tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27782469855142993732024-03-14T02:17:39.935-05:00Shub's ThoughtsMusings from my meanderings.tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.comBlogger5718125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-44633828741577786192020-10-30T14:51:00.002-05:002020-10-30T14:51:17.535-05:00Happy Friday<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Happiness is like
lightening, it causes smiles to rain down on all who see it.</span></p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">
<br />
<i>Every day try to be somebody's rainbow, especially on a Happy
Friday!</i></span>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-51287146848075305442020-10-30T14:50:00.002-05:002020-10-30T14:50:19.953-05:00Origin of NEWS<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">It does not derive from </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">the four cardinal directions.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The word news can be
traced back to late Middle English around the 14th century as a
plural for the adjective “new” or “new thing”. This is a
somewhat rare instance of an English adjective becoming a noun
when made plural. Making this leap from “new” to “news” in
English is thought to have been influenced by the Old French
“nouveau”, meaning “new”.<br />
<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Before the 14th century, instead of using the word “news”,
English speakers typically used the word “tidings”, more or less
meaning the “announcement of an event”. This Middle English
version started before the 11th century and stems from the Old
English term “tidung” meaning “Event, occurrence, or a piece of
news.”</span> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-35833315086117684962020-10-30T14:48:00.005-05:002020-10-30T14:48:58.212-05:00Mouth and Taste Facts<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">There are about 9,000 taste buds on the surface of
the tongue, in the throat, and on the roof of the mouth. Taste
buds contain chemoreceptors that respond to chemicals from food
and other substances that are dissolved by the saliva in the
mouth.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Our mouths produces 1
liter (1.8 pints) of saliva a day. We each produce about 10,000
gallons of saliva in a lifetime. Saliva is required for taste.
Until food is dissolved by saliva, we cannot taste it.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The average American
eats 50 tons of food and drinks 50,000 liters (11,000 gallons)
of liquid during his life. It also takes food seven seconds to
go from the mouth to the stomach via the esophagus.</span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-65407170387872387082020-10-30T14:47:00.003-05:002020-10-30T14:47:36.057-05:00Origin of Broad<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Broad, as referring to a woman rather than
something with great breadth, has less certain origins. It first
popped up being used this way in the early 20th century.
Theories as to its origin include simply referencing a woman’s
broad hips, or perhaps from the American English “abroadwife,”
which was a term for a slave woman, or just a woman who was
separated from her husband.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Another popular theory
is that it came from a slang term for a ticket, such as a train
ticket, a meal ticket, a sporting event admission ticket, etc.
This slang term became common around 1912 and by 1914 “broad”
was being used, among other things, to refer to a prostitute,
thus a pimp’s “meal ticket”.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">“Broad” possibly came
to mean “ticket”, from the 18th century practice of sometimes
calling playing cards “broads”. This derives from the fact that
in the early 20th century, many types of tickets often resembled
playing cards. <br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">This theory is attested
in the 1914 work A Vocabulary of Criminal Slang, by Jackson and
Hellyer where they define Broad as: Noun, Current among genteel
grafters chiefly. A female confederate; a female companion, a
woman of loose morals.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">When “broad” first
showed up as referring to a woman, it generally was used to
signify a prostitute or immoral women. This gradually changed
somewhat in the century since with “broad” slowly coming to be
less used as a derogatory term and more used just to be
synonymous with “woman”. One of the earliest instances of this
was in the 1932 “Guys and Dolls”, where one characters refers to
another as a broad without any negative connotation.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">In the cases of “broad”
and “slut”, there have also been recent efforts to “take back”
the terms and spin them in a more positive light. For instance,
in A Dictionary of Words About Women, by Jane Mills, a broad is
defined as “a woman who is liberal, tolerant, unconfined, and
not limited or narrow in scope.” “Slut”, while still retaining
the same modern “loose woman” connotation, has begun to be a
label worn proudly in some circles, though not without
controversy.</span> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-30537554400117301972020-10-30T14:45:00.004-05:002020-10-30T14:45:54.249-05:00Laughter<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Study
after study has pointed to the health benefits of laughter:
Research from Loma Linda University showed that laughing
improved the memory of adults in their 60s and 70s. University
of Maryland School of Medicine researchers found that hilarious
movies improved the function of blood vessels and increased
blood flow in a group of 20 thirty-somethings. Other research
has shown that laughing can improve immunity, help regulate
blood sugar levels, and improve sleep.</span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-42028011118492132912020-10-30T14:44:00.005-05:002020-10-30T14:44:54.208-05:00Charlie Brown Fun Facts<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Charlie Brown was modeled after Charles Schulz.
