my mind has drifted
Don't expect much, I'm warped & twisted
Burnt out, wasted, empty, & hollow
Today's just yesterday's tomorrow
The sun died out, the ashes sifted
I'm still here, warped & twisted
HAPPY NOTHINGNESS
True love is not suppose to feel this way.
Making you want to go, while you want to stay.
Having your heart tear in two, but still be complete.
How he could say horrible thing's yet be your hero in the rain and sleet.
Just two words from him can make me cry weeks on end.
But just as easily make me feel like his angel again.
I know real love I see it everyday when my mom smiles.
While my dad not once, has he ever my mom reviled.
Even without that, everything seems to send you in a rage.
And with your anger you seem to throw my love in a cage.
So goodbye to your smile, and your love I will miss.
For I much rather live with happy nothingness.
I WATCHED THE WORLD DIE TO WINTER
I watched the child play in the fall leaves.
So frail so young so very very naive
Does he not know what color is blood?
As he frolics ignorant that each was a bud
I watched the world die to winter
As the oaks and willow rot and splinter
They give a last cry a final memorial
Warning all those who be arboreal
But we do not fret for we know our world
We have faith that a new year will yet unfurl
Or so we hope as time will only tell
If it be born anew or become fell
So next time you bathe in death as a romance
Pray that this may not be the final dance
For the world seems to hinge on but a chance
As the chilling cold continues to advance
MONDAY MORNING
The train rocked on its rails, a sleepy sway like a weary drunken sailor, lolling its way down the tracks in no particular hurry to reach its destination. Which suited me just fine; I longed for the blissful Maw of Morpheus, having been deprived of all but a scant four hours of slumber the night before, and the gentle cradle-swing motion helped me drift between the living and the spectral world of dreams.
As my head knocked against the car's dense window and my back screamed for a more comfortable position, I waded through foggy awareness and bordered the realm of hypnogogia. The passengers seemed as sleepy and quiet as I, and voices never penetrated the gloom of my peaceful isolation. Occasionally, the conductor whisked through seeking fares and clacked his rapid-fire hole-punch through someone's ticket. He passed as a phantom below me and banged through the separator doors of the car. Some time before the train reached port I roused from my semi-slumber enough to stand, shoulder my pack and disembark.
What happened next, I don't know. I didn't notice an especially jostling or large crowd. I didn't see any extraordinary density of humanity on the platform. But when the door slid open to allow the bustle of humanity to spill from the cavernous train bank into the station, pandemonium ensued.
A whitewater river of people crossed paths through the train station, crashing like a fast-moving estuary, some headed for one exit, some across their paths toward escalators to another. Neither band of traffic was willing to yield to the other, for yielding meant doom -- given the weakness of courtesy the denizens of trainville plowed ahead one after the other until the one showing courtesy must abandon all civility and charge ahead or never reach their destination. The seeming endless swath of humanity pouring as a dam gate from my left and the one of which I was a part collided in the confines of the hall like two spiral galaxies merging in space. Destruction, chaos, eruptions of matter and energy on massive, incomprehensible scales.
Hesitance cost several dearly. They got shoved aside, cut off, nudged with prejudice right and left. I lowered my head, my body still asleep, my mind refusing to accept its predicament. I plodded ahead at the same speed, ignoring the bumper-car pinballing as my shoulders swatted left, right, torquing my body side to side, tipping me forward or pushing me back. I dipped my shoulders and held my elbows tight to my sides, hands tucked into pockets, and pressed on. It was like trying to drag a side of beef through a pack of ravenous wolves. Snarling, frothing muzzles bared and snapped, icteric canines dripping spit.
Ah, good morning.
I passed through the current of human debris and emerged into a less crowded corridor. Impatient commuters huffed angry sounds of agitation as they stomped around an elderly woman frantically pushing a squeaking, squealing walker ahead of her, tiny sounds of fear drifting from her toothless mouth, eyes panicked and desperate. A blind man tapped a vicious warning tattoo on the stone floor, swung his long, supple white cane to and fro at the feet of the oncoming army of drones, clearing his path with vindictive deliberation. Groggy, I yawned and rode the escalator to the street above, and came out into the crisp snap of cool morning air. The clammy slap of slipstream as the doors parted to the outside woke me a little, circulated my blood and reminded me of standing on the deck of a ferry crossing the San Francisco bay, though the smell of salt mist and brine was replaced with exhaust fumes and wet asphalt. Taxis immersed in dirty brown water nearly halfway up their tires stood alongside the curb in a miniature lake. The tiny ocean stretched from corner to corner along the front of the buzzing hive of the train station, and I perched a brow in curiosity at what caused the deluge. I lost interest a second later.
The manic press of people on the street struck me as unusual. It's Monday, and Mondays are slower, less populace than other days. I always assumed masses took Mondays off from work, either by hooky or by request, to recover from weekends spent indulging in the great pastime of The Big City: drinking. Today, not so. The hoard of suit-clad, heel-clicking automatons rushed along the streets. I stepped aside at the tramp of running high heels, and a petite woman threaded through commuters and slalomed to the corner, thwarted by the streetlight. I waded into the mob behind her a moment later, her dance of anticipation and frenetic toe-tap wearing on my nerves. At last the light changed and she bolted like a thoroughbred racehorse through a starting gate, click-clacking away down the cobbled and pitted concrete sidewalk.
Everywhere as I strode, determined to neither rush nor tarry, there seemed an extra urgency, an added sense of worry and agitation. Everyone seemed to move faster, to push harder to reach their unknown points of arrival. Their journeys stopped intersecting mine at last when I found a gap between clots of them. For some reason, despite being stalled at another streetlight for a few minutes, none of them overtook me on their way in my direction, and I never caught up to those ahead of me. I never do. I never want to, truth be told. I walked in solitude with an unobtrusive companion of breeze chilling my face and reminding me of a place I've not seen in years.
When I got to work I waddled into the sundry store for my coffee and water, and found I too lacked the patience to wait for the store attendant woman who annoys me day-in, day-out with her propensity to leave me standing at the counter while she finishes whatever menial task she's tending, unmindful of my need to keep working or get to work so she can be paid. Today another attendant minded the counter while she tagged refrigerated beverages on condensation-covered plastic bottles. She sang her good morning and I returned it with a smile, then reached around her body and opened a refrigerator case's sliding door, forcing her to extract her hands from the other side of the cabinet or have them smashed by the double-doors. She was trying to ask me to wait, but I was sick of waiting for her, sick of her cavalier attitude with the time of others, sick of her self-important demeanor and attempts to make executives and officers of the company kowtow to her. She had to ask me to let her re-tag the bottle in my hand, the prices were changing she said, and I paused my motion long enough for her to swipe her price tag gun over the old sticker. The new one was twelve cents more. I grabbed my coffee, and went out.
As I write this, I have no idea what was special about this morning, why the normal quiet of a Monday collapsed to a frenzied crush of hurried, harried attitudes and running commuters. I have no idea why the idyllic slumber of the train was shattered by the cacophony of the train station's bustle, or why I was irritated with the sundry store woman and her price gun.
All I know is this week dawned dark and brooding, a rousing beast within a dank and murky cave, baleful eyes glowing red and angry, wet nostrils spewing acrid, moist smoke. I hear scales clattering and talons scratch on the floor.
Or maybe I'm just sleepy and it's all my imagination. Whichever.
NEITHER BORROWER NOR LENDER BE
I sat there smoking, watched my cigarette scream in agony with each gulping drag I pulled from it, then listened to it pop and sizzle and beg for mercy before ashing over to droop at the end of my fingers. Nothing special on my mind, really. It was the last dregs of my weekend, which means the anticipation of what the following workweek brings squatted in my frontal lobes like a cannibal in front of a spit fire.
It'd been a pretty good weekend to that point. Lots of time with the family, not so much time with the computer, didn't have to watch the tattered remnants of the Patriots play, and broke out of our diet in a major, caloric-orgy way. For me, that means burgers - with the bun, thankyouverymuch - with a real, honest-to-fructose Coke, beer, crackers, and of course, something chocolatey and cakey ... like a chocolate cake, for example.
I knew I'd tossed weeks and weeks of work out the window, and stared down the barrel of no less than two more weeks of hard, stringent dieting to get back into the hormonal cycle for weight loss, but it was worth it. The decadence, the hours of gorging, the euphoric release of endorphins ... yeah, worth it. I smiled and hit the cigarette again, all the while thinking I need to quit this habit before it kills me for the umpteenth time.
The tiny voice drifted through the door over the wheezing exhaust fan, and drew a smile from me.
"Daddy?" My three-year-old daughter's voice, sweet, melodic, dripping sugar and love. She must want something.
"Yes, love?" I said, pushing as much of the joy and emotion in my heart out through my throat as I could. My love for my kids overwhelms me a lot, and when I speak to them - that is, when I'm not yelling at them to, ironically, be quiet or settle down - I try to convey that in word and in tone.
"Daddy, can I borrow your cake?"
I stopped, weighed the implications.
"Know what, honey? You can have the cake. Go ‘head and keep it. Daddy's not going to want it back when you're finished with it."
THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS AS THEY APPEAR
"That's him! He's number thirteen on his football team. I swear, I remember from the photos," my sister said. I went back to the facebook page to view his photos. Sure enough, we found the same picture with the number thirteen jersey.
"We've got him," I said giving my sister a high five. "His real name is EJ. We should message him," I said.
"Yeah, but that's creepy and how do you say it? Someone stole your pictures off your facebook and is pretending to be you under a different name. Like it'll be creepy," she said.
"If someone was pretending to be you to try to hit on girls, wouldn't you want to know about it?" I asked her.
"Well, ya. But how do we explain it?" she asked. She started typing something and erased it and typed something again. She erased that draft too.
"Here, I'll do it. Just make it plain and simple at first. I started typing to him the basics of what happened:
Hey! I'm sorry to bother you and I know that I don't know you, but I think that someone is using your photos to pretend to be someone else. One of my friends was "going out" with him, but something about him wasn't right. He's using the name Robert Ashton Cowen if you want to look him up.
She looked it over before finally submitting it. "Now for the hard part. We have to tell Emily," I said.
"I can't tell Emily," she told me. "Maybe this kid will write something on his wall and be like that's not really you that's me or something. Besides she just "broke up" with him."
"Maybe, but still we don't know who he is. He could be a sketchy fifty year old guy. We know that he's lying to her, no matter who he is," I said.
"Not now though, let the EJ kid respond," she said.
