Wednesday, December 10, 2008

internet neutrality

what is this? what the 'F' is "internet neutrality". I couldn't really get this. Why, so many people are really worrying about this? Is that a big issue nowadays?

People! I had to argue with one of my good friends about this topic. She is doing a research project on it, so she was talking about this too much. I couldn't really understand why these people worrying too much about this internet neutrality thing, where so much of other things are there to worry about. Wars, Terrorism, Global worming, World economy & so much new diseases are out there to worry about. Sometimes, I wonder why the hell is these people, specially Americans, spending too much money on internet neutrality conferences. If you ask me, it's just a wast of money.

Who really care about internet neutrality?
  1. Teens who buy/sell drugs and those, who access porn stuff via internet.
  2. People who share legal information via invisible network layers.
  3. Those, who plagiarize things to their own works using internet resources.
  4. This list just goes on like this.
I don't really think, any good people do worry about this much. I'm just expressing my personal view about this matter. You guys just think about this and log your ideas in your blog. If possible, let me know your blog URLs. Thank you.

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Interesting Tricks of the Body

by womenofstrengthonline.com

1. If your throat tickles, scratch your ear.

When you were 9, playing your armpit was a cool trick. Now, as an adult, you can still appreciate a good body-based feat, but you're more discriminating. Take that tickle in your throat; it's not worth gagging over. Here's a better way to scratch your itch: "When the nerves in the ear are stimulated, it creates a reflex in the throat that can cause a muscle spasm," says Scott Schaffer, M.D., president of an ear, nose and throat specialty center in Gibbsboro, New Jersey. "This
spasm relieves the tickle."

2. Experience supersonic hearing!

If you're stuck chatting up a mumbler at a cocktail party, lean in with your right ear. It's better than your left at following the rapid rhythms of speech, according to researchers at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. If, on the other hand, you're trying to identify that song playing softly in the elevator, turn your left ear toward the sound. The left ear is better at picking up music tones.

3. Overcome your most primal urge!

Need to pee? No bathroom nearby? Fantasize about Jessica Simpson. Thinking about sex preoccupies your brain, so you won't feel as much discomfort, says Larry Lipshultz, M.D., chief of male reproductive medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine. For best results, try Simpson's "These Boots Are Made for Walking" video.

4. Feel no pain!

German researchers have discovered that coughing during an injection can lessen the pain of the needle stick. According to Taras Usichenko, author of a study on the phenomenon, the trick causes a sudden, temporary rise in pressure in the chest and spinal canal, inhibiting the pain-conducting structures of the spinal cord.

5. Clear your stuffed nose!

Forget Sudafed. An easier, quicker, and cheaper way to relieve sinus pressure is by alternately thrusting your tongue against the roof of your mouth, then pressing between your eyebrows with one finger. This causes the vomer bone, which runs through the nasal passages to the mouth, to rock back and forth, says Lisa DeStefano, D.O., an assistant professor at the Michigan State University college of osteopathic medicine. The motion loosens congestion; after 20
seconds, you'll feel your sinuses start to drain.

6. Fight fire without water!

Worried those wings will repeat on you tonight? "Sleep on your left side," says Anthony A. Star-poli, M.D., a New York City gastroenterologist and assistant professor of medicine at New York Medical College. Studies have shown that patients who sleep on their left sides are less likely to suffer from acid reflux. The esophagus and stomach connect at an angle. When you sleep on your right, the stomach is higher than the esophagus, allowing food and stomach acid to slide
up your throat. When you're on your left, the stomach is lower than the esophagus, so gravity's in your favor.


7. Cure your toothache without opening your mouth!

Just rub ice on the back of your hand, on the V-shaped webbed area between your thumb and index finger. A Canadian study found that this technique reduces toothache pain by as much as 50 percent compared with using no ice. The nerve pathways at the base of that V stimulate an area of the brain that blocks pain signals from the face and hands.

8. Make burns disappear!

When you accidentally singe your finger on the stove, clean the skin and apply light pressure with the finger pads of your unmarred hand. Ice will relieve your pain more quickly, Dr. DeStefano says, but since the natural method brings the burned skin back to a normal temperature, the skin is less likely to blister.

9. Stop the world from spinning!

One too many drinks left you dizzy? Put your hand on something stable. The part of your ear responsible for balance— the cupula—floats in a fluid of the same density as blood. "As alcohol dilutes blood in the cupula, the cupula becomes less dense and rises," says Dr. Schaffer. This confuses your brain. The tactile input from a stable object gives the brain a second opinion, and you feel more in balance. Because the nerves in the hand are so sensitive, this works better than
the conventional foot-on-the-floor wisdom.

10. Unstitch your side!

If you're like most people, when you run, you exhale as your right foot hits the ground. This puts downward pressure on your liver (which lives on your right side), which then tugs at the diaphragm and creates a side stitch, according to The Doctors Book of Home Remedies for Men. The fix: Exhale as your left foot strikes the ground.

11. Stanch blood with a single finger!

Pinching your nose and leaning back is a great way to stop a nosebleed—if you don't mind choking on your own O positive. A more civil approach: Put some cotton on your upper gums—just behind that small dent below your nose— and press against it, hard. "Most bleeds come from the front of the septum, the cartilage wall that divides the nose," says Peter Desmarais, M.D., an ear, nose, and throat specialist at Entabeni Hospital, in Durban, South Africa. "Pressing here helps stop them."