“We always say that each of the characters represents a piece of
our dad,” Craig Schulz, Charles’ son, says in a new book about
the production of the new movie, The Art and Making of the
Peanuts Movie. “Charlie Brown was his real self, while Snoopy
was what he wanted to be.”</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">There are 17,897
Peanuts comic strips. They ran between 1950 and 2000, each one
drawn by Schulz. Schulz died from colon cancer at age 77, the
day before the last original strip ran.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Charles Schulz did not
choose the name Peanuts (nor did he like it). Charlie Brown
first appeared as a character in a comic strip called Li'l
Folks, but when Schulz approached the United Feature Syndicate
about a publishing deal in 1950, the syndication service thought
the name was too close to two other comics it ran at the time,
and changed it to Peanuts. Schulz never liked the new name; he
thought it "made it sound too insignificant."</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Iconic Peanuts
characters like Lucy and Linus didn’t show up until years into
the comic. The Peanuts gang in CGI in The Peanuts Movie (2015).
Design by Tyler Carter, Color by Robert MacLenzie. © 2015
Peanuts Worldwide LLC. © 2015 Twentieth Century Fox Film
Corporation. All rights reserved.<br />
<br />
The first Peanuts strip featured Shermy, Patty (a separate
character from Peppermint Patty), and Charlie Brown. It ran in
seven newspapers in October 1950.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">In the early Peanuts
strips, Lucy was younger than Charlie Brown. In her first comic
strip in March 1952, Lucy was a toddler. Later, Schulz decided
to make her Charlie Brown’s peer. Lucy would later be the
character to observe “Happiness is a warm puppy” in an April
1960 strip.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Linus did not speak for
the first two years of Peanuts strips. He appeared as Lucy’s
security-blanketed younger brother in September 1952, but did
not get a line in the comic until 1954.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Franklin’s first
appearance in the Peanuts comic was in July 1968. In it,
Franklin recovers Charlie Brown’s lost beach ball. At the time,
Franklin’s inclusion was seen as controversial, and Schulz
received letters complaining about the character.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Snoopy has his own star
on the Hollywood walk of fame, right next to Schulz's.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Schroeder loves
Beethoven (and his house at 1770 James Street is a nod to the
composer’s birth year) but the first piece he played in the
strip was Sergei Rachmaninoff’s "Prelude in G Minor."</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">In most of the Peanuts
comics, Marcie has no eyes. Marcie’s glasses mask her eyes
throughout most of the original comic, only appearing in rare
moments, like a May 1980 strip where Peppermint Patty tries to
convince her to wear her glasses on top of her head.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The little red-haired
girl is never fully seen in the Peanuts comic strip. The daily
strip only showed the object of Charlie Brown’s affections once,
in silhouette, in 1998. He did get to meet her in the television
special 'It’s Your First Kiss, Charlie Brown', which aired in
1977.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Snoopy has five
siblings. Spike was the first Snoopy brother, introduced in 1975
and named after Charles Schulz’s childhood pup. Snoopy’s other
siblings include Marbles, Olaf, Andy, and his only sister,
Belle.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">If you look closely,
you will notice that Snoopy’s eyes are on the same side of his
nose. It looks natural in the comic, but was a particular
challenge to animate in 3D.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Even the U.S. Postal
Service loves A Charlie Brown Christmas. In 2015, to mark the
65th anniversary of the comic and the 50th anniversary of the
television special, the USPS released Forever Stamps with images
like Snoopy ice skating, Linus kneeling with the Christmas tree,
and Charlie Brown checking the mail for a Christmas card. The
Peanuts gang also got a commemorative stamp from the USPS in
2001.</span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-637521750883833412020-10-30T14:42:00.000-05:002020-10-30T14:42:23.164-05:00What's in a Name, Quokka<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The quokka (its name rhymes with mocha) is the
