VIDEO: Americans Ignorant as Europeans Protest US Wars While Americans struggle to answer how long the US has been in Iraq or Afghanistan, how much money has been spent, and how many lives lost, Europeans feeling the cost of US wars at home take to the streets in protest. In the US, despite two combat missions costing thousands of lives, more than a trillion dollars, and nearly ten years, for many average Americans the realities of US wars aren’t hitting home. “I’m trying to think Afghanistan, Iraq, I don’t know if it’s over or still going,” said Rene Moreno when interviewed on the street in Times Square, a California resident visiting New York. The details, for instance, how long the US has been fighting in Afghanistan aren’t known. “Why you come and ask me a question like that,” laughed New Yorker who identified herself simply as Karen, “I don’t know.” And the consequences aren’t quantifiable. The wars don’t rate high with Americans as the biggest problems facing the country. Apparently in turn, so too have viewers.
6 Ways to Hook Your Readers Although I consider myself an avid reader, I must admit I have a short attention span when it comes to getting into books. If you fail to grab my attention in the first few lines, I start spacing out. Most readers are like me. Most people don’t want to spend the first 50 pages trying to get into a book. Here are a few things I find annoying in the first lines of a story: Dialogue. The last thing you want to do as a writer is annoy or bore people. (N.B. 1. Put a question in your readers’ minds. “Those old cows knew trouble was coming before we did.” 2. By starting at an important moment in the story, your reader is more likely to want to continue so he or she can discover what will happen next. “It was dark where she was crouched but the little girl did as she’d been told.” 3. Description is good when it encourages people to paint a picture in their minds. “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.” 4. 5. “They had flown from England to Minneapolis to look at a toilet.” 6.
New Hypothesis for Human Evolution and Human Nature & Eberly College of Science Click on image for a high-resolution version. Domestic animals, like this water buffalo in Viet Nam, live intimately with humans and provide renewable resources to humans that communicate well with them. Photo by Greg Luna. 20 July 2010 — It's no secret to any dog-lover or cat-lover that humans have a special connection with animals. "Establishing an intimate connection to other animals is unique and universal to our species," said Shipman, a professor of biological anthropology. In addition to describing her theory in the scientific paper, Shipman has authored a book for the general public, now in press with W. These carvings are from ivory and have been dated to between 30,000 - 36,000 years old, making them the oldest artworks in Europe. Shipman suggests that the animal connection was prompted by the invention of stone tools 2.6-million years ago. Click on image for high-resolution version. [ Kevin Stacey ]
Why Is America In So Many Wars? | Atlantic Free Press - Hard Truths for Hard Times by Sherwood Ross America is “a nation that seeks war” and if it doesn’t change it could end up destroying itself, a law school dean warns. Given all the wars the United States has waged, “It is preposterous but true that we do not see ourselves as a nation that seeks war,” writes Lawrence Velvel, dean of the Massachusetts School of Law at Andover. Since World War Two, an indisputably necessary conflict, Velvel points out the U.S. has fought the Korean War, the Viet Nam War, secret wars in Laos and Cambodia, the First Gulf War, Afghanistan, and the Second Gulf War in Iraq. “If the United States were a man instead of a country, we would say he must be schizophrenic, or at minimum deeply mentally disturbed, to believe he is peace loving in the face of a record like this,” Velvel writes in “The Long Term View,” a journal of informed opinion published by his law school. Not only do Americans always appear to be at war but they believe they fight only in good causes, he writes. by Mickey Z.
Creative Writing Exercises -- Creative Writing Exercises for Craft No matter what stage you're at with your writing, it's always beneficial to work on craft and technique. These creative writing exercises target common problems and weaknesses. Switch Point of View Both first person and third person have their strengths and weaknesses; what works for one story may not work for another. This creative writing exercise will help you observe the effect of writing in the point of view that's less familiar to you. A Day Without Modifiers While modifiers -- adjectives and adverbs -- can add to a story, too many, or the wrong ones, can bog down your prose and lead to weaker nouns and verbs. Avoid Back Story Unlike the other creative writing exercises on this list, this one asks you to work in another genre. Listening for Dialogue Not everyone starts out with an ear for dialogue, but fortunately it can be developed, like any other skill. Description Creative Writing Exercise Who's the most memorable person you've ever met?