12. Make your heart stand still!

Trying to quell first-date jitters? Blow on your thumb. The vagus nerve, which governs heart rate, can be controlled through breathing, says Ben Abo, an emergency medical-services specialist at the University of Pittsburgh. It'll get your heart rate back to normal.

13. Thaw your brain!

Too much Chipwich too fast will freeze the brains of lesser men. As for you, press your tongue flat against the roof of your mouth, covering as much as you can. "Since the nerves in the roof of your mouth get extremely cold, your body thinks your brain is freezing, too," says Abo. "In compensating, it overheats, causing an ice-cream headache." The more pressure you apply to the roof of your mouth, the faster your headache will subside.

14. Prevent near-sightedness!

Poor distance vision is rarely caused by genetics, says Anne Barber, O.D., an optometrist in Tacoma, Washington. "It's usually caused by near-point stress." In other words, staring at your computer screen for too long. So flex your way to 20/20 vision. Every few hours during the day, close your eyes, tense your body, take a deep breath, and, after a few seconds, release your breath and muscles at the same time. Tightening and releasing muscles such as the biceps and glutes can trick involuntary muscles—like the eyes—into relaxing as well.

15. Wake the dead!

If your hand falls asleep while you're driving or sitting in an odd position, rock your head from side to side. It'll painlessly banish your pins and needles in less than a minute, says Dr. DeStefano. A tingly hand or arm is often the result of compression in the bundle of nerves in your neck; loosening your neck muscles releases the pressure. Compressed nerves lower in the body govern the feet, so don't let your sleeping dogs lie. Stand up and walk around.

16. Impress your friends!

Next time you're at a party, try this trick: Have a person hold one arm straight out to the side, palm down, and instruct him to maintain this position. Then place two fingers on his wrist and push down. He'll resist. Now have him put one foot on a surface that's a half inch higher (a few magazines) and repeat. This time his arm will fold like a house of cards. By misaligning his hips, you've offset his spine, says Rachel Cosgrove, C.S.C.S., co-owner of Results Fitness, in Santa
Clarita, California. Your brain senses that the spine is vulnerable, so it shuts down the body's ability to resist.

17. Breathe underwater!

If you're dying to retrieve that quarter from the bottom of the pool, take several short breaths first—essentially, hyperventilate. When you're underwater, it's not a lack of oxygen that makes you desperate for a breath; it's the buildup of carbon dioxide, which makes your blood acidic, which signals your brain that somethin' ain't right. "When you hyperventilate, the influx of oxygen lowers blood acidity," says Jonathan Armbruster, Ph.D., an associate professor of
biology at Auburn University. "This tricks your brain into thinking it has more oxygen." It'll buy you up to 10 seconds.

18. Read minds!

Your own! "If you're giving a speech the next day, review it before falling asleep," says Candi Heimgartner, an instructor of biological sciences at the University of Idaho. Since most memory consolidation happens during sleep, anything you read right before bed is more likely to be encoded as long-term memory.

Friday, July 11, 2008

The Best Packing Tips

Hi There! I'm back to Sri Lanka, I'm getting married next month and going to live happily ever after. I'm very very excited about that. All my family members are coming home this month. I found an interesting packing tip on mainstreet.com. I think, It'll surly be helpful for you to travel Sri Lanka. If you know any other tips regarding this, please put it as a comment down there.

15) Don't overpack
Yes, this sounds simple. But the reality is that most people do overpack. When you're throwing stuff into your suitcase for that two-day business trip, ask yourself, "Do I really need this, or can I live without it till I get back?"

14) Leave the towels at home
If you're staying at a hotel, your room will be stocked with towels. And those things take up a lot of space.

13) Limit your shoes
Shoes don't just take up a lot of room; they're also heavy. Remember, you're going to have to hoist this suitcase into the overhead container, carry it up airport stairs and the like. Try to limit yourself to a few pairs, and wear your bulkiest pair on the plane.

12) Leave the laptop
Not only are laptops a pain to get through security, but other Internet-access options might be just as good. This goes for electronics in general. You may want to take a noise-canceling headset and an iPod, but consider whether you really need the GameBoy and all that other stuff you might be inclined to toss into the suitcase.

11) Pack versatile clothing
If you've got a black dress or a khaki/shirt combo that's suitable for both the business meeting and the evening party, pack it. If your wardrobe plan involves lots of changes, you'll use a lot more space.

"Bring outfits that go with everything, and strip it down to the absolute essentials," says Anne Banas, executive editor of SmarterTravel.com. "Pack separates, and look for wrinkle-free clothing." Places such as TravelSmith offer lots of wrinkle-free options.

10) Think twice about gifts
Will Uncle Ken really want that huge bust of Lenin you bought for him? Possibly, but sometimes gifts just end up as clutter, and you'd do better just to send a postcard. At any rate, consider space-saving options when you're purchasing presents for the folks back home.

9) Ditch the reading material
How many times have you taken books and magazines on a plane trip, only to fall asleep midflight and find yourself no farther along when you return? They take up space and are also heavy. You've already packed your iPod, so why not download a book on tape and listen to your fiction instead? Or, maybe pack an Amazon (AMZN) Kindle.