happiest animal. They are not only always smiling, but they are
also one of the friendliest animals toward humans. Many people
outside of Australia had never heard of the quokka, a
Muppet-cute marsupial with an irresistible smile.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">These social
plant-eaters hang out in clans, munch on swamp peppermint and
other greens, store fat in their tails for lean times, dig
tunnels through vegetation for napping and hiding, and hop like
kangaroos, a close relative (along with wallabies).</span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-51444233269932848292020-10-30T14:27:00.001-05:002020-10-30T14:27:36.042-05:00More Internet Statistics<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Over 80% of internet users use mobile devices
to surf the web.</span></p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">
83% of mobile users expect a flawless experience whenever
they visit a website with any mobile device.<br />
Up to 70 percent of web traffic comes from mobile devices.<br />
95.1% of active Facebook traffic comes from mobile devices.<br />
57% of LinkedIn traffic comes from mobile.<br />
Mobile devices are responsible for more than 70% of watch
time on YouTube.<br />
90% of Twitter views happen on mobile.<br />
Google is responsible for 96% of search traffic coming from
mobile.<br />
80% of Alexa’s top-ranked websites are mobile-friendly.</span>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-39756165702817096712020-10-09T14:52:00.000-05:002020-10-09T14:52:03.811-05:00Smile Facts<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> “In our research we found that when you forcefully practice
smiling, it stimulates the amygdala, the emotional center of the
brain, which releases neurotransmitters to encourage an
emotionally positive state,” an artificial cognition expert
explains.<br />
<br />
“For mental health, this has interesting implications. If we can
trick the brain into perceiving stimuli as ‘happy,’ then we can
potentially use this mechanism to help boost mental health.”
Social smiles use only the mouth muscles. True smiles, known as
Duchenne smiles, cause the eyes to twinkle and narrow and the
cheeks to rise.</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">“Spontaneously produced
facial expressions of emotion of both congenitally and
non-congenitally blind individuals are the same as for sighted
individuals in the same emotionally evocative situations.” said
study author David Matsumoto, PhD, of San Francisco State
University. “We also see that blind athletes manage their
expressions in social situations the same way sighted athletes
do.”<br />
<br />
Seventeen studies provided evidence that blind and sighted
spontaneously produce the same pattern of facial expressions,
even if some variations can be found, reflecting facial and body
movements specific to blindness or differences in intensity and
control of emotions in some specific contexts. This suggests
that lack of visual experience seems to not have a major impact
when this behavior is because blind individuals cannot, from
birth or shortly thereafter, see others’ expressions; they
cannot learn to produce expressions by modeling.<br />
<br />
Results provided evidence that visual experience is not
necessary to spontaneously produce adequate facial expressions
for basic emotions such as happiness, anger, and fear.<br />
<br />
When our brains feel happy, endorphins are produced and neuronal
signals are transmitted to your facial muscles to trigger a
smile. When our smiling muscles contract, they fire a signal
back to the brain, stimulating our reward system, and further
increasing our level of happy hormones, or endorphins.</span></p><p> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-70665778349163313592020-10-09T14:50:00.003-05:002020-10-09T14:50:36.855-05:00Costco Discounts<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Ten retailers will price match Costco, and all you need to do
is show proof of price, such as the Costco flyer from the mail
or the website.<br />
<br />
Kohl’s<br />
Best Buy<br />
Fry’s Electronics<br />
Lowe’s<br />
Staples<br />
Petsmart<br />
Petco<br />
Sears<br />
Target<br />
JCPenney</span> <br /></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-64252506309413082492020-10-09T14:49:00.004-05:002020-10-09T14:49:35.640-05:00Ten Interesting Facts<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Finland is the world's happiest country, according
to the 2019 World Happiness Report.<br />
<br />
McDonald's buys about 2 billion eggs every year for their U.S.