"But you knew something was wrong. You knew that he was fake since everyone he talked about had the same names as people from the O.C. and it was just too much of a coincidence that he happened to live in California," I said. Her cell phone rang and I picked it up. It was Kerrianne.
"Hey," I said.
"Amanda! What's up? Why did Kathleen call?" she asked.
"It's a long story, but Emily's ex-boyfriend isn't real," I said.
"What? How did you figure that out?" she asked.
"Well Kathleen thought it was weird that all his "brothers" and stuff were character's names from the O.C. So I told her that I could prove that he was fake. I went through his pictures and saw that the school name was on his football jersey and a town name was on a baseball jersey. I googled the two of them and they both came out as being in the middle of nowhere Indiana. So whoever he was, he really wasn't from California. So I searched facebook for groups from the kid's school and I found one for the football team. Kathleen helped me identify him and the boy from the picture's name is EJ," I said.
"Do you know who the real Robert is?" she asked.
"I have a theory, but it's nothing I could really prove. There's only one kid who claims to know Robert and his network shows that he goes to the school in Indiana, not California. And he's facebook friends with EJ so he would have access to all his pictures," I said.
"It's scary. It could be anybody really," she said. Kathleen was motioning for me to hand her over the phone.
"Here Kathleen wants to talk to you," I said handing the phone to my sister. I left the room part of me feeling like a stalker the other part feeling happy that we had figured it out. Maybe I wasn't going to make such a bad journalist after all.
BEING A MAN
The bus steals a his sense of smell daily and rewards him with warmth in all four seasons except summer. This time he would have wished to close his eyes and concentrate less to the other commuters conjuring skills so he hesitates and looks out of the window. The school children makes it so unpleasant especially when perspiration looms so intermittently. Heidi defies all the invites to welcoming seats and goes straight to sit next to the orchestra of engine hums and six lead musicals all blending lugubriously to Antoine. He jostles most awkward to create a friendly boundary for a most welcome neighbour.
Heidi is an expert in torture at these delicate times of the morning. This ritual saves the dire job of securing bustling bureaucrat daily in this pointless building of pain. It pays to slouch and gawp at the monitor on a four hourly basis with occasional cigarette or lunch. There had been several warnings about punctual habits of a tired individual toiling for a measly funds guest appearing in a bank account for the overcharge scrammble of the carcass! There seems rewards that only souls and sweat glands know about and Heidi not only saved the first time buy-to-let landlord his wild empire but those time wasting unimportant insecure philistines the pain of uncertainty.
‘Oh no...I will lose my job!'
‘Traffic eases just before I get off...I mean I ..am security...!'
‘The roadworks...when will they...I am heidi by the way...'
‘I know you...Remember..I have to get off...'
‘Nice to see you!'
A few gender stereotypes darted from the direction of the engine choir members and Antoine's words got the weaker part of that transmission. It was so awful for a talking mans man to be rid of words in a vital part of meeting. The office meerkats always stressed the essence of composure at presentations and this could well be the ramification of his position in success food chain. Thrusting big vein infested arms in the tight fitted blue uniform for checkin in pass and wallet he became a dog going in circles till finally yielded to the possibility. Manually doing things in this wonderful cohesive world led to suppressed protests from inferior superiors but none would face this bulky gentle mastiff so hints of sarcasm got sporadically used.
The day couldn't have gone faster with the help of a yearning fellow darting between drones to a bus stop like a stunt man with a mission. The bus lane seemed morose and the usually upbeat enviroment sluggish nature impeded Antoines comprehension. Suddenly, a jingle from the media shop attracted his attention to the evening news and the victim of an earlier crash. It was a female and it was not clear how it happened. The reporters constant interuption and the jittery camera man would have excited anybody. Antoine wondered why they got the job or anybody who wouldn't do things the right way were so gifted. Fools, fools, lucky fools that get away with luck!
There was an image, a familiar adhesive interpretation that had magnetic powers and was solely responsible to the unusual sprint. A big man majestically moves in a chess game of life or in times when hastily approachin mature settling down age, one needed a success appealing composure. Not that eager behaviour that lets opportunities pass and let those imbeciles have more peace of mind at waste shop. That was an image of Heidi and the possibilities arrived like happy hour. Sorrows and a pound for the bus journey. This time her smell blended with the rain drop smudged window images that Antoine saw. A typical unwanted music by the latest whining pop star screeched on a nearby car turned the gates even further.
The doors of the bus hissed open, he turned left to a neon colour direction with a twenty four hour drink sign aggressively flashing it could have as well been slitting excess holes for alcohol consumption. The usual offers on drinks in the brightest colour cards next to a harmonic freezer that had befriended Antoine. Like a mother wistfully giving up her loved ones for abortion he perched the drinks in his armpit four beer cans in each wing. The pleasantries and payment on the tab he rustled past feeling nothing.
At the traffic light light footsteps kept up pace, then a loving hug from behind accompanied by the familiar perfume. A sweet eager lady that had known this French man for the best part of two years. She got him that job he hated and gave him that heart he loved but on this night she would fail because he just found out how to keep a secret. Secrets and simple men made this sweet lady mad. She walked briskly and muttered something about persistent drink or lack of vision.
Passing the theatre of emotions Antoine stopped and looked around the corner as if to expect a long lost lover, but she had gone for the last twelve minutes. Now a familiar oily smell aromatic with lemon zest and hints of ginger. A slight laughter darting in and out of relief smothered with a good old fashioned no nonsense smile, Heidi had just arrived. Clangs of beer cans followed by a hug and dry tears. It was not embarrassing but thoroughly awkward. She explained as she handed the bellongings. She also metioned the arrival of her sweet boyfriend who had with him a bunch of roses. The misunderstanding had been a local affair and for an attractive lady it was not so shocking the cascading effect. He had thanked Antoineand mentioned clearing a tab after he had been following since the news broke. He had travelled up and down searching till finally caught up. A playful kiss on the robust cheeks of a mellow grizzly bear soothed the forthcoming embarrassment.
‘Go home to her...she is a lucky lady and thank you!'
The beer cans and footsteps in coherent rapport obvious feelings of love that seemed like a routine in a relationship emerged. The pace quickened. Why had he been victim to unnecessary pace only prone to disorganised folk that plateaued in that role he so much loathed. Why was the door open and the lights on? How long was he at the scene? Why was there a farmilia automobile with a broken woman in it?
Why was the good woman gone? Oh well, sports never leaves a man especially when eager beer cans glisten seductive sweat that runs cold as if slipping and there was eight enough to kick start the thinking process of the day to follow. It doesn't matter how lessons or however long it takes the most important thing is that mistakes are not repeated. Antoine chose to watch sports and worry about a new route to work and the prospect of a new career, afterall that's what men did. Fifth beer on empty stomach makes decisions so easy. It was just to be empty cans and a fumble with the alarm clock. He lingered towards the dresser, cracked a smile when he found all the photos had gone. This was easier than he thought. More focus on employment and heavy sediment of drink. He cluttered once more and passed out.
THIS WORLD OF OURS
What kind of world is this
This world I call my own
Were even a young child
Is afraid of going home
A world in which a man
Will take innocence from a child
Now their lives are lived in fear
The memories going wild
What kind of world is this
This world I call my own
Where you'll only be accepted
If your a freaking clone
A world so full of crap
A world so full of lies
Can you spot the liars?
Can you see it in their eyes?
A world where self expression
Is pushed and made to fall
Despised and destroyed
To boost the egos of them all
A world where daddys hit
A world where mommys scream
Both killing their children
Killing their hopes killing their dreams
A world that makes you crazy
But does that make you insane?
A world thats without morals
A world thats without shame
A world that seems so dark
A world that seems so cold
A world that kills the young
A world that scars the old
A world that kills our hopes
Shoots them out of the sky
A world that kills us all
And makes us want to die.
Tennis as the modern sport can be dated to two separate roots. Between 1859 and 1865, Major Harry Gem and his friend Augurio Perera developed a game that combined elements of rackets similar to the game of Poona or Badminton many British soldiers brought from being stationed in India and the Basque ball game pelota, which they played on Perera's croquet lawn in Birmingham, United Kingdom.[2][3] In 1872, along with two local doctors, they founded the world's first tennis club in Leamington Spa.[4] The Courier of 23 July 1884 recorded one of the first tennis tournaments, held in the grounds of Shrubland Hall.[5]
In December 1873, Major Walter Clopton Wingfield designed a similar game — which he called sphairistike (Greek: σφάίρίστική, meaning "skill at playing at ball"), and was soon known simply as "sticky" — for the amusement of his guests at a garden party on his estate of Nantclwyd, in Llanelidan, Wales.[6] He based the game on the newer sport of outdoor tennis or real tennis. According to most tennis historians, modern tennis terminology also derives from this period, as Wingfield borrowed both the name and much of the French vocabulary of real tennis and applied them to his new game.[citation needed]
The first championships at Wimbledon in London were played in 1877.[7] On 21 May 1881, the United States National Lawn Tennis Association (now the United States Tennis Association) was formed to standardize the rules and organize competitions.[8] The U.S. National Men's Singles Championship, now the US Open, was first held in 1881 at Newport, Rhode Island.[9] The U.S. National Women's Singles Championships were first held in 1887.[10] Tennis was also popular in France, where the French Open dates to 1891.[11] Thus, Wimbledon, the US Open, the French Open, and the Australian Open (dating to 1905) became and have remained the most prestigious events in tennis.[7][12] Together these four events are called the Grand Slam (a term borrowed from bridge).[13]
The comprehensive International Lawn Tennis Federation, now known as the International Tennis Federation, rules promulgated in 1924 have remained remarkably stable in the ensuing eighty years, the one major change being the addition of the tiebreaker system designed by James Van Alen.[14]
The Davis Cup, an annual competition between national teams, dates to 1900.[15]
In 1926, promoter C.C. Pyle established the first professional tennis tour with a group of American and French tennis players playing exhibition matches to paying audiences.[12][16] The most notable of these early professionals were the American Vinnie Richards and the Frenchwoman Suzanne Lenglen.[12][17] Once a player turned pro he or she could not compete in the major (amateur) tournaments.[12]
In 1968, commercial pressures and rumors of some amateurs taking money under the table led to the abandonment of this distinction, inaugurating the open era, in which all players could compete in all tournaments, and top players were able to make their living from tennis.[18] With the beginning of the open era, the establishment of an international professional tennis circuit, and revenues from the sale of television rights, tennis's popularity has spread worldwide, and the sport has shed its upper/middle-class English-speaking image[19] (although it is acknowledged that this stereotype still exists).[19][20][21]
In 1954, Van Alen founded the International Tennis Hall of Fame, a non-profit museum in Newport, Rhode Island.[22] The building contains a large collection of tennis memorabilia as well as a hall of fame honoring prominent members and tennis players from all over the world. Each year, a grass-court tournament and an induction ceremony honoring new Hall of Fame members are hosted on its grounds.