8) Get a pill container
If you've got prescription drugs, save some space by using a pill container rather than packing each individual bottle.

A caveat: Some security people may want to check on the legitimacy of the prescriptions.

"It's helpful if you bring the prescription and/or packaging," Banas of SmarterTravel.com says. So, instead of all the bottles, you could perhaps bring a pharmacy page that describes the medication and its purpose, in case the security people ask about it.

7) Use a smaller suitcase
People tend to pack the suitcase full, so just try using one that will have less room. You're more likely to be able to carry it on the plane (airlines have limits to carry-on size), and the smaller it is, the easier it will be to cram it into an overhead bin.

If you must check luggage, use suitcases that don't weigh very much to reduce the risk of being charged for overweight luggage.

6) Wear your biggest and heaviest clothes
Even if it'll be a bit warm, wear your jacket on the flight so you don't have to pack it. Planes tend to get cold midflight anyway, so you might need your coat along the journey.

5) Stuff stuff into shoes
Shoes have empty space in them, which is perfect for socks, underwear and the like. Use other hollow spaces, too.

4) Limit toiletries and makeup
Hotels will have shampoo, soap and other basic items. Unless you need your own special stuff, consider leaving it behind. Use two-in-one shampoo and conditioner combos, and keep the makeup to a minimum.

3) Roll up your clothes
The simple act of rolling up clothes makes them more compact and helps prevent wrinkles.

2) Get compression bags
You can put your clothes into bags that help compress them down into a manageable space.

1) Send a package in advance
This can save you money and headaches, depending on your situation. It's a particularly good idea if you want to send presents already wrapped, or if you don't want the hassle of checking a bag or risk it getting lost by the airline.

Monday, June 30, 2008

Friday, June 27, 2008

Is Your Jar Full?

When things in your life seem almost to much to handle, when 24 hours in a
day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar......and the beer.

A Professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front
of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and
empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then
asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

So the Professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the
jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas
between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was
full. They agreed it was.

The Professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of
course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar
was full. The students responded with an unanimous "Yes."

The Professor then produced two cans of beer from under the table and
poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty
space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the Professor, as the laughter subsided, "I want you to
recognize that this jar represents your life.

The golf balls are the important things - your family, your children, your
health, your friends, your favorite passions - things that if everything
else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house,
your car. The sand is everything else - the small stuff."

"If you put the sand into the jar first", he continued, "there is no room
for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all
your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the
things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are
critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get
medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18. There
will always be time to clean the house, and fix the disposal. Take care of
the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities.
The rest is just sand."

When he had finished, there was a profound silence. Then one of the
students raised her hand and with a puzzled expression, inquired what the
beer represented.

The Professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no
matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of
beers."

Thanks: http://www.oceancityfools.com/text/jar.htm

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Got distinction/MS Surface/Your Comments please

Hi! This is a really great day for me. Today, I got distinction for the subject "Character And Narrative Design". I don't have any homeworks to complete today and I'm surfing internet from the morning. I rang all my friends to go playground and play basketball, but no one is free. I think, all of them are busy with their project works, and fortunately/unfortunately, I have done all my projects. They have two more days to complete and submit the projects. Today, Tharshini's turn, so I don't have cooking work also. Tharshini is my room-mate and best friend here and normaly we have a cookining schedule to cook in turn. If any special meal, we cook together. So from the morning, I'm on the internet and browsing youtube videos, updating facebook profile, re-organizing my blog and checking my group mails.

For a very long time, I'm thinking of posting something on my own without coping youtube videos and other stuffs, but failed to get enough time to do so. So I thought in the morning to post a new blog entry and spent more than two hours thinking of what to post. I couldn't really find anything interesting till I read a group mail about microsoft Surface. As soon as I red it, I logged in to blogger and posting this.

It's an amazing thing you can ever find in the computer world. It does everything a super computer does and does its own things. I searched videos related to it on youtube and put it in my last post, check it. It supports for windows vista and you can move and interact all those software elements by you figures. Ok. Rather telling you what I know about it, I'll give you some links where you can check about it.
http://www.microsoft.com/surface/index.html
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2138251,00.asp
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/touch-me/microsoft-surface-confirmed-touch+sensitive-10k-minority-report-table-264338.php
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/317737_msftdevice30.html
http://arstechnica.com/articles/culture/surface.ars

Then again, I didn't write anything about microsoft surface on my own. Indeed, We all have to admit the fact that every single thing we do is done by stealing someone's work or property. I'm going to ask you excuse me by writing one of Albert Einstein's saying.
"A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life are based on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving..."
-Albert Einstein
We just change things, We don't create anything new. Friends! If anyone tell you that he/she created something or made something, just give a kick on their face in my account. We just changing things and making things useful to humans. That's all. Ok. I start to talk like a politician, so let me stop.

It's really boring to blog without any good/bad comments. I've installed a counter for my blog, it shows a big no of visitors, but no one left any comment in my blog. It's kinda sad thing for me and it really discourages me to blog. Please leave some comment, if you read this, so I know, there are real people reading my blog. Ok. I'll meet you back soon with some interesting topics, till that BYE!!