restaurants alone.</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">1 billion hours of
video are watched on YouTube every day.<br />
<br />
Japan has more than 50,000 people who are over 100 years old.<br />
<br />
Japan consists of over 6,800 islands.<br />
<br />
The key to happiness is spending your money on experiences
rather than possessions, according to studies.<br />
<br />
By law, only dead people can appear on U.S. currency.<br />
<br />
To be legal, prop money for films in the U.S. must be one-sided
and less than 75% or more than 150% of the size of a real
banknote.<br />
<br />
69% of Americans have less than US$1,000 in savings.<br />
<br />
California's official state animal, the California grizzly bear,
is extinct.</span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-67997369786246464322020-10-09T14:48:00.004-05:002020-10-09T14:48:41.170-05:00Grapefruit Origin<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The grapefruit first appeared after 1693 when Captain Shaddock
transported some pomelo seeds to the West Indies and planted
them close to some orange trees. The pomelo and orange later
cross-pollinated to create the grapefruit. However, the
grapefruit was still unknown outside the Caribbean.<br />
<br />
Europeans learned of this citrus fruit in 1750 when Reverend
Griffith Hughes encountered one. Hughes was so surprised with
the discovery that he named the grapefruit “the forbidden
fruit.” That was the name until 1814 when John Lunan called it
the grapefruit because grapefruits resembled the smaller and
unrelated grapes when they were still growing.</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The grapefruit reached
the United States in 1823 but was mistaken for the pomelo. It
was only determined to be a distinct fruit in 1837. However,
botanists were still confused about its origin. It wasn’t until
1948 that they discovered it was a hybrid of the pomelo and the
orange.</span></p><p> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-571033023717212762020-10-09T14:47:00.001-05:002020-10-09T14:47:18.435-05:00IHOP and Real Eggs<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> Ask for real eggs in your omelet or when you want scrambled
eggs. IHOP uses powdered or liquid eggs to make scrambled eggs
and omelets, but if you ask for real eggs, they will be happy to
make your meal that way instead for no extra charge.</span> <br /></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-80459710963807787152020-10-09T14:45:00.000-05:002020-10-09T14:45:42.173-05:00Flu Shot Facts<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> It is that time of year again for flu shots. Here are a few
interesting facts you may not be aware of. The shots are
generally free or cheap at Walmart and various pharmacies.</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> T</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The flu virus comes in
numerous strains, or types. The strain called H1N1 is now a
common type of seasonal flu. The bird flu, also known as H5N1 or
H7N9, has made a lot of birds sick, but rarely spreads to humans
unless they have handled infected birds.</span> </p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Each shot contains a
tiny bit of dead flu virus. The virus is grown in fertilized
chicken eggs, then extracted and deactivated with microscopic
amounts of formaldehyde. A chemical called octylphenol
ethoxylate pulls out even smaller pieces of virus, which helps
reduce the chances of side effects. Gelatin holds the virus
together and keeps it stable during shipping, and a preservative
called thimerosol keeps the vaccine from going bad on the shelf.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">There is no reason to
be concerned about any of these chemicals; they are present in
such small quantities that your body will barely register them.<br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">You should get a flu
shot even if you think you never get the flu. Just because you
have never had it before does not mean you are invincible. In
addition, even if you never have symptoms, you could be carrying
the virus around, exposing everyone else to it.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">You need to get a flu
shot every year. There are many types of flu. Each year,
researchers and public health officials determine which strains
seem like they are going to be a threat, and formulate a vaccine
that protects against those strains. To stay protected against
the latest flu risks, you must keep your shots up to date.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">This year's flu shots
will protect against three or four strains. According to the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, three or four kinds
of flu viruses commonly circulate among people today: influenza
A (H1N1) viruses, influenza A (H3N2) viruses, and influenza B
viruses. The 2020-2021 flu shot has been updated to protect
against three virus strains: A/Guangdong-Maonan/SWL1536/2019
(H1N1) pdm09-like virus, A/Hong Kong/2671/2019 (H3N2)-like