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Music is an art form in which the medium is sound organized in time. Common elements of music are pitch (which governs melody and harmony), rhythm (and its associated concepts tempo, meter, and articulation), dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture. The word derives from Greek μουσική (mousike), "(art) of the Muses".[1]
The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of music vary according to culture and social context. Music ranges from strictly organized compositions (and their recreation in performance), through improvisational music to aleatoric forms. Music can be divided into genres and subgenres, although the dividing lines and relationships between music genres are often subtle, sometimes open to individual interpretation, and occasionally controversial. Within "the arts", music may be classified as a performing art, a fine art, and auditory art.
To people in many cultures, music is inextricably intertwined into their way of life. Greek philosophers and ancient Indians defined music as tones ordered horizontally as melodies and vertically as harmonies. Common sayings such as "the harmony of the spheres" and "it is music to my ears" point to the notion that music is often ordered and pleasant to listen to. However, 20th-century composer John Cage thought that any sound can be music, saying, for example, "There is no noise, only sound."[2] According to musicologist Jean-Jacques Nattiez, "the border between music and noise is always culturally defined—which implies that, even within a single society, this border does not always pass through the same place; in short, there is rarely a consensus.… By all accounts there is no single and intercultural universal concept defining what music might be, except that it is 'sound through time'."
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It is difficult to identify any one device as the earliest computer, partly because the term "computer" has been subject to varying interpretations over time. Originally, the term "computer" referred to a person who performed numerical calculations (a human computer), often with the aid of a mechanical calculating device.
The history of the modern computer begins with two separate technologies - that of automated calculation and that of programmability.
Examples of early mechanical calculating devices included the abacus, the slide rule and arguably the astrolabe and the Antikythera mechanism (which dates from about 150-100 BC). Hero of Alexandria (c. 10–70 AD) built a mechanical theater which performed a play lasting 10 minutes and was operated by a complex system of ropes and drums that might be considered to be a means of deciding which parts of the mechanism performed which actions and when.[3] This is the essence of programmability.
The "castle clock", an astronomical clock invented by Al-Jazari in 1206, is considered to be the earliest programmable analog computer.[4] It displayed the zodiac, the solar and lunar orbits, a crescent moon-shaped pointer travelling across a gateway causing automatic doors to open every hour,[5][6] and five robotic musicians who play music when struck by levers operated by a camshaft attached to a water wheel. The length of day and night could be re-programmed every day in order to account for the changing lengths of day and night throughout the year.
The end of the Middle Ages saw a re-invigoration of European mathematics and engineering, and Wilhelm Schickard's 1623 device was the first of a number of mechanical calculators constructed by European engineers. However, none of those devices fit the modern definition of a computer because they could not be programmed.
In 1801, Joseph Marie Jacquard made an improvement to the textile loom that used a series of punched paper cards as a template to allow his loom to weave intricate patterns automatically. The resulting Jacquard loom was an important step in the development of computers because the use of punched cards to define woven patterns can be viewed as an early, albeit limited, form of programmability.
It was the fusion of automatic calculation with programmability that produced the first recognizable computers. In 1837, Charles Babbage was the first to conceptualize and design a fully programmable mechanical computer that he called "The Analytical Engine".[7] Due to limited finances, and an inability to resist tinkering with the design, Babbage never actually built his Analytical Engine.
Large-scale automated data processing of punched cards was performed for the U.S. Census in 1890 by tabulating machines designed by Herman Hollerith and manufactured by the Computing Tabulating Recording Corporation, which later became IBM. By the end of the 19th century a number of technologies that would later prove useful in the realization of practical computers had begun to appear: the punched card, Boolean algebra, the vacuum tube (thermionic valve) and the teleprinter.
During the first half of the 20th century, many scientific computing needs were met by increasingly sophisticated analog computers, which used a direct mechanical or electrical model of the problem as a basis for computation. However, these were not programmable and generally lacked the versatility and accuracy of modern digital computers.
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FASHION
The habit of people continually changing the style of clothing worn, which is now worldwide, at least among urban populations, is generally held by historians to be a distinctively Western one.[dubious – discuss] At other periods in Ancient Rome and other cultures changes in costume occurred, often at times of economic or social change, but then a long period without large changes followed. In 8th century Cordoba, Spain, Ziryab, a famous musician - a star in modern terms - is said to have introduced sophisticated clothing styles based on seasonal and daily timings from his native Baghdad and his own inspiration.
The beginnings of the habit in Europe of continual and increasingly rapid change in styles can be fairly clearly dated to the middle of the 14th century, to which historians including James Laver and Fernand Braudel date the start of Western fashion in clothing.[2][3] The most dramatic manifestation was a sudden drastic shortening and tightening of the male over-garment, from calf-length to barely covering the buttocks, sometimes accompanied with stuffing on the chest to look bigger. This created the distinctive Western male outline of a tailored top worn over leggings or trousers which is still with us today.
The pace of change accelerated considerably in the following century, and women and men's fashion, especially in the dressing and adorning of the hair, became equally complex and changing. Art historians are therefore able to use fashion in dating images with increasing confidence and precision, often within five years in the case of 15th century images. Initially changes in fashion led to a fragmentation of what had previously been very similar styles of dressing across the upper classes of Europe, and the development of distinctive national styles, which remained very different until a counter-movement in the 17th to 18th centuries imposed similar styles once again, finally those from Ancien Régime in France.[4] Though fashion was always led by the rich, the increasing affluence of early modern Europe led to the bourgeoisie and even peasants following trends at a distance sometimes uncomfortably close for the elites - a factor Braudel regards as one of the main motors of changing fashion.[5]
The fashions of the West are generally unparalleled either in antiquity or in the other great civilizations of the world. Early Western travellers, whether to Persia, Turkey, Japan or China frequently remark on the absence of changes in fashion there, and observers from these other cultures comment on the unseemly pace of Western fashion, which many felt suggested an instability and lack of order in Western culture. The Japanese Shogun's secretary boasted (not completely accurately) to a Spanish visitor in 1609 that Japanese clothing had not changed in over a thousand years.[6] However in Ming China, for example, there is considerable evidence for rapidly changing fashions in Chinese clothing.
Ten 16th century portraits of German or Italian gentlemen may show ten entirely different hats, and at this period national differences were at their most pronounced, as Albrecht Dürer recorded in his actual or composite contrast of Nuremberg and Venetian fashions at the close of the 15th century (illustration, right). The "Spanish style" of the end of the century began the move back to synchronicity among upper-class Europeans, and after a struggle in the mid 17th century, French styles decisively took over leadership, a process completed in the 18th century.[8]
Though colors and patterns of textiles changed from year to year,[9] the cut of a gentleman's coat and the length of his waistcoat, or the pattern to which a lady's dress was cut changed more slowly. Men's fashions largely derived from military models, and changes in a European male silhouette are galvanized in theatres of European war, where gentleman officers had opportunities to make notes of foreign styles: an example is the "Steinkirk" cravat or necktie.
The pace of change picked up in the 1780s with the increased publication of French engravings that showed the latest Paris styles; though there had been distribution of dressed dolls from France as patterns since the 16th century, and Abraham Bosse had produced engravings of fashion from the 1620s. By 1800, all Western Europeans were dressing alike (or thought they were): local variation became first a sign of provincial culture, and then a badge of the conservative peasant.[10]
Although tailors and dressmakers were no doubt responsible for many innovations before, and the textile industry certainly led many trends, the history of fashion design is normally taken to date from 1858, when the English-born Charles Frederick Worth opened the first true haute couture house in Paris. Since then the professional designer has become a progressively more dominant figure, despite the origins of many fashions in street fashion.
Modern Westerners have a wide choice available in the selection of their clothes. What a person chooses to wear can reflect that person's personality or likes. When people who have cultural status start to wear new or different clothes a fashion trend may start. People who like or respect them may start to wear clothes of a similar style.
Fashions may vary considerably within a society according to age, social class, generation, occupation sexual orientation, and geography as well as over time. If, for example, an older person dresses according to the fashion of young people, he or she may look ridiculous in the eyes of both young and older people. The terms "fashionista" or "fashion victim" refer to someone who slavishly follows the current fashions.
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CULTURE
Culture is manifested in human artifacts and activities such as music, literature, lifestyle, food, painting and sculpture, theater and film.[5] Although some scholars identify culture in terms of consumption and consumer goods (as in high culture, low culture, folk culture, or popular culture),[6] anthropologists understand "culture" to refer not only to consumption goods, but to the general processes which produce such goods and give them meaning, and to the social relationships and practices in which such objects and processes become embedded. For them, culture thus includes art, science, as well as moral systems.
Various definitions of culture reflect differing theories for understanding, or criteria for evaluating, human activity. Writing from the perspective of social anthropology in the UK, Tylor in 1874 described culture in the following way: "Culture or civilization, taken in its wide ethnographic sense, is that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society."[7]
More recently, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) (2002) described culture as follows: "... culture should be regarded as the set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society or a social group, and that it encompasses, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs".[8]
While these two definitions cover a range of meaning, they do not exhaust the many uses of the term "culture." In 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions.[9]
These definitions, and many others, provide a catalog of the elements of culture. The items catalogued (e.g., a law, a stone tool, a marriage) each have an existence and life-line of their own. They come into space-time at one set of coordinates and go out of it another. While here, they change, so that one may speak of the evolution of the law or the tool.
A culture, then, is by definition at least, a set of cultural objects. Anthropologist Leslie White asked: "What sort of objects are they? Are they physical objects? Mental objects? Both? Metaphors? Symbols? Reifications?" In Science of Culture (1949), he concluded that they are objects "sui generis"; that is, of their own kind. In trying to define that kind, he hit upon a previously unrealized aspect of symbolization, which he called "the symbolate"—an object created by the act of symbolization. He thus defined culture as "symbolates understood in an extra-somatic context."[10] The key to this definition is the discovery of the symbolate.
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HOW BOYS AND GIRLS LEARN DIFFERENTLY
Male and female eyes are not organized in the same way, he explains. The composition of the male eye makes it attuned to motion and direction. Boys interpret the world as objects moving through space.The teacher should move around the room constantly and be that object.