New tecnology by Microsoft "surface computing"

Sunday, June 22, 2008

See things slowly, beautifully

Friday, June 20, 2008

The Apple "i"

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Dia Does Powerful Diagrams and Flowcharts

Open-source application Dia is a robust flowchart and diagram tool. Like a free version of Microsoft Visio, Dia provides you with all the tools you need to create anything from a simple flowchart to a powerful and complex diagram, and files can be saved in many formats, including a Visio Drawing-compatible VDX filetype. Dia is free, Windows and Linux only.

Monday, June 16, 2008

75 Skills Every Woman Should Master

May 15th, 2008 | by Mare |

(The “125 Piece Drill Bit Set” photograph is courtesy of nathansnostalgia).

I found Esquire Magazine’s “75 Skills Every Man Should Master” rather interesting, and I agree with the wisdom of men acquiring almost all of the skills listed therein. After searching for a similar list for women, and not finding any I particularly liked, I decided to create one and post it on my blog. After much deliberation, these are the skills I think it would be useful for women to learn:

1. Learn to take criticism. Women often respond to criticism in one of two ways: they jump to defend themselves and fail to consider whether they’re being offered constructive criticism which could help them, or they take the criticism to heart and feel poorly about themselves as a result. When criticized, pay attention to who the criticism is coming from, the motives the person may have for offering the criticism, and consider whether there is something you can learn from the criticism. If there’s nothing useful for you to learn, then simply brush it off; on the other hand, if you conclude that there may be some truth to what you’re being told, take corrective action.

Criticism is something we can avoid easily by saying nothing, doing nothing, and being nothing. — Aristotle

2. Basic car maintenance. Car maintenance is not the sole domain of men; you probably spend a lot of time in your car and should have at least a basic idea of what’s under the hood. Also, you should know how to change a tire and jump start your car. At the very least do the following: know who to call in case of an emergency; make sure you always have a spare tire that is properly inflated; don’t let the gas go below the one-quarter mark; know how to check the oil and radiator fluid; purchase a first aid kit for your car, as well as a flashlight, jumper cables, flares, and a car charger for your cell phone; also, take your car in for regular maintenance.

(The “Dorothy Sebastian changes a tyre” photograph is courtesy of spiralsheep).

3. Know how to invest intelligently in something, whether it’s stocks, bonds, real estate, precious metals, or whatever you think will be the next equivalent of having bought Microsoft or Google stock when these companies were just getting started.

4. Acquire the skill of communicating assertively. Communicating assertively means that you make sure you’re calm, you know what you want, you speak directly to the person concerned and not behind his/her back, and you communicate your needs and–when appropriate–your feelings in an honest, clear, and direct manner. Do not beat around the bush. At the same time, there’s no need to be confrontational.

5. Know how to use power tools. There are few things more empowering than being able to drill a hole in a wall and hang up pictures on your own.

6. Take a self-defense class that can teach you how to size up a situation and be able to act in the best manner to get away. Hopefully you’ll never, ever, have to use what you learn in the class but knowing that you can defend yourself gives you self-confidence that a would-be attacker can recognize, and which makes them view you as a difficult target.

7. Practice your poker face; don’t let them see you sweat. Emotions are an important component of most social interactions, and being able to communicate your emotions and read the emotions of others effectively will go a long way toward helping you succeed in life. However, there are times when it will be in your best interest not to let others read your emotions. Be prepared for those times by perfecting your poker face. Putting on a poker face doesn’t necessarily mean that you drain your face of all emotion and make it completely expressionless. It means that you act completely natural, as if whatever the situation is, it hasn’t caught you off-guard or thrown you off balance.

8. Learn to smile to show joy or amusement, not to please others. Smiling at the wrong time can signify to others that you’re a push over.

9. Breast self-exams have long been advocated as essential for early breast cancer detection. Learn how and perform one on a monthly basis.

10. Learn to delegate. Always ask yourself whether doing the task that’s in front of you will get you closer to achieving your goals, and whether you’re the right person to take care of said task. If it doesn’t get you closer to your goals and someone else can do it within the range of quality that is required for that particular task, hand it over to them.

11. Bounce right back after a hard fall. Resilience is one of the most important traits you can have to succeed in life. If you think that those who are very successful don’t fail, think again. Often, the higher up someone is, the greater the number of falls they’ve had on their way to the top. The less time you spend wallowing in your loss and the faster you get back up on the horse, the more quickly you can resume your ascent to the zenith.

12. Stick to your guns. They say that a new idea goes through three stages: first it’s ridiculed, then it’s violently opposed, and then everyone thinks that it was obvious. If you believe that you have a great idea, see it through to the end.

“All great truths begin as blasphemies.”
- George Bernard Shaw

13. Be informed. Glance through the newspaper each morning and read the articles that catch your attention more in depth; get CNN breaking news sent to your e-mail address; watch the news on your favorite news channel; and read a periodical such as “Time Magazine” or “Newsweek” every week.

14. Take a compliment: A lot of women respond to receiving a compliment by putting themselves down—“I don’t know how I did it, I guess I just got lucky”-, by pointing out their weaknesses—“Writing is something I do well, but don’t even think of asking me to do anything that involves math, I can barely add”–or by attributing the glory to somebody else—“It was really Jack’s input that made this possible”. Own your accomplishments and simply accept the compliment graciously.

15. Resist the urge to gossip. Gossiping is toxic. In addition, every time you open your mouth, even if you’re talking about somebody else, you’re telling the world who you are. If you gossip you’re telling others that you’re petty, hateful, and insecure.

