Red rain in Kerala Samples of a red rain that fell across the state of Kerala in India in July-August 2001 have been found to contain microscopic red cells (Louis and Kumar, 2006) of unknown origin. The early fall was associated with the 'thunder' and flash of a large meteor. They report that the cells appear to be very unusual in lacking a nucleus and DNA. Dr. High resolution electron microscopy has revealed internal structures as well as evidence of a replication cycle not commonly found in either bacteria or yeasts. The first (above) shows three cells around 3 micrometres in diameter, with thick cell walls and a variety of nanostructures within a membrane, but with no identifiable nucleus. The second picture shows a cell with shrunken membrane containing 'daughters' - two have well-defined cell walls while the third structure may be a further daughter in the process of development. Further work in progress has yeilded positive for DNA using DAPI staining in the cells and daughters. References
Google AdSense Optimization Tips - Presentation AdSense Optimization Tips: With Google AdSense, one should never feel complacent because there’s always a chance to improve your AdSense earnings provided you are willing to experiment. I discussed a couple of “AdSense Optimization Tips” at the recently concluded WordCamp conference. The session was primarily focused at improving the performance of your Google ads though I did touch upon topics like “AdSense Alternatives” and “Getting direct advertisers”. You may also download the full presentation (PDF) for offline viewing. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. The CPM of ad units will decrease as you come the page but that may not be the case with link units – they are small, text based, can fit in even small locations and perform brilliant. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. Also see: How to Enable Analytics in AdSense 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. With Google AdSense, one should never feel complacent because there’s always a chance to improve earnings provided you are willing to experiment.
Home Page Design Guidelines Summary: A company's homepage is its face to the world and the starting point for most user visits. Improving your homepage multiplies the entire website's business value, so following key guidelines for homepage usability is well worth the investment. Homepages are the most valuable real estate in the world. Each year, companies and individuals funnel millions of dollars through a space that's not even a square foot in size. For good reason. The homepage is the most important page on most websites, and gets more page views than any other page. Following are ten things you can do to increase the usability of your homepage and thus enhance your website's business value. Make the Site's Purpose Clear: Explain Who You Are and What You Do 1. Start the page with a tagline that summarizes what the site or company does, especially if you're new or less than famous. 2. Begin the TITLE tag with the company name, followed by a brief description of the site. 3. Help Users Find What They Need 4.
Designing For Clients Made Easy So you’ve done the marketing, found the client, signed the deal. Now you only have to do the work! This article isn’t going to focus on selling your services or the actual design process or even Photoshop techniques, but all the obstacles (and there are a lot) that many of us run into while trying to complete a project for a client. You are going to be working with your clients for quite some time. How does the process of working with clients affect your business? Client referral – if you work well with your clients, they are more likely to refer you to their friends.Time – if you reduce the amount of time you spend "dealing" with clients, the quicker you can complete projects and work on others.Stress – the less you have, the happier you will be! Be A Pro One of the first and most important things you should establish is respect and professionalism. Now, before you laugh, I recognize this isn’t likely at all. Set Realistic Expectations The Development Process A Timeline Research
Home in praise of sardines: Whipping chocolate through Molecular Gastronomy My brother and I are complete opposites. I'm the artist, he's the math geek. I don't own a TV, he has one in every room - even the bathroom. In my free time, I read up on how to improve my paella. The family mythology says that my brother, who dashed from house to house pushing door bells while I was in a stroller, has known since he was 4 years old that he wanted to be a computer engineer. Given my lack of interest in science, it may come as a surprise that I snapped up Hervé This' book Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavor the second it was translated into English. The most famous innovators of the Molecular Gastronomy movement reside not in the Professor's France, but across the border in Spain in the kitchens of El Bulli, Arzak, El Celler de Can Roca, and elsewhere. I enjoyed the premise and promise of the Professor's book more than the reality. I ought to disclose one other bit of information. Chantilly Chocolate The Professor warns that 3 problems can occur.