The male eye is also drawn to cooler colors like silver, blue, black, grey, and brown. It’s no accident boys tend to create pictures of moving objects like spaceships, cars, and trucks in dark colors instead of drawing the happy colorful family, like girls in their class.
The female eye, on the other hand, is drawn to textures and colors. It’s also oriented toward warmer colors—reds, yellow, oranges—and visuals with more details, like faces. To engage girls, Chadwell says, the teacher doesn’t need to move as much, if at all. Girls work well in circles, facing each other. Using descriptive phrases and lots of color in overhead presentations or on the chalkboard gets their attention.
Boys and girls also hear differently. “When someone speaks in a loud tone, girls interpret it as yelling, “They think you’re mad and can shut down.” Girls have a more finely tuned aural structure; they can hear higher frequencies than boys and are more sensitive to sounds. He advises girls’ teachers to watch the tone of their voices. Boys’ teachers should sound matter of fact, even excited. Chadwell’s voice sounds much more forceful .
Chadwell continues. A boy’s autonomic nervous system causes them to be more alert when they’re standing, moving, and the room temperature is around 69 degrees. Stress in boys, , tends to increase blood flow to their brains, a process that helps them stay focused. This won’t work for girls, who are more focused seated in a warmer room around 75 degrees. Girls also respond to stress differently. When exposed to threat and confrontation, blood goes to their guts, leaving them feeling nervous or anxious.
“Boys will rise to a risk and tend to overestimate their abilities,” he says. Teachers can help them by getting them to be more realistic about results,” he says. “Girls at this age shy away from risk, which is exactly why lots of girls’ programs began in the private sector. Teachers can help them learn to take risks in an atmosphere where they feel confident about doing .
REFER to the article “
Revise policy for three reasons” (Education Star Sept 28). The reasons given by the writer Prof Dr Rosnani Hashim are so typical of one who sits in the ivory tower and professes herself an authority on what is going on in schools.
I have been teaching in secondary schools for the past 21years and I am a product of Universiti Malaya. I have been an ETeMS (English Teaching of Maths and Science) trainer since the policy was implemented and I can vouch for many of my colleagues that Science and Maths should be continued to be taught in English.
This is by far the wisest move made by policy-makers on education in Malaysia.
Billions of ringgit have been spent over the last six years and we, school teachers (not professors in universities), have committed ourselves to improving and developing our pedagogical skills and knowledge on the teaching of Science and Maths with the incorporation of ICT in the classroom.
As a trainer and facilitator, I found there were initial teething problems as well as rejection from some teachers who were reluctant to make the switch. However, generally speaking, most teachers are happy and confident of their abilities to use English as the medium of instruction.
Professor Dr.Rosnani’s three reasons are precisely why we will never be able to excel or compete with our neighbouring countries.
Since she is from International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), she should know the proficiency level of Malaysians and those who come from countries where the school curriculum is in English.
I have tested IIUM’s matriculation students and UiTM students for the MUET (Malaysian University English Test) speaking component, and am shocked by the deplorable standards!
Ironically, she herself has mentioned that Science and Maths “involves concepts that require clear explanation and cannot be learnt by just reading textbooks alone”.
Students need to do research and refer to books and materials that are mostly found in the English language. Has Dr Rosnani forgotten that there are other races in Malaysian schools (urban and rural) and universities too?
Is teaching these two subjects in English in our schools tantamount to losing our culture and identity?
She also mentions that our scholars have succeeded in entering Harvard, MIT and Oxford. How many percent is that? Only 1,200 scholars from 450,000 SPM candidates!
Those aspiring to enter Australian and British universities have to sit for the IELTS (International English Language Testing System) tests and many fail to get the required minimum standards. With a situation like this, colleges are forced to run intensive classes by the British Council and IDP on how to pass the IELTS, especially the speaking component.
Ask any private company interviewing our local graduates about the English language proficiency of these graduates and they will tell you about their disappointment.
We also have graduates from local universities who have degrees but cannot be employed as engineers in the private sector because they can’t speak English. Since they have no choice, many of them are retrained and end up as teachers in local schools.
By the way, does Britain recognise those with medical degrees from Malaysian universities?
Dr Rosnani’s suggestion that students read and understand science journals written in English is absurd, since her intention is for them to study the subject in Bahasa Malaysia.
Students in rural areas and in non-premier schools will remain where they are, whether they are taught Science or Maths in Bahasa Malaysia (BM) or in English.
What they lack is the infrastructure and the commitment by the students, their parents and, above all, the system itself.
There is too much emphasis on exams and results. There is no fun in learning and no love for learning.
There are many of us who studied all subjects (except BM) in English. Are we misfits? Have we lost our culture? Aren’t we still proficient in BM and patriotic?
Wasn’t the civil service excellent before because all of them, regardless of race, could read, write and communicate in good English?
There has been an improvement in the standard of English in schools over the last three years.
Students are more confident to speak the language, they are able to use Power Point presentations in English and have learnt a lot while surfing the Internet, to complete research projects at secondary school-level.
Please give us teachers and our students a chance to improve, and to prove that it was an excellent move to introduce the teaching of Science and Maths in English.
It will be a pleasure for educators like Dr Rosnani to teach these young people who are well-versed in English at IIUM or other universities.
The role of BM will forever remain supreme to all Malaysians while English will certainly give us a competitive edge on the global scene when we can speak with the same eloquence as the students from the old school.
What about the other components of plastic? Are they dangerous too?
More and more research is being done on this and new findings are coming to light. The danger is we are constantly in contact with plastic every single day of our lives, especially when plastic is being used to wrap our food and store our water and drinks.
The US FDA now calls the plastic used to wrap your food as “Food Contact Substances” but they have always assumed that plastics will migrate toxins into your food. They would only approve a manufacturer which can show that these plastic migrations must fall below an acceptable range.
The worst plastic, it is said, to store food or drink in is polyvinyl chloride (PVC).
There has been a lot of debate about plastic toys as well, especially those for toddlers which are put into the mouth.
There still has to be more research before matured conclusions can be made about the subject of plastic in contact with our food and its migration in minimal amounts. But it is certain that if you swallow or inhale plastic casting resin products, such as a plastic resin hardener, you may experience epoxy or resin poisoning.
What will happen in epoxy or resin poisoning?
If you inhale too much epoxy, you may experience breathing difficulties. You may have a severe pain in your throat, which might lead to throat swelling, burning pain in your nose, eyes, ears, lips or tongue. You can also have severe abdominal pain and vomiting, sometimes of blood. Blood may also appear in your faeces. You can develop low blood pressure and have a circulatory collapse.
If you get it on your skin, there may be irritation or burning. Your skin can be destroyed and holes may appear.
This particular poisoning is an emergency and you must seek help immediately.
Help your teen foster a sense of responsibility.
AS teenagers become more mature physically, they demand to be treated in adult ways. Though teenagers strive to rely more on themselves and less on their parents in making decisions, the parent-teen relationship remains vital in helping your child to become an independent, responsible individual.
The urbanised environment exposes the adolescent to the negative influences of modern society. As a result, the adolescents’ power of reasoning often gives rise to family tensions.
Parent-teenager disagreements are usually centred around mundane issues such as clothing styles, dating, friendships and school work. However, beneath these disputes lies the parents’ concern to protect their teens from poor school performance, auto accidents, substance abuse and teen sex.
Throughout your child’s adolescent years, the quality of the parent-child relationship is crucial to teen’s mental health. In well-functioning families, teenagers remain attached to parents and seek their advice, but do so in the context of greater freedom. They tend to spend more time with friends and in social activities.
Consistent parental monitoring of the teenager’s activities through a cooperative relationship in which the teen willingly discloses information, will favour the latter’s smooth transition to independence.
This also helps foster the psychological well-being of the adolescent. To prevent communication gaps, the parent should remain a respected role model and confidant, while protecting the teen from the negative aspects of peer pressure and modern society. This is best accomplished through an assertive parenting style.
There are three different styles of parenting: authoritarian, assertive and permissive. Authoritarian parenting will leave your teenager feeling no sense of self-growth or independence. Authoritarian parents do not trust their teenagers. They are always checking on their child, and making decisions for them.
In turn, this leaves the teenager feeling dependent on his parents or very rebellious.
Permissive parenting is the opposite of authoriatarian parenting. Permissive parenting will leave your teenager with too much decision-making on his own which he is not mature enough to handle. As a result, the teenager does not learn appropriate boundaries.
Assertive parenting will build trust, communication between parents and teenagers, and a sense of autonomy and self-control within the teenager. It will validate the teen as a responsible person, and develop a parent-child relationship which is safe. The teen feels free to air his concern to his parents without being judged, ridiculed or belittled.
Assertive parents set appropriate boundaries, but give the teenager freedom within the boundaries. They educate (not lecture) their teenager about the dangers of drugs, sex and delinquency. This enables the teenager to keep himself safe from negative peer pressure.
Assertive parents know their teenager’s friends and friend’s family, monitors school work and progress, knows the teachers and works as a team with the teachers.
More importantly, assertive parents realise that teenagers need guidance and are willing to balance their career and social schedules to accommodate this need.
Assertive parenting should be practised throughout the entire span of child development.
Let’s look at how we can implement assertive parenting during the teenage years.
An assertive parent will:
•acknowledge and except the natural interests and abilities of the teenager. If his teenager wants to take guitar lessons instead of piano lessons which are the wishes of the parents, this has to be OK.
•celebrate when his teenager is doing his best and improving in the academic sphere, though he may not be doing as well as his siblings or peers.
•unconditionally accept the teenager as a unique individual and not compare him to other people.
•encourage the teenager to choose his own hobbies. If your son wants to take ballet lessons instead of joining the soccer team, he needs to do so with your best wishes.
•encourage and facilitate the teenager’s exploration of higher education and career choices. Allow the teenager to make his own decisions, provided the decisions are based on a mature understanding of himself, his strengths, interests and goals.
•have a sense of self-satisfaction and does not try to live out what he missed in his youth, through his children. Remember, it is never too late for parents to take piano lessons or join a soccer team.
•not use his teenager as a buddy or confidante when struggling with adult issues.
•not load the teenager with too many responsibilities such as taking care of younger siblings or doing household chores.
•work as a team with his spouse in making decisions in the child’s best interest.
•be an advocate of his teenager’s schooling and not allow him to be treated unfairly by teachers and other authority figures.
•not rescue his teenager, but allow him to experience the consequences for his actions.