16. Be passably good in at least one sport—whether it’s jogging, skiing, golf, ice skating, swimming, baseball, basketball, tennis, you name it.

17. Be worldly. Choose a country other than your own and learn not only the language that is spoken there, but also study their customs, their cuisine, their art, their folklore, and their history.

18. Be able to talk intelligently about the environment. At the very least watch “An Inconvenient Truth” , a documentary depicting Al Gore’s crusade to expose the devastating harm we’re doing to the environment, and start taking action to reduce your carbon footprint.

19. Know when, how, and how much to tip in different situations, ranging from taxi drivers and waiters, to bellhops and your hair dresser.

20. Be able to grow and care for something in the plant family, whether it be bonsai trees, roses, tulips, orchids, or even ferns.

21. Have a favorite author and know why he/she is your favorite. (It can be J.K. Rowling, but if you’re over twelve, think carefully about this one). Read every book he/she has ever written and be able to describe his/her writing style and favorite motifs.

22. Be able to do something artistic with your hands, whether it be drawing, creating mandalas, playing a musical instrument, sculpting, beading, knitting, making pottery, or making jewelry.

23. Be able to create a book proposal. Everyone has a book in them, whether it be a children’s book, the biography of someone you admire, a memoir, a collection of short stories, a novel, or even a book filled with interesting photographs you’ve taken with short captions to explain each one.

When she was in her early twenties, the author SARK (Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy), who has written books such as “The Bodacious Book of Succulence” and “Living Juicy”, put an ad in the newspaper that read, “If you make obscene phone calls, call me”. This was the way in which she conducted research for a book she was going to write on obscene phone calls. She even managed to get interviewed by the Washington Post and the New York Post about her “book”, have a meeting with Doubleday’s senior editor, and present a book proposal. Unfortunately, she then proceeded to spend her time partying instead of writing the book, but you get the idea: you can write a book on just about anything.

24. Learn basic CPR– cardiopulmonary resuscitation–and the Heimlich Maneuver. If someone were choking or going into cardiac arrest in front of you, wouldn’t you want to know what to do?

25. Play one card game really well: it can be poker, rummy, bridge, and so on.

26. Learn to sell yourself. Prepare a three minute infomercial about yourself highlighting your most important skills and accomplisments. Then practice it until it sounds natural and unrehearsed when you say it. Important people are very busy, and when you’re face-to-face with one of them you have a very small window of opportunity to make a good and lasting impression.

27. Have a stress management strategy. Studies have shown that almost 90% of illnesses can be traced back to stress. In addition, people who suffer from high levels of stress tend to have trouble sleeping, be overweight, have trouble concentrating, and are easily irritated. Stress management techniques can include: reframing the situation, learning to live in the now, humor, laughter yoga, repeating a mantra, creating rituals, having realistic expectations, and so on.

28. Don’t simply accept what you’re told, go see for yourself. A lot of people –and women are particularly prone to this–go through life without ever questioning what they’re told. Learn to look at everything from several different perspectives and ask yourself what you truly think. Where do you stand on important issues? How do you think things should be done?

29. Learn to be comfortable with ambiguity. The world is not black and white; people are not entirely bad or entirely good; you’ll often run across two proverbs that say exactly the opposite, and both will be right.

“The truth is rarely pure and never simple.” — Oscar Wilde

30. Be able to perform at least one dance style reasonably well: Tango, Merengue, Salsa, Waltz, Belly dance, Ballet, the Polka, Flamenco, Krumping, Lambada, Tap dance, the Foxtrot . . .

(The “Tango Legs” photograph is courtesy of dark_mephi).

31. Have knowledge of mayor artistic movements, major artists, and indispensable masterworks. Art is making a come-back.

32. Learn to regulate your own moods. Being able to self-regulate anger, to bounce back from disappointment, and to shift your focus to a more positive range of feelings when you’re feeling down is vital to your productivity and to your success.

33. Develop your interpersonal skills. Interpersonal skill is the ability to understand other people, to know what motivates them, and to be able to work cooperatively with them. It involves reading other people’s body language, their tone of voice, their gestures, and understanding their style of communication. Daniel Goleman explains in his book “Emotional Intelligence” that rapport “stems from emotional attunement, from the capacity for empathy.”

34. Project strength with your body language. Stand up straight. If you have a tendency to slouch, you can use the following dancer’s trick: run an imaginary cord from the base of your spine, through the spine, up through your neck, and out the top of your head; now pull the imaginary cord upwards and feel your spine straighten. Also, women should try to avoid tilting their head during business conversations since this can signify submission.

35. Hold other people’s gaze. People consider others who hold their gaze during a conversation to be more self-assured, trustworthy, and reliable than those who are constantly looking away. In addition, several coaches suggest the following trick:

Imagine a triangle with the base at the listener’s eyes and the peak in the middle of the forehead: that’s the “business gaze”. This is where you should be concentrating when you want to be taken seriously. On the other hand, if you’re at a social gathering and want to be more flirtatious, imagine an upside-down triangle with the base at the listener’s eyes and the apex at the mouth and concentrate your gaze in that zone.

36. A firm handshake helps make a good first impression. The features that characterize a firm handshake are the strength, duration, and completeness of grip. In addition, refer to #35 above: when you shake hands with someone you should also use eye contact.