- StumbleUpon Studies have shown that meditating regularly can help relieve symptoms in people who suffer from chronic pain, but the neural mechanisms underlying the relief were unclear. Now, MIT and Harvard researchers have found a possible explanation for this phenomenon. In a study published online April 21 in the journal Brain Research Bulletin, the researchers found that people trained to meditate over an eight-week period were better able to control a specific type of brain waves called alpha rhythms. “These activity patterns are thought to minimize distractions, to diminish the likelihood stimuli will grab your attention,” says Christopher Moore, an MIT neuroscientist and senior author of the paper. “Our data indicate that meditation training makes you better at focusing, in part by allowing you to better regulate how things that arise will impact you.” A 1966 study showed that a group of Buddhist monks who meditated regularly had elevated alpha rhythms across their brains.
About Sociological Images Sociological Images is designed to encourage all kinds of people to exercise and develop their sociological imagination by presenting brief sociological discussions of compelling and timely imagery that spans the breadth of sociological inquiry. Please friend us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter, Tumblr, or Pinterest. About the Site Sociological Images encourages all kinds of people to exercise and develop their sociological imagination by presenting brief discussions of compelling and timely imagery that span the breadth of sociological inquiry. Consisting of an archive of almost 5,000 posts, the website receives about 500,000 visits per month and is followed, additionally, by over 40,000 via Facebook, 15,000 on Twitter, and 10,000 on our 25+ Pinterest boards. Accolades Principal Author Lisa Wade, PhD, holds an M.S. and Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and an M.A. in Human Sexuality from New York University. Contributors
How to Write Without Colour As writers, we rely on our unique ability to convey the visual world in words. We conjure images in the minds of readers about lush green fields, grey, decaying buildings, or velvety red berries ripe for picking. But how do you describe green when you’ve never actually seen green? How do you create words that move people when you don’t see the world the same way they do? How do you network and expand your business when you can’t make eye contact? You think you’re writing project is hard? I’m Steff, a legally blind writer and blogger. Rod cells are extremely sensitive to light, so on bright days or when surrounded by white, I see the world like an over-exposed black and white film. People frequently tell me they feel sorry for me – they couldn’t imagine a world without color. We’re all presented with unique challenges, and we define ourselves by how we choose to meet them. Develop an attitude. I’m no Glenn Benton, but I decided it was time I acted a little more heavy metal.
47 Mind-Blowing Psychology-Proven Facts You Should Know About Yourself - StumbleUpon I’ve decided to start a series called 100 Things You Should Know about People. As in: 100 things you should know if you are going to design an effective and persuasive website, web application or software application. Or maybe just 100 things that everyone should know about humans! The order that I’ll present these 100 things is going to be pretty random. So the fact that this first one is first doesn’t mean that’s it’s the most important.. just that it came to mind first. Dr. <div class="slide-intro-bottom"><a href="
30 Useful iPad Apps for Business & Presentation Apple sold more than 1 million copies of iPads in the first 3 months. This gadget is definitely more than just a larger version of iPhone or iPod touch. With 4x the screen of an iPhone, the iPad’s display is ideal for reading and for presentations. In today’s post, we’d like to highlight some really useful iPad applications that might replace the things you do daily with your laptop or netbook. Full list after jump. Presentations KeynoteKeynote is the most powerful presentation app ever designed for a mobile device. CorkulousCorkulous is incredible idea board for iPad to collect, organize, and share your ideas that feel completely natural. Power Presenter This application is used for Presentation. Sadun’s WhiteboardTransform your iPad into a presentation screen with Whiteboard. Graph, Charts, Diagram & Statistic Analytics HDThe premier app for Google Analytics, Analytics App, now debuts on the iPad as Analytics HD! Idea BoardsA simple easy way to put your ideas somewhere. Planning Meetings
Crew 2000 | Drugs A-Z | Drugs information, advice &support, Scotland, UK N.B. This information has been collated from a variety of sources including expert users from UK and Europe, information obtained from users at outreach events, surveys and questionnaires and information from users via relevant websites and drug forums. This information is to be used as a rough guide only and Crew cannot vouch that all information is factual as little is known about the substance and much of the information has been obtained from service users reports. Appearance Most commonly sold in Scotland in white powder or crystal form. Background Naphyrone (often sold as NRG‐1) is often marketed as a mephedrone replacement. Price Internet prices for powder form are £10‐20 depending on quantity purchased and vendor. Route of consumption: Nasal (snorted with straw or banknote). Dosage Light: 10mg - 20mgTypical: 20mg ‐ 30mgStrong: 30mg‐50mg Onset of effects: 5‐10 min (nasal), 30mins‐1 hour (oral) Duration of effects: 30mins‐ 2 hours (nasal), up to 4 hours (oral) Patterns of use Physical effects