Depression in women: Understanding the gender g
Family. Career. Coping with menstruation, pregnancy and menopause. As a woman, you certainly have plenty of issues to handle. But there's one more you might face someday: depression
Biological factors affecting depression in women
The female body itself may influence the development of depression. That's because hormones and related factors may alter mood through various stages of life.
Puberty
Before girls and boys reach puberty, they share similar rates of depression. It's only after puberty that the gender disparity in depression and related disorders truly becomes pronounced. And because girls typically reach puberty before boys do, they may develop depression earlier. By age 15, for example, girls are almost twice as likely as boys to have developed depression.
Because this depression gender gap coincides with puberty and disappears after menopause, some researchers believe that hormonal factors increase a woman's risk of developing depression. On the other hand, puberty is also often associated with other changes that could play a role in depression, such as emerging sexuality and identity issues, parental conflicts and evolving social expectations. These psychosocial factors could interact with hormonal changes during puberty and result in an increased risk of depression.
Premenstrual problems
Many women know all too well the physical and emotional changes that can occur before menstruation, when abdominal bloating, breast tenderness, headache, anxiety, irritability or a blue mood herald the notorious symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS). For most women with PMS, the associated symptoms are minor and short-lived. But a small percentage of women have such severe and disabling mood-related symptoms that their lives, jobs and relationships are disrupted. At that point, PMS crosses the line into premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), which tends to respond best to treatment with hormones or psychiatric medications such as antidepressants.
Although the exact interaction between depression and premenstrual syndrome remains unclear, some researchers believe that cyclical changes in estrogen, progesterone and other hormones can disrupt the function of brain chemicals that control mood, such as serotonin. Other research indicates that androgens - so-called male hormones that women also naturally produce at a lower level - may play a role. Still, because such hormonal changes occur in all women, but not all women develop depression, hormonal changes alone can't be responsible for the increased risk of depression in women. Genetic predisposition or other factors also may influence depression.
Pregnancy
Dramatic hormonal changes that occur during pregnancy, along with life, work and relationship changes, affect mood and in some cases may trigger depression during pregnancy. Other factors that can increase the risk of depression during pregnancy include previous episodes of depression or PMDD, marital strife, insufficient social support and ambivalence about being pregnant. Other issues surrounding pregnancy can also lead to depression, such as infertility, miscarriage or an unwanted pregnancy.
Postpartum depression
About half of new mothers find themselves sad, angry, irritable and prone to tears soon after giving birth. These feelings - sometimes called the baby blues - are normal and generally subside within a week or two. But if they don't subside quickly, if symptoms are severe, if they're accompanied by an inability to care for your baby or thoughts of harming your baby, or if you have feelings of anxiety, low self-esteem, agitation or thoughts of suicide, you might have postpartum depression. This is a serious medical condition requiring prompt treatment. Postpartum depression isn't merely a matter of being unable to cope with having a new baby. Rather, it's probably associated with major hormonal fluctuations that influence mood as well as an underlying predisposition to depression.
Perimenopause and menopause
The risk of depression may also be heightened during the transition to menopause, a stage called perimenopause, when hormone levels fluctuate erratically. And it may also be heightened in early menopause or after menopause, both times when estrogen levels are significantly reduced. Most women who experience uncomfortable menopausal symptoms don't develop depression. But for women whose sleep is disrupted for long periods of time or who have a history of depression, this is a vulnerable time. Hysterectomy with removal of the ovaries can lead to an abrupt onset of menopause with more severe symptoms, including mood changes and sometimes depression.
Summary from book "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus"
Recently, we read the book Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, by John Gray, Ph.D. This informative book explained how to improve communication and to get what you want in relationships. The book focuses on understanding the differences between men and women, and learning how to use the information to change your relationships permanently.
“Once upon a time Martians and Venusians met, fell in love, and had happy relationships together because they respected and accepted their differences. Then they came to Earth and amnesia set in: They forgot they were from different planets.”
Dr. Gray uses this metaphor to explain the conflicts that commonly occur between men and women. In his book, he teaches how to avoid the problems caused by the differences that come between the sexes, and shows how we can all achieve fulfilling, loving relationships. Two of the main topics are how men and women deal with stress, and how men and women speak different languages.
How men and women deal with stress is a very important factor in relationships. Dr. Gray believes that men become withdrawn and very focused, while women become overwhelmed and very emotionally involved. Men don’t burden others with their problems, instead, they feel that they should solve them alone. They are capable of losing their awareness of everything and everyone around them and become distant, unresponsive, and forgetful. Although women resent this, they must try to have patience.
On the other hand, for women, sharing problems with others is a sign of trust. They can openly share their feelings of frustration and hopelessness. Women are not looking for immediate solutions, but want to be understood. When women talk about problems, men feel that they are being held responsible. Instead of trying to offer explanations or solutions, he should listen to understand.
Gray says that because men and women can learn to respect and understand each other’s different ways of dealing with stress, there is an opening for a greater understanding in their relationships with each other. Without placing blame on each other, they cope differently with their problems. If done correctly, there will be peace between the sexes.
The next important point mentioned is how men and women speak different languages. The languages that men and women use have the same words but different and often confusing meanings. Women speak in metaphors and generalizations. For example, “when a woman says “I feel like you never listen,” she does not expect the word never to be taken literally. Using the word never is just a way of expressing the frustration she is feeling at the moment.”
If men speak at all, it is very literal and they interpret women in the same literal way. Because of this, misinterpretations happen very easily and are quite frequent. A man talks only to convey information. A woman talks for many different reasons and complain that men don’t talk enough. However, one of the most challenging things for men to do is to correctly interpret and support a woman when she is talking about her feelings. Gray guides both men and women onto the path of understanding. By describing both sexes’ behavior in detail, he explains that we can learn to understand each other.
The most important point taught is the Art of Listening. As men and women learn to listen and interpret each other’s behavior and feelings, communication becomes easier. When a misunderstanding occurs, we must remember that we speak different languages and we should take the time to translate to our partners what we really mean and want to say.
By reading this guide, it is hoped that the communication between men and women will become stronger. Dr. Gray stresses that we must listen and work hard to accomplish this goal. By reading Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, it is believed that both sexes are taking a step in direction of success
assalamualaikum and good evening..
Ambrose Bierce
The Hare and The Tortoise
A Hare having ridiculed the slow movements of a Tortoise, was challenged by the latter to run a race, a Fox to go to the goal and be the judge. They got off well together, the hare at the top of her speed, the Tortoise, who had no other intention than making his antagonist exert herself, going very leisurely. After sauntering along for some time he discovered the Hare by the wayside, apparently asleep, and seeing a chance to win pushed on as fast as he could, arriving at the goal hours afterward, suffering from extreme fatigue and claiming the victory.
"Not so," said the Fox; "the Hare was here long ago, and went back to cheer you on your way."
-fatinah ag-
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assalamualaikum and good evening..
Someone To Care For
My friend Natalie can't see the point in you. She says that all you do is burp, fart, dribble, grin inanely and emit a series if unintelligible noises. Admittedly she hasn't seen you at your best, but I still think that's a little harsh.
The first time Natalie came to visit you were asleep on your back, gurgling little spit bubbles, a thin strand of drool running down your chin. Natalie just stared at you as if you were a creature from another planet. She made no secret of the fact that she wasn't impressed.
The second time she came to visit you crawled across the carpet towards her and vomited on her expensive new shoes. I tried to make light of it, explaining that it's mainly just liquid and wipes off easily, but she really did look quite appalled.
Natalie likes being a career woman, rushing between meetings in her power suit, clutching her Starbucks Coffee and her laptop. She's never wanted a husband or a baby, but if she could see you on a good day I'm sure she'd feel differently. If she could see the way you clap your hands and squeal with excitement when Scooby-Doo comes on the telly then she'd find you just as adorable as I do.
Instead she thinks you're smelly and have a strange shaped head. She looked revolted when I said you like putting your toes in your mouth, and finds it disturbing that you're always staring greedily at my breasts. It upsets her even more when you stare greedily at her breasts. I tried to explain that you're a man and that's what men do, but she wasn't having any of it.
If I'm honest, I think you could have made a bit more of an effort when Natalie first visited our house. I know it was the morning after Spongey's stag do, but I thought you could have at least lugged yourself into the bedroom instead of lying sprawled on the sofa in a curly wig, a pair of women's shoes and a t-shirt with a photo of Spongey's bare bottom on the front. If you'd had some trousers on it might not have been so bad. Natalie and I were comfortable enough perched on the wooden chairs, but it was quite distracting to have you snoring over our conversation, and I think Natalie was a bit uncomfortable when you started mumbling and fiddling with yourself.
When Natalie left, giving me a kiss on the cheek and a look of pity before rushing off for an appointment with her personal trainer, I removed your stilettos, covered you with a blanket and wiped the drool from your chin. Later, when you woke up screaming about a pain in your head which you assumed must be a brain haemorrhage, I gently explained that you had simply consumed an excessive amount of alcohol. I then sat by your side, holding your hand and stroking your forehead in a bid to reassure you. Three days later when you had recovered, I firmly reiterated this link between lager and suffering and said I hoped you had learnt your lesson. You looked ashamed, said you wouldn't do it again and then promptly went out and got wasted.
I'd secretly hoped that things would be better the next time Natalie came to visit. I thought she might like you better if you had your trousers on and were conscious. To be fair you didn't let me down on either of those counts, but if I'm going to be picky then I wish you'd been sober and hadn't vomited on her.
I assumed that when I told you she was coming for dinner you would come home from the pub before ten o'clock, but of course you bumped into Spongey down at the Queens Head and the two of you decided to celebrate the fact that you were wearing the same socks. I understand how important these things are to you, and I do appreciate the fact that you phoned me from the pub six times with a string of terrible excuses, but could you not have come for the Chicken Chasseur I had prepared? Instead you fell through the front door three hours late, addressed Natalie as Bob, crawled towards her on all fours and then chucked up all over her feet. It wiped off just as I said it would, but I don't think that made Natalie like you any better.
Once Natalie had left - which she did at great pace - I cleared up the mess and sat you down at the kitchen table. You clutched my fingers tightly and tried to put one of them in your mouth, mistaking it for the digestive biscuit I offered you. I should have been furious, but when you grinned stupidly at me, your mouth surrounded by biscuit crumbs, my heart softened and I forgave you. At the end of the day, however badly you behave, you're mine and I still love you.