37. Stop worrying about what others think of you. The American psychologist Abraham Maslow–noted for his conceptualization of a “hierarchy of human needs”–argued that the self-actualized person is independent of the good opinion of others. Do what you think is right for you and don’t alter your behavior simply to please others.

38. Have a reasonable knowledge of history. To get a good overview of how thought has evolved and how different inventions have affected humanity, I recommend you read “The Discoverers” by Daniel J. Boorstin, as well as “A History of Knowledge” by Charles Van Doren.

39. Know that there are predators. In “Women Who Run With the Wolves”, Clarissa Pinkola Estes explains that all creatures must learn that there are predators out there. In addition, she adds that early training to “be nice” causes many women to ignore their inner alarm system. She goes on to say: “To understand the predator is to become a mature animal who is not vulnerable out of naïveté, inexperience , or foolishness.”

(The “Wolf Menace” photograph is courtesy of Byrd on a Wire).

40. Have a basic knowledge of world geography. Many people have seen the YouTube video of Miss South Carolina during the 2007 Miss Teen USA pageant where she’s asked why she thinks polls show that one-fifth of Americans can’t locate the USA on a map. It’s actually hard to watch. Purchase a World Atlas or at the very least a book such as “Geography for Dummies” to get an adequate overview.

“U.S. high school graduates will: Sell to the world; buy from the world; work for international companies; manage employees from other cultures and countries; collaborate with people all over the world in joint ventures; compete with people on the other side of the world for jobs and markets; and tackle global problems, such as AIDS, avian flu, pollution, and disaster recovery… We need to open global gateways and inspire students to explore beyond their national borders.”” Vivien Stewart, Becoming Citizens of the World, Educational Leadership

41. Adopt a method for connecting with your inner self and getting centered. You can choose from several different methods, including journaling, meditation, tai chi, Qi Gong, yoga, or spending time in nature.

42. Know where your money is going. Create a spending plan (also known as a budget). Keep track of your expenses and make a conscious decision as to how you’re going to spend your money instead of spending it indiscriminately.

43. Learn how to develop a business plan. In “Rich Dad/Poor Dad”, Robert Kiyosaki compares the mindset of his father (”poor dad”)-who held several degrees and an important position in the government, but struggled financially–, with the mindset of his best friend’s father (”rich dad”)–who never even finished high school but left his son a financial empire. “Poor dad” saw his job as his source of income for life and he taught Kiyosaki to depend on his employer for his financial well being. On the other hand, “rich dad” taught Kiyosaki that he should get a job to learn and to acquire the necessary skills so that he could go on to start his own business and become financially independent. Learn to create a business plan so that you can start moving toward financial independence.

44. Learn how to create passive income. Passive income is income that does not require your direct involvement. You make a strong initial effort to get this type of income started, but then you do minimal work thereafter to keep it going. It can be income derived from royalties–for example, you write a book–, income derived from patents–you invent something–, income derived from real estate, and so on. Brian Lee at geniustypes.com swears by bulk candy vending machines to create passive income. There are many ways to create passive income and the key is to be on the look-out for passive income producing opportunities.

45. Learn to be flexible. An example that is often used to illustrate the benefits of flexibility is the bamboo and the oak tree. The strategy of the oak tree is to grow strong and solid to withstand the onslaught of strong winds. The strategy of the bamboo is to stay flexible and to bend with the force of the wind. In a fierce storm the oak tree is often destroyed, while the bamboo–having swayed with the force of the wind–survives.

46. Learn how to make mistakes. Many people attach great stigma to failure and are therefore afraid of making mistakes. However, we need to accept that failing is simply part of the process and we should learn from our mistakes and move on. Think of mistakes as stepping stones on the path to success.

“Punishing honest mistakes stifles creativity. I want people moving and shaking the earth and they’re going to make mistakes.” — Ross Perot

47. Be able to forgive yourself. As Maya Angelou so wisely said, “You did what you knew how to do, and when you knew better, you did better.”

48. Be able to tell if someone is lying (this was taken straight out of Esquire’s list).

49. Have some knowledge of economics, particularly how economic policy affects the wealth of a nation. A good source is the book and DVD, “The Commanding Heights of the Economy.”

50. Know when to cut your losses. The best poker player knows when and how to fold. When the odds say he probably won’t win, he just leaves his money in the pot and lays down his cards. He doesn’t go on throwing money into the pot desperately hoping to salvage the situation. There comes a point where the best thing you can do is to simply cut your losses and move on.

51. Have a Big Vision. No matter how small your domain may be at the present moment, you should set a big, long-term vision for yourself. Come up with a powerful statement of where you are headed and what your life will be about.

“We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not in just some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” — Nelson Mandela

52. Learn to receive. Women are often masters at giving but have a difficult time receiving. The yin and yang of life is to give and receive. Practice receiving by focusing on your breath: everytime you breath in you’re receiving. Accepting gifts, help, and complements from others should be just as easy.

53. Protect Your Computer. Install a virus protection program and once a week do a virus scan and spyware check.

54. Learn to make quick decisions. Make as many on-the-spot decisions as you possibly can, and then move on to the next thing. If you keep postponing making decisions on small things, they’ll accumulate and will end up eating away more of your time than if you had simply made a quick decision for each one. The more decisions you make, the better you’ll get at making them.