15 Valuable Usability PDFs You Never Heard Of Here’s a list of 15 valuable Usability Papers in PDF form that you might not have heard of, but should know and can use: I thought I’d list a few helpful papers I use from time to time when going about my usability work. Some of these you may have heard of, some not. I think you’ll find these very helpful from time to time. This list is not meant to be comprehensive, rather, it’s the list of the most thumb-worn papers I leaf through when needed. They are all free, and are publicly available. If you have a special usability PDF you find extremely helpful and it’s not listed here please do share them in the Comments (go ahead, share them right now), that way we can all grow smarter about usability together! I hope you find these helpful! Research-Based Web Design & Usability Guidelines by the U.S. Usability.gov should be in any usability fan’s list. How well do web site usability questionnaires apply to the assessment of websites? Why Johnny Can’t Encrypt by Whitten and Tygar (1999) Google+
113 Design Guidelines for Homepage Usability (Nielsen Norman Group) Topics Author Recent Articles Popular Articles Subscribe to: While many of these guidelines can apply to web design in general, they are especially critical to follow when designing your homepage, because the stakes are so high. Even small changes to homepages can have drastic effects. While we encourage you to use these guidelines as a checklist when designing your homepage, recognize that they are written in an abbreviated manner here. All said, these are just guidelines, not axioms. What's Not in These Guidelines In an effort to limit the focus specifically to homepage guidelines, there are several important issues we do not address. Determining Homepage Content One of the most important design decisions for any homepage is determining what content merits homepage coverage. There are several usability methods that can identify and prioritize users' needs based on real data and observation. General Web Design Vertical Industry Segments We cannot provide a set of generic vertical guidelines.
How to Write a Thank-You Note, by Leslie Harpold Question: I have a crushing inability to write proper thank-you notes. Can you offer me some guidelines? —Helen Answer: I was wondering when you were going to ask that question, and frankly, I’m a little disappointed it took you so long. Somewhere in between your mom making you sit down with your Peanuts® stationery and you shooting off an email, you completely lost touch with the concept of simple thank-you notes. Grandma might not say anything to you, but trust me: She and her friends are probably at this very moment sighing over how young people today just don’t have manners. As extra motivation, I will also grudgingly tell you the hidden secret of thank-you notes: They improve the frequency and quality of the gifts you receive. I assure you, writing thank-yous is easier than you remember. If you want to know when you get a genuine pass on writing a note, the litmus test is simple: Do I live under the same roof as the giver? 1. Dear Aunt Sally, 2. Thank you so much for the slippers. 3.
Official Google Webmaster Central Blog Martial Artists' Moves Revealed in "Fight Science" Lab August 14, 2006 They can crush a stack of concrete slabs with a bare fist, walk with catlike balance on a bamboo pole, and generate deadly kicks and punches at lightning-fast speeds. Real-life martial artists have long defied what many people would think is humanly possible, and their seemingly superpowered abilities have inspired generations of movies and television shows. But where do the true skills end and the special effects begin? Maybe Hollywood magic doesn't enter the equation as soon as you think. For the upcoming television special, Fight Science, researchers used high-tech equipment to put real martial artists to the test. (National Geographic News is a division of the National Geographic Society, which is part owner of the National Geographic Channel.) The action took place inside a specially designed film studio that is part laboratory and part dojo, a school for training in the various arts of self-defense. Inside the Dojo
Usability On The Cheap and Easy Writing code? That's the easy part. Getting your application in the hands of users, and creating applications that people actually want to use — now that's the hard stuff. I've been a long time fan of Krug's book Don't Make Me Think. Beyond getting people over the hurdle of at least paging through the Krug book, and perhaps begrudgingly conceding that this usability stuff matters, the next challenge is figuring out how to integrate usability testing into your project. Don't worry, Krug's book is just as usable as his advice. Usability testing is one of the best things people can do to improve Web sites (or almost anything they're creating that people have to interact with).Since most organizations can't afford to hire someone to do testing for them on a regular basis, everyone should learn to do it themselves. If you're wondering what the beginner's "how do I boil water?" That's where Eyetracking Web Usability comes in. Usability isn't really cheap or easy.