I can understand why Nathalie thinks you're an idiot, but it's easy for her to judge. She already has everything she ever desired. I never wanted the impressive job title, the sports car or the big flashy house. All I ever really wanted was to be a mother. You might not be the most sophisticated man in the world, but you have a good heart and all the other necessary parts to help me fulfil that dream.
I know exactly why having a baby is so important to me: I want someone I can take care of. I find it incredible that another flailing, helpless human being could rely on me to look after them. Babies are so utterly incapable of looking after themselves, so dependent on others for their wellbeing. From their failure to control their bodily functions to their inability to use their tiny undeveloped brains, they are so completely useless without someone to care for them. I want to be needed like that.
Natalie says I don't need a baby to fulfil my dream. She says I'm already there.
I have no idea what she means. I just don't think these career women understand.
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
assalamualaikum and good evening..
Aesop
The Miser
A miser sold all that he had and bought a lump of gold, which he buried in a hole in the ground by the side of an old wall and went to look at daily. One of his workmen observed his frequent visits to the spot and decided to watch his movements. He soon discovered the secret of the hidden treasure, and digging down, came to the lump of gold, and stole it. The Miser, on his next visit, found the hole empty and began to tear his hair and to make loud lamentations. A neighbor, seeing him overcome with grief and learning the cause, said, "Pray do not grieve so; but go and take a stone, and place it in the hole, and fancy that the gold is still lying there. It will do you quite the same service; for when the gold was there, you had it not, as you did not make the slightest use of it."
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
assalamualaikum and good evening..
Fernando Sorrentino
Mere Suggestion
My friends say I am very suggestible. I think they're right. As evidence of this, they bring up a little incident that I was involved in last Thursday.
That morning I was reading a horror novel and, although it was broad daylight, I fell victim to the power of suggestion. This suggestion implanted in me the idea that there was a bloodthirsty murderer in the kitchen; and this bloodthirsty murderer, brandishing an enormous dagger, was waiting for me to enter the kitchen so he could leap upon me and plunge the knife into my back. So, in spite of my being seated directly across from the kitchen door, in spite of the fact that no one could have gone into the kitchen without my having seen him, and that there was no other access to the kitchen but that door; in spite of all these facts, I, nonetheless, was fully convinced that the murderer lurked behind the closed door.
So I fell victim to the power of suggestion and did not have the courage to enter the kitchen. This worried me, because lunch time was approaching and it would be indispensable for me to go into the kitchen. Then the doorbell rang.
"Come in!" I yelled without standing up. "It's not locked."
The building superintendent came in, with two or three letters.
"My leg fell asleep," I said. "Could you go to the kitchen and bring me a glass of water?"
The super said, "Of course," opened the kitchen door and went in. I heard a cry of pain and the sound of a body that, in collapsing, dragged with it dishes or bottles. Then I leaped from my chair and ran to the kitchen. The super, half his body on the table and an enormous dagger plunged into his back, lay dead. Now, calmed down, I was able to determine that, of course, there was no murderer in the kitchen.
As is logical, it was a case of mere suggestion.
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
assalamualaikum and good evening..
24 THINGS..
-Your presence is a present to the world.
-You're unique and one of a kind.
-Your life can be what you want it to be.
-Take the days just one at a time.
-Count your blessings, not your troubles.
-You'll make it through whatever comes along.
-Within you are so many answers.
-Understand, have courage, be strong.
-Don't put limits on yourself.
-So many dreams are waiting to be realized.
-Decisions are too important to leave to chance.
-Reach for your peak, your goal, and your prize.
-Nothing wastes more energy than worrying.
-The longer one carries a problem, the heavier it gets.
-Don't take things too seriously.
-Live a life of serenity, not a life of regrets.
-Remember that a little love goes a long way.
-Remember that a lot goes forever.
-Remember that friendship is a wise investment.
-Life's treasures are people -- together.
-Realize that nothing is ever too late.
-Do ordinary things in an extraordinary way.
-Have health and hope and happiness.
-Take the time to wish upon a star. ... And don't ever forget -- for even a day -- how very special you are.
\(^_^)/
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
Assalamualaikum and good day to all..
TO A FRIEND..
A friend that is unique
A friend that is one of a kind
A friend that is perfect
A type friend who is hard to find
A friend that is sweet
A friend that is perpetually fair
A friend that you know
Will always be there
A friend with an amazing spirit
A friend with a striking heart
A friend that is trustworthy
A friend that is smart
A friend that assuages your pain
A friend that can dry your tears
A friend with unrestricted love
A friend that can alleviate your fears
A friend with an exquisite smile
That could never be ignored
A friend that’s never been hurtful
A friend that is easily adored
A friend that is respectful
A friend who is loved by all
A friend that is relied upon
A friend to never let fall
A friend you can talk to
Her compassion is known by a glistening glow
Just by sparking her remarkable light
The whole world will know
What a great and amazing person she is
A friend I shall never forget
She is the greatest ever been known
Best of all the friends I’ve ever met..
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
Assalamualaikum and good day to all..
A Friend...
Is someone that everyone needs
A friend
Is that special one
A friend
Is someone you tell EVERYTHING
A friend
Is someone you never lie to
A friend
Can be a boy or a girl
A friend
Is someone that is always their
A friend
Will always listen to you
A friend
Always has input to give
A friend
Will never leave you in the dust
A friend
Will help you through the thick and the thin
A friend
Will always stand by your side
A friend
Will never let you down
A friend
Is someone everyone needs
What would you do if you didnt have a friend?
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
Assalamualaikum and good day to all..
Death is....
Death is when your loved ones must depart
Death is a sharp pain to the heart
Death is a feeling of permanent sadness and pain
Death is when your loved ones have forever gone away
Death is a call to heaven or hell
Death is an eternal mansion or cell
Death is a lesson to learn about
Death is a loss, without a doubt
Death is an unhappy feeling to have
Death is unpleasant on anyone's behalf
Death is something we all will go through
Death is a storm waiting to brew
Death is a lingering crow always overhead
Death is a soul, done being fed
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
Assalamualaikum and good day to all..
Death is....
Death is when your loved ones must depart
Death is a sharp pain to the heart
Death is a feeling of permanent sadness and pain
Death is when your loved ones have forever gone away
Death is a call to heaven or hell
Death is an eternal mansion or cell
Death is a lesson to learn about
Death is a loss, without a doubt
Death is an unhappy feeling to have
Death is unpleasant on anyone's behalf
Death is something we all will go through
Death is a storm waiting to brew
Death is a lingering crow always overhead
Death is a soul, done being fed
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
Assalamualaikum and good day to all..
Teacher Says, Teacher goes
Teacher says,
teacher goes,
teacher smiles,
teacher knows,
what you have done,
was clearly a mistake,
maybe it is,
time for a break.
Teacher says,
teacher goes,
teacher smiles,
teacher knows,
that you have been naughty.
That you have been quite foughty.
That you are being rude,
don't call teacher a dude.
Teacher says,
teacher goes,
teacher smilies,
teacher know,
that you were making faces,
behind teachers back,
that you were throwing spitballs,
at the teacher's pet.
Teacher says,
teacher goes,
teacher smilies,
teacher knows.
So enough is said,
so now you know,
that whatever you do.....
Teacher says,
Teacher goes,
Teacher smilies,
Teacher knows
-fatinah ag-
-e06-
-special for you madam noli-
Assalamualaikum and good day to all..
TEACHER
Teacher o teacher
Teacher o my teacher
Your teaching is so clear
I like it very much, dear
Teacher o teacher
Teacher o my teacher
There is no fear
When you are here
Teacher o teacher
Teacher o my teacher
Please never leave us here.
*special for you madam noli =)
-FATINAH AG-
-E06-
A Friend...
Is someone that everyone needs
A friend
Is that special one
A friend
Is someone you tell EVERYTHING
A friend
Is someone you never lie to
A friend
Can be a boy or a girl
A friend
Is someone that is always their
A friend
Will always listen to you
A friend
Always has input to give
A friend
Will never leave you in the dust
A friend
Will help you through the thick and the thin
A friend
Will always stand by your side
A friend
Will never let you down
A friend
Is someone everyone needs
What would you do if you didnt have a friend?
Ready to quit smoking? Here are 10 tips to help ensure your success.
1 - Identify your smoking triggers. Keep a record of when you smoke to identify your triggers so then you can make a plan to manage triggers without smoking.
2 - Talk to your doctor. Consult your doctor before you quit smoking. Modern pharmaceutical treatments can make quitting easier. Moreover, tobacco may impact the way your body processes certain medications.
3 - Get support from your family and friends. Let them know you are quitting and that you want their help.
4- Make a clean start. Throw away your cigarettes, hide your ashtrays, clean the house, your clothes, and the car if they smell like smoke -- anything to help make a break from the past.
5- Make a list of reasons to quit. Look at it every time you are tempted to have a smoke.
6- Keep objects around that you can put in your mouth. Items such as carrots, hard candy, even straws can give you something to do when you really crave a cigarette.
7- Drink lots of water. Water will help flush nicotine from your system and reduce the intensity of withdrawal symptoms.
8- Exercise. Not only will it make controlling your weight easier, it also gives you more energy and helps keep your mind off smoking.
9- Get a hair cut. Anything you can do to draw a clear line between your life as a smoker and your new life as a non smoker will make quitting easier and making you more likely to stay smoke free.
10- Find a quitting program nearest you.
.:: 10 Biggest Brain Damaging Habits ::..
1. No Breakfast - People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level. This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration.
2. Over-eating - It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power.
3. Smoking - It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease.
4. High Sugar Consumption - Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients causing malnutrition and may interfere with brain development.
5. Air Pollution - The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our body. Inhaling polluted air deceases the supply of oxygen to the brain, bringing about a decrease in brain efficiency.
6. Sleep Deprivation - Sleep allows our brain to rest. Long term deprivation from sleep will accelerate the death of brain cells.
7. Head covered while sleeping - Sleeping with the head covered, increases the concentration of carbon dioxide and decrease concentration of oxygen that may lead to brain damaging fects.
8. Working your brain during illness - Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in effectiveness of the brain as well as damage the brain.
9. Lacking in stimulating thoughts - Thinking is the best way to train our brain, lacking in brain stimulation thoughts may cause brain shrinkage.
10. Talking Rarely - Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain.
Football is the word given to a number of similar team sports, all of which involve kicking a ball with the foot in an attempt to score a goal. The most popular of these sports worldwide is association football, also known as "soccer" and most commonly just "football". The English language word "football" is also applied to "gridiron football" (a name associated with the North American sports, especially American football and Canadian football), Australian football, Gaelic football, rugby football (rugby league and rugby union), and related games. Each of these codes (specific sets of rules, or the games defined by them) is referred to as "football".