55. Learn to negotiate. Negotiating is much more than knowing how to get a good price when you’re buying a car or how to ask for a salary raise; almost everything you do in life involves negotiation. You negotiate with your spouse, with your children, with your friends, with your boss, with your co-workers, and so on. If you learn how to negotiate effectively you can move away from confrontation and toward cooperation. At the same time, good negotiators look for constructive ways to make the pie bigger so that everyone wins in an argument, instead of either forsaking their piece of the pie in order to keep the peace, or taking the pie away from somebody else.

56. Learn to cook at least the basics. Planning your meals in advance and eating at home is good for your wallet and for your health.

57. Speed Reading. We’re all being bombarded with information on a continous basis, a lot of it in written form. There’s the newspaper, the blogs you subscribe to, reports, e-mails, magazines, books, newsletters . . . You need to develop a strategy to get through this reading material quickly with an acceptable level of comprehension and retention. I use PhotoReading which teaches a whole-mind reading system. Among other things, you go through the reading material quickly several times, using a different technique each time. You also read with a purpose so that your mind can help you pick out what is important to you.

58. Time Management Skills. There are countless systems and methods to organize your time. Pick one of the several methods available, learn it, and apply it. You can also study several of the methods available, mix and match, and come up with your own hybrid. Just as by creating a budget you take control over where your money goes, by creating a system for managing your time you take control over where your time goes.

59. Get organized. Getting organized includes decluttering, giving a “home” to each of our belongings, and creating processes so that we know where to put and what to do with all of the items that come into our lives.

“Organizing is the process by which we create environments that enable us to live, work, and relax exactly as we want to. When we are organized, our homes, offices, and schedules reflect and encourage who we are, what we want, and where we are going.” — Julie Morgenstern

60. Create a Sacred Space. In the book “Sacred Spaces”, Denise Linn explains that our homes are symbolic representations of ourselves. Create a sanctuary for yourself and for your loved ones, a place of healing and regeneration.

61. Don’t take things personally. Realize that what others say and do is not because of you, it’s simply a projection of their own reality.

62. Think “Yes” instead of “No”. Imagine “Yes” instead of “No”. Say “Yes” to life instead of saying “No”. The author SARK suggests that you make little signs that say “yes” and post them all over your house.

63. Develop the skill of goal setting. Numerous studies have shown that people who set goals achieve more in life than those who don’t. Use the “SMART” acronym when setting your goals:

- Specific: Don’t just say “I want to lose weight”. Instead, write down something like the following: “Lose 10 pounds in 2 months by following a diet of 2,000 calories a day, jogging for 40 minutes 5 times a week, and lifting weights at the gym 3 times a week.”

- Measurable: Each time you get on the scale you can measure your progress.

- Achievable: While losing 10 pounds in 2 months is achievable for most people, losing 50 pounds in 2 months probably is not.

- Rewarding: Make sure you establish goals because it’s something that you really want, as opposed to setting goals based on things other people want for you.

- Timeline: Things have a tendency not to get done unless there’s a clear deadline. In our example, “2 months” is a clearly delimited time period for accomplishing the goal of losing 10 pounds.

64. Think creatively. The world needs people who are willing to look at problems from a different perspective, to ask how things can be made better, to look for different alternatives, and to come up with new solutions and novel ways of doing things.

65. Take smart risks. I once read that most people don’t play to win, they play not to lose. What if you stopped playing it safe? What if you risked making a fool of yourself, being ridiculed, and perhaps falling a couple of notches down the ladder you’ve been steadily climbing, for the opportunity of winning at the game of life?

66. Nurture others. This is a skill that a lot of women have down pat. However, it’s an important skill and worth mentioning. Mother Theresa was a big proponent of the concept that people need to feel cared for as much as they need food, shelter, and water.

67. Nurture yourself. You’re not doing anyone any favors–least of all yourself–by failing to take good care of yourself. Make sure that you take time to eat well, exercise, and have some time to yourself to get in the tub and read your favorite magazine, go for a walk, or spend a couple of hours at a spa. When you get on an airplane the stewardess always explains during the safety presentation that, in case of an emergency, you should put your oxygen mask on first, and then help your children or those around you with theirs. Likewise, you have to take good care of yourself first, so that you can give your very best to your loved ones.

68. Set clear boundaries. Setting clear boundaries has many different connotations, two of the main ones being the following:

-First, there’s a time and place for everything. There’s a time for work, and there’s a time for relaxation. When you get home from work you should drop everything related to your work before you walk in the door. If you work at home you need to make the boundary between work and relaxation even stronger. You can create a ritual of washing your hands and face when you’re ready to transition from work to relaxation, changing your clothes, or anything else that helps send a signal to your mind that it’s time to shift gears.

-Second, set clear boundaries on your time. Do not allow yourself to be interrupted when you’re in the middle of important work and do not commit yourself to doing things you don’t want to do.

69. Learn to network. Networking is the most important way of fostering relationships and business contacts. Being a good networker means that you have a wide circle of people from whom to get information and call on for help, and with whom you can share ideas.

70. Trust your intuition. Intuition is when you know something without being sure how you know it. If you’re not comfortable with the notion of a sixth sense, then simply think of intuition as the triggering of the cumulative experiences and knowledge that you’ve gathered through the years.