These games involve:
• Two teams of usually between 11 and 18 players. Note that versions with fewer players have varying degrees of popularity:
1) Six-man, eight-man, and nine-man football, derived from American football, are also played mainly at scholastic level in less-populated parts of the United States. Small schools in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan also play nine-man football, derived from the country's own code.
2) Rugby sevens, a version of rugby union with seven players per side instead of 15, is especially well-developed, with its own World Cup, a prominent annual international competition, and an entrenched position in the Commonwealth Games.
3) Although the sevens format also exists in rugby league, a different abbreviated format, rugby league nines, is more popular.
In most codes, there are rules restricting the movement of players offside, and players scoring a goal must put the ball either under or over a crossbar between the goalposts. Other features common to several football codes include: points being mostly scored by players carrying the ball across the goal line and; players receiving a free kick after they take a mark/make a fair catch.
Peoples from around the world have played games which involved kicking and/or carrying a ball, since ancient times. However, most of the modern codes of football have their origins in England.
Assalamualaikum to all of you. Today I want to talk about motorcycle. The first motorcycle was designed and built by the German inventors Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach in Bad Cannstatt (since 1905 a city district of Stuttgart) in 1885. The first petroleum powered vehicle, it was essentially a motorized bicycle, although the inventors called their invention the Reitwagen ("riding car"). However, if a two-wheeled vehicle with steam propulsion is considered a motorcycle, then the first one may have been American. One such machine was demonstrated at fairs and circuses in the eastern U.S. in 1867, built by Sylvester Howard Roper of Roxbury, Massachusetts.
In 1894, Hildebrand & Wolfmüller became the first motorcycle available for purchase. In the early period of motorcycle history, many producers of bicycles adapted their designs to accommodate the new internal combustion engine. As the engines became more powerful and designs outgrew the bicycle origins, the number of motorcycle producers increased.
Until the First World War, the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world was Indian, producing over 20,000 bikes per year. By 1920, this honor went to Harley-Davidson, with their motorcycles being sold by dealers in 67 countries. In 1928, DKW took over as the largest manufacturer.
After the Second World War, the BSA Group became the largest producer of motorcycles in the world, producing up to 75,000 bikes per year in the 1950s. The German company NSU Motorenwerke AG held the position of largest manufacturer from 1955 until the 1970s
In the 1950s, streamlining began to play an increasing part in the development of racing motorcycles and held out the possibility of radical changes to motorcycle design. NSU and Moto-Guzzi were in the vanguard of this development both producing very radical designs well ahead of their time. NSU produced the most advanced design, but because of the deaths of four NSU riders in the 1954–1956 seasons, they abandoned further development and quit Grand Prix motorcycle racing. Moto-Guzzi produced competitive race machines, and by 1957 nearly all the Grand Prix races were being won by streamlined machine.
From the 1960s through the 1990s, small two-stroke motorcycles were popular worldwide, partly as a result of East German Walter Kaaden's engine work in the 1950s.
Today, the Japanese manufacturers, Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, and Yamaha dominate the motorcycle industry, although Harley-Davidson still maintains a high degree of popularity in the United States. Apart from these high capacity motorcycles, there is a very huge market for low capacity (less then 300 cc) motorcycles, mostly concentrated in Asian and African countries. This area is dominated by mostly Indian companies with Hero Honda being the world's largest manufacturer of two wheelers. Its Hero Honda Splendor model is the highest selling motorcycle in automotive history, having sold more then 8.5 million to date.
Assalamualaikum. I want to share with all of about history of electricity.Long before any knowledge of electricity existed people were aware of shocks from electric fishes. Ancient Egyptian texts dating from 2750 BC referred to these fish as the "Thunderer of the Nile", and described them as the "protectors" of all other fish. They were again reported millennia later by ancient Greek, Roman and Arabic naturalists and physicians. Several ancient writers, such as Pliny the Elder and Scribonius Largus, attested to the numbing effect of electric shocks delivered by catfish and torpedo rays, and knew that such shocks could travel along conducting objects. Patients suffering from ailments such as gout or headache were directed to touch electric fish in the hope that the powerful jolt might cure them. Possibly the earliest and nearest approach to the discovery of the identity of lightning, and electricity from any other source, is to be attributed to the Arabs, who before the 15th century had the Arabic word for lightning (raad) applied to the electric ray.
That certain objects such as rods of amber could be rubbed with cat's fur and attract light objects like feathers was known to ancient cultures around the Mediterranean. Thales of Miletos made a series of observations on static electricity around 600 BC, from which he believed that friction rendered amber magnetic, in contrast to minerals such as magnetite, which needed no rubbing. Thales was incorrect in believing the attraction was due to a magnetic effect, but later science would prove a link between magnetism and electricity. According to a controversial theory, the Parthians may have had knowledge of electroplating, based on the 1936 discovery of the Baghdad Battery, which resembles a galvanic cell, though it is uncertain whether the artifact was electrical in nature.
Electricity would remain little more than an intellectual curiosity for millennia until 1600, when the English physician William Gilbert made a careful study of electricity and magnetism, distinguishing the lodestone effect from static electricity produced by rubbing amber. He coined the New Latin word electricus ("of amber" or "like amber", from ήλεκτρον [elektron], the Greek word for "amber") to refer to the property of attracting small objects after being rubbed.This association gave rise to the English words "electric" and "electricity", which made their first appearance in print in Thomas Browne's Pseudodoxia Epidemica of 1646.
Further work was conducted by Otto von Guericke, Robert Boyle, Stephen Gray and C. F. du Fay. In the 18th century, Benjamin Franklin conducted extensive research in electricity, selling his possessions to fund his work. In June 1752 he is reputed to have attached a metal key to the bottom of a dampened kite string and flown the kite in a storm-threatened sky. He observed a succession of sparks jumping from the key to the back of his hand, showing that lightning was indeed electrical in nature.
Assalamualaikum.
A computer is a machine that manipulates data according to a list of instructions. The first devices that resemble modern computers date to the mid-20th century (1940–1945), although the computer concept and various machines similar to computers existed earlier. Early electronic computers were the size of a large room, consuming as much power as several hundred modern personal computers (PC). Modern computers are based on tiny integrated circuits and are millions to billions of times more capable while occupying a fraction of the space. Today, simple computers may be made small enough to fit into a wristwatch and be powered from a watch battery. Personal computers, in various forms, are icons of the Information Age and are what most people think of as "a computer"; however, the most common form of computer in use today is the embedded computer. Embedded computers are small, simple devices that are used to control other devices for example, they may be found in machines ranging from fighter aircraft to industrial robots, digital cameras, and children's toys.
The ability to store and execute lists of instructions called programs makes computers extremely versatile and distinguishes them from calculators. The Church–Turing thesis is a mathematical statement of this versatility: any computer with a certain minimum capability is, in principle, capable of performing the same tasks that any other computer can perform. Therefore, computers with capability and complexity ranging from that of a personal digital assistant to a supercomputer are all able to perform the same computational tasks given enough time and storage capacity.
Assalamualaikum.
The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as jellyfishes and starfishes have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all. In vertebrates, the brain is located in the head, protected by the skull and close to the primary sensory apparatus of vision, hearing, balance, taste, and smell.
Brains can be extremely complex. The human brain contains roughly 100 billion neurons, linked with up to 10,000 synaptic connections each. These neurons communicate with one another by means of long protoplasmic fibers called axons, which carry trains of signal pulses called action potentials to distant parts of the brain or body and target them to specific recipient cells.
From a philosophical point of view, it might be said that the most important function of the brain is to serve as the physical structure underlying the mind.
From a biological point of view, though, the most important function is to generate behaviors that promote the welfare of an animal. Brains control behavior either by activating muscles, or by causing secretion of chemicals such as hormones. Not all behaviors require a brain. Even single-celled organisms may be capable of extracting information from the environment and acting in response to it. Sponges, which lack a central nervous system, are capable of coordinated body contractions and even locomotion. In vertebrates, the spinal cord by itself contains neural circuitry capable of generating reflex responses as well as simple motor patterns such as swimming or walking. However, sophisticated control of behavior on the basis of complex sensory input requires the information-integrating capabilities of a centralized brain.
Despite rapid scientific progress, much about how brains work remains a mystery. The operations of individual neurons and synapses are now understood in considerable detail, but the way they cooperate in ensembles of thousands or millions has been very difficult to decipher. Methods of observation such as EEG recording and functional brain imaging tell us that brain operations are highly organized, but these methods do not have the resolution to reveal the activity of individual neurons. Thus, even the most fundamental principles of neural network computation may to a large extent remain for future investigators to discover.
Firecrackers are commonly used in celebration of holidays or festivals, such as Shab-e-Barat In Pakistan, Halloween, Independence Day in the United States of America, Diwali in India, Hari Raya in Malaysia, and especially the celebration of Chinese New Year by Chinese communities around the world and Spanish Fallas.
Firecrackers are also used by the Vietnamese during their Tết festival especially at midnight Giao Thừa (New Year's Eve).
Firecrackers, as well as other types of explosives, in United States are subject to various laws, depending on location. Firecrackers themselves are not considered illegal contraband material. It is the sale, possession, and use of firecrackers that are subject to laws. Some states or local governments require a permit to legally sell, possess, or use firecrackers; sometimes with different permits for different actions, e.g., a permit required to sell, with a separate permit required to use. Prior to December 6, 1976, the legal limit in the United States for firecrackers was a maximum of 2 grains of blackpowder (130 mg); after this date, the legal limit in the United States was reduced to 50 mg (0.77 grains) of flash powder.
Virtually all firecrackers are scientifically classed as "low explosives" which burn through deflagration, as opposed to "high explosives" such as dynamite and ANFO which actually produce a supersonic detonation wave. Some legal definitions nevertheless define banned firecrackers (such as the M-80 in the United States) as "Class B Explosives" which requires their storage in an explosives magazine and an ATF high explosives license for their manufacture.
The legal status of firecrackers typically stems from their notable effect on noise pollution as well as the issue of their safety, especially when used by children. Devices which are designed to explode at ground level are seen as more dangerous than those with a prolonged burn time and/or an aerial explosion. Proponents of firecracker sales sometimes question the consistency of these laws, pointing out that legal fireworks can also be dangerous due to the risk of high-temperature burns (as in the case of sparklers), and that projectile fireworks intended for aerial use can often legally incorporate a noise making explosive device as a last stage.