71 - 75. Be authentic; Set your own agenda instead of being pulled into the agenda of others; Break the rules; Do the unexpected; Be unforgettable.

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Barry Schwartz: The paradox of choice

See this video; Really Nice


Very Talented Bass Guitarist

Ten Rules for Being Human by Cherie Carter-Scott

  1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it's yours to keep for the entire period.
  2. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called, "life."
  3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial, error, and experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiments that ultimately "work."
  4. Lessons are repeated until they are learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can go on to the next lesson.
  5. Learning lessons does not end. There's no part of life that doesn't contain its lessons. If you're alive, that means there are still lessons to be learned.
  6. "There" is no better a place than "here." When your "there" has become a "here", you will simply obtain another "there" that will again look better than "here."
  7. Other people are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.
  8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.
  9. Your answers lie within you. The answers to life's questions lie within you. All you need to do is look, listen, and trust.
  10. You will forget all this.

Friday, May 30, 2008

Dalai Lama: Instructions For Life

  • Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
  • When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
  • Follow the three res. Respect for self, Respect for others, and Responsibility for all your actions.
  • Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
  • Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
  • Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
  • When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
  • Spend some time alone every day.
  • Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
  • Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
  • Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
  • A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.
  • In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.
  • Share your knowledge. It's a way to achieve immortality.
  • Be gentle with the earth.
  • Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.
  • Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
  • Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
  • Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.

Monday, May 26, 2008

Obituary

Today we mourn the passing of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No one knows for sure how old he was since his birth records were long ago lost in bureaucratic red tape.

He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable lessons as knowing when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm, life isn't always fair, and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn) and reliable parenting strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

His health began to deteriorate rapidly when well intentioned but overbearing regulations were set in place. Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for doing the job they themselves failed to do in disciplining their unruly children. It declined even further when schools were required to get parental consent to administer Panadol, sun lotion or a Band-Aid to a student but could not inform the parents when a student became pregnant or wanted to have an abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments became contraband, churches became businesses, and criminals received better treatment than their victims.

Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you for assault.

Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by three stepbrothers; I Know My Rights, Someone Else is to Blame, and I'm A Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.

If you still remember him, pass this on. If not, join the majority and do nothing.

Thanks: http://mbm.net.au/health/obituary.html

Monday, May 19, 2008

Music using ONLY sounds from Windows XP and 98!

Water Filter

World's Largest Swimming Pool








If you like doing laps in the swimming pool, you might want to stock up on the energy drinks before diving in to this one.

It is more than 1,000 yards long, covers 20 acres, has a 115-foot deep end, and holds 66 million gallons of water.

The Guinness Book of Records has named the vast pool beside the sea in Chile as the biggest in the world.

But if you fancy splashing out on one of your own -- and you have the space to accommodate it -- then beware: this one took five years to build, cost nearly 1 billion, and the annual maintenance bill will be 2 million.

The man-made saltwater lagoon has been attracting huge crowds to the San Alfonso del Mar resort at Algarrobo, on Chile 's southern coast, since it opened last month.

Its turquoise waters are so crystal clear that you can see the bottom even in the deep end.

It dwarfs the world's second biggest pool, the Orthlieb -- nicknamed the Big Splash -- in Morocco , which is a mere 150 yards long and 100 yards wide. An Olympic size pool measures some 50 yards by 25 yards.

Chile's monster pool uses a computer-controlled suction and filtration system to keep fresh seawater in permanent circulation, drawing it in from the ocean at one end and pumping it out at the other.

The sun warms the water to 26c, nine degrees warmer than the adjoining sea.

Chilean biochemist Fernando Fischmann, whose Crystal Lagoons Corporation designed the pool, said advanced engineering meant his company could build "an impressive artificial paradise" even in inhospitable areas.

"As long as we have access to unlimited seawater, we can make it work, and it causes no damage to the ocean."

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Thursday, May 1, 2008

I'm wating


I'm really really really really bored and I'm waiting my dad to come. What else, I can possibly do? I want to kill the person who made this world. ha ha. Today May 1st and I'm so bored in colombo. Hey. Why don't you people comment on my posts?

Labour Day

I don't know how to celebrate this labours' day but I would like to congratulate all the real workers;

Workers of the world, awaken!
Rise in all your splendid might
Take the wealth that you are making,
It belongs to you by right.
No one will for bread be crying
We'll have freedom, love and health,
When the grand red flag is flying
In the Workers' Commonwealth.

I'm a hard worker, i guess. So took a leave today to celebrate this day.:P Ohhhhhhh That's a my kind of stupid joke. I'm just a jobless@ home:P

Top-50 Websites - Ranked by Unique Visitors

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Nice Drum Machine

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

I'm starting to log my dreams on blogger

hi people! this is really cool to blog everthing i think or everything i go through. now i'm one the them, millions of those who blog. i'm really excited! ok. let me explain myself. i'm jekananthini from sri lanka. my main interests are listen to songs, watching cartoons, playing table tennis, browsing internet, chatting with friends & graphic designing(mostly photoshop). i'm doing BSc in Multimedia Computing. now i'm in vacation.

i'm thinking to publish interesting things i do and interesting thing i find online. most importantly, my dreams and my efforts to make each of those true. please comment my each posts. your comments will encourage me to post more... thanks for your visit to my blog.

Blogs I read!