In Malaysia, playing with firecrackers is now illegal as stated from Malaysian Explosive
Act which was revised in 1991 as a result of the increasing injuries among children (especially
Assalamualaikum..
Recycling involves processing used materials into new products in order to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from land filling) by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virgin production. Recycling is a key component of modern waste management and is the third component of the "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" waste hierarchy.
Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, metal, plastics, textiles, and electronics Aluminum (e.g., cell phones and computers). Although similar in effect, the composting or other reuse of biodegradable waste – such as food or garden waste – is not typically considered recycling. Materials to be recycled are either brought to a collection center or picked up from the curbside, then sorted, cleaned, and reprocessed into new materials bound for manufacturing.
In a strict sense, recycling of a material would produce a fresh supply of the same material, for example used office paper to more office paper, or used foamed polystyrene to more polystyrene. However, this is often difficult or too expensive (compared with producing the same product from raw materials or other sources), so "recycling" of many products or materials involves their reuse in producing different materials (e.g., cardboard) instead. Another form of recycling is the salvage of certain materials from complex products, either due to their intrinsic value (e.g., lead from car batteries, or gold from computer components), or due to their hazardous nature (e.g., removal and reuse of mercury from various items).
Critics of recycling claim that it often wastes more resources than it saves, especially in cases where it is mandated by government. Note here that municipal recycling may nevertheless still be worthwhile if the net cost is less than the landfill or other disposal costs for the same amount of material
Assalamualaikum..
A helicopter is an aircraft that is lifted and propelled by one or more horizontal rotors, each rotor consisting of two or more rotor blades. Helicopters are classified as rotorcraft or rotary-wing aircraft to distinguish them from fixed-wing aircraft because the helicopter achieves lift with the rotor blades which rotate around a mast. The word 'helicopter' is adapted from the French hélicoptère, coined by Gustave de Ponton d'Amecourt in 1861, which originates from the Greek helix/helik- (ἕλικ-) = "spiral" or "turning".
The primary advantage of a helicopter is from the rotor which provides lift without the aircraft needing to move forward, allowing the helicopter take off and land vertically without a runway. For this reason, helicopters are often used in congested or isolated areas where fixed-wing aircraft cannot take off or land. The lift from the rotor also allows the helicopter to hover in one area and more efficiently than other forms of vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft, allowing it to accomplish tasks that fixed-wing aircraft cannot perform.
Although helicopters were developed and built during the first half-century of flight, some even reaching limited production; it was not until 1942 that a helicopter designed by Igor Sikorsky reached full-scale production, with 131 aircraft built. Even though most previous designs used more than one main rotor, it was the single main rotor with ant torque tail rotor configuration of this design that would come to be recognized worldwide as the helicopter.
Assalamualaikum.
Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985, in Croxteth, Liverpool, Merseyside) is an English footballer who currently plays for English Premier League club Manchester United and the England national team. Rooney is the first child of Thomas Wayne and Jeanette Marie Rooney (née Morrey). He was raised in Croxteth with younger brothers Graeme and John, and all three attended De La Salle School. Wayne grew up supporting local club Everton F.C., and his childhood hero was Duncan Ferguson.
Rooney became the youngest player to play for England when he earned his first cap in a friendly against Australia on 12 February 2003 at seventeen, the same age in which he also became the youngest player to score an England goal. Arsenal youngster Theo Walcott broke Rooney's appearance record by 36 days in June 2006.
His first tournament action was at Euro 2004, in which he became the youngest scorer in competition history on 17 June 2004, when he scored twice against Switzerland; however, this record was topped by Swiss midfielder Johan Vonlanthen four days later. Rooney suffered an injury in the quarterfinal match against Portugal as England was eliminated on penalties.
Following a foot injury in an April 2006 Premier League match, Rooney faced a race to fitness for the 2006 World Cup. England attempted to hasten his recovery with the use of an oxygen tent, which allowed Rooney to enter a group match against Trinidad and Tobago and start the next match against Sweden. However, he never got back into game shape and went scoreless as England bowed out in the quarterfinals, again on penalty kicks.
Rooney was red-carded in the 62nd minute of the quarterfinal for stomping on Portugal defender Ricardo Carvalho as both attempted to gain possession of the ball, an incident that occurred right in front of referee Horacio Elizondo. Rooney's united teammate Cristiano Ronaldo openly protested his actions, and was in turn shoved by Rooney. Elizondo sent Rooney off, after which Ronaldo was seen winking at the Portugal bench.
Rooney denied intentionally targeting Carvalho in a statement on 3 July, adding, "I bear no ill feeling to Cristiano but am disappointed that he chose to get involved. I suppose I do, though, have to remember that on that particular occasion we were not teammates. Elizondo confirmed the next day that Rooney was dismissed solely for the infraction on Carvalho. Rooney was fined CHF5,000 for the incident.
Creativity
Would you like to enhance your creativity? Do you think that increased creativity is something that would improve your life?
Before you answer yes or no to that question, take some time to explore what the word “creativity” means to you.
If you think that creativity is something that you only need if you’re an artist, while you happen to be a middle-manager in a corporation, you may decide that increased creativity is not really important to you. But creativity is actually something far broader than artistic expression, and it’s required in many areas of life.
Your idea of a creative person might be someone who lives in a loft, painting gigantic canvases all day long. Or perhaps a writer at her computer, working on a long novel. Or a musician, actor, or singer performing on stage to an audience. All these people are expressing themselves artistically, and they can all rightly be said to be creative people, even if no one else enjoys their art.
But what about an entrepreneur who has an idea for a new product, who forms a new company to produce and distribute it, eventually employing hundreds of people? Doesn’t this also require creativity?
What about a research scientist toiling in a lab, developing new compounds in an effort to cure disease? Isn’t this creative? What about a single mother who manages to come up with healthy delicious meals on a tiny budget? Isn’t that creativity?
To one person, creativity can mean gluing seashells to a picture frame. To another, creativity might mean solving a grand unified theory in physics. And to another person, being creative might mean coming up with an ingenious new way to speed up a factory assembly line.
When we define creativity only in terms of artistic expression, we miss a lot of other potential applications for creative thinking and problem solving.
An artist painting a picture, or a writer working on a novel, both have something in common with the researcher in the lab, and the entrepreneur, and the person gluing seashells to picture frames.
They are all working on problems and devising solutions that didn’t exist before. These people are using their minds to imagine fresh ways of doing something, putting together existing forms and ideas in new ways.
They may be creating a new idea, a new look, a new product, or new technique. Sometimes the ability to be more creative can lead to personal fame and fortune; sometimes it just provides a deep sense of personal satisfaction.
Can we improve our ability to be creative? Yes, in fact, learning to be more creative can be quite enjoyable and easy to do. Most of us were very creative as children, before we learned the official rules about how things are supposed to be. We can resurrect our ability to be more creative by exploring some of the many techniques that have been developed to improve creative and artistic ability, as well as to improve creative problem solving.
Some of the techniques that are used to improve creativity include brainstorming, mind-mapping, various forms of hypnosis and meditation, and guided imagery.
The techniques that have been developed to try enhance creativity all have one thing in common. They are all trying to bypass the inner “judge” or “critic” we have in our minds.
Most of us have an inner voice that is running a constant commentary on everything we think and do. We might barely notice this inner voice much of the time, yet it has a great impact on what we can accomplish in our life.
In many of us this inner voice is usually very negative. No matter what we want think about, or want to do, this inner voice is running like a tape in the background of our minds, criticizing our ideas, our performance, and our ability to be successful.
When we come up with a new idea, our inner voice may be saying, “This idea is stupid.” Or it might tell us, “I should never be mediocre or average, I must be brilliant and perfect all the time. All my ideas should be totally brilliant and innovative. If my ideas aren’t perfect right from the start, I am a failure and it’s better not to even try”.
Our negative inner critic does not always appear as a voice. Sometimes we see visual images of ourselves failing. Or we may have physical sensations of fear and embarrassment that stop us from pursuing new ideas or new actions.
Your inner critic isn’t being evil when it criticizes you, or when it tells you your ideas are not very good. Your critic is actually trying to protect you from being ashamed or embarrassed by the potentially negative comments and reactions of other people to your ideas.
Our inner critic is trying to make us perfect and safe, but it can have an unforeseen damaging effect.
If our inner judgmental dialogue is mostly negative, our creative abilities will suffer.
Instead of helping us to come up with better ideas, this endless barrage of negative inner commentary will hurt our ability to come up with new ideas.
You can’t be creative, and be critical at the same time. These two processes require different ways of thinking. The critical, judgmental, analytical function of the brain is not the part that knows how to generate creative ideas.
Even the types of brainwaves that you generate when you are being rational and analytical are quite different than the brainwaves that go with maximum creativity.
When it’s time for you to be creative, you have to send your “inner critic” out for a walk.
Hot tips writing resume
1. What IS a resume anyway?
Remember: a Resume is a self-promotional document that presents you in the best possible light, for the purpose of getting invited to a job interview.
It's not an official personnel document. It's not a job application. It's not a "career obituary"! And it's not a confessional.
2. What should the resume content be about?
It's not just about past jobs! It's about YOU, and how you performed and what you accomplished in those past jobs--especially those accomplishments that are most relevant to the work you want to do next. A good resume predicts how you might perform in that desired future job.
3. What's the fastest way to improve a resume?
Remove everything that starts with "responsibilities included" and replace it with on-the-job accomplishments. (See Tip 11 for one way to write them.)
4. What is the most common resume mistake made by job hunters?
Leaving out their Job Objective! If you don't show a sense of direction, employers won't be interested. Having a clearly stated goal doesn't have to confine you if it's stated well.
5. What's the first step in writing a resume?
Decide on a job target (or "job objective") that can be stated in about 5 or 6 words. Anything beyond that is probably "fluff" and indicates a lack of clarity and direction.
6. How do you decide whether to use a Chronological resume or a Functional one? The Chronological format is widely preferred by employers, and works well if you're staying in the same field (especially if you've been upwardly-mobile). Only use a Functional format if you're changing fields, and you're sure a skills-oriented format would show off your transferable skills to better advantage; and be sure to include a clear chronological work history!
7. What if you don't have any experience in the kind of work you want to do?
Get some! Find a place that will let you do some volunteer work right away. You only need a brief, concentrated period of volunteer training (for example, 1 day a week for a month) to have at least SOME experience to put on your resume.
Also, look at some of the volunteer work you've done in the past and see if any of THAT helps
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