virus, and B/Washington/02/2019 (B/Victoria lineage)-like virus.<br />
<br />
Quadrivalent flu shots, which are designed to protect against
four types of flu, will protect against an additional B virus
called B/Phuket/3073/2013-like (Yamagata lineage) virus.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The flu shot can't give
you the flu. The flu shot is either made with dead (deactivated)
flu virus or, in the case of the recombinant flu vaccine, with
no actual virus at all. You may have some side effects after
getting your shot, but those are usually limited to pain or
swelling around the site of the injection. In rare cases, you
may have a low-grade fever or mild muscle aches, but these are
side effects, and not the flu.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">You can get the flu
shot if you are allergic to eggs. For a while, doctors were
cautioning people with egg allergies to stay away from the flu
vaccine, but this seems to have been unnecessary. The American
Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology recently stated that
“no special precautions are required for the administration of
influenza vaccine to egg-allergic patients, no matter how severe
the egg allergy.” If you are concerned about an allergic
reaction, talk to your doctor. He or she may be able to get you
an egg-free flu shot.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><i>Incidentally, If you
get the flu, antibiotics will not help. The flu is caused by a
virus, not bacteria; antibiotics respond only to bacteria.
Antibiotics will not do anything to fight the flu virus.</i></span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-22980727223492402382020-10-09T14:43:00.005-05:002020-10-09T14:43:55.135-05:00Origin of Football Huddle<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">There are a few different stories about how the
huddle originated (in 1918 at Oregon State, in 1921 at the
University of Illinois, and in 1924 at Lafayette College are a
few of them). <br />
</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">It was first used in
the 1890s when Paul Hubbard, the quarterback for Gallaudet—a
Deaf college in Washington, D.C., which is now a university—had
his offense form a tight circle so that they could discuss plays
without the other team seeing what they were signing. Another
Gallaudet football innovation was the giant drum on the
sidelines that would be used for the snap count (the players
could feel the vibrations).</span></p><p> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-10074743553340900682020-10-09T14:42:00.006-05:002020-10-09T14:42:50.911-05:00Approving Political Ads<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Political ads conclude with a disclaimer that the
politician being endorsed has sanctioned the spot. Usually, the
person will say or be quoted as saying “I approve this message."
It is a requirement.</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">During 2002, the
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act was passed, along with the Stand
By Your Ad provision. The Act, which was backed by then-senators
John McCain and Russell D. Feingold, was intended to further
legitimize campaign contributions by banning large corporate
donations.<br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Stand By Your Ad
mandates that anyone running for federal office stamp “I approve
this message” as part of their campaign commercials. The goal
was to curb muckraking, where candidates would lob insults and
accusations at one another. With Stand By Your Ad, lawmakers
were hoping political candidates would think twice before
engaging in dirty tactics and then attempting to deny any
involvement.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The Federal Election
Commission (FEC) is very specific about how that disclaimer
should appear. According to the FEC, the written statement must
come at the end of the ad, appear for at least four seconds, be
readable against a contrasting background, and occupy at least 4
percent of the vertical picture height. The candidate will
typically identify themselves and say the message aloud.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">If the message was not
approved by a candidate, then the spot will typically name the
entity that is responsible—a political committee, group, or
person. There is also usually language about who financed the
commercial.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Negative campaign ads
made up 29 percent of political persuasion spots in 2000, and
that number rose to 64 percent in 2012. In the week before the
2016 presidential election, 92 percent of ads were characterized
as negative.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">One possible reason: By
stamping a negative message with “I approve,” candidates might
actually be perceived as more credible by voters, as they are
showing that they are willing to stand behind what viewers infer
to be truthful statements. <br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">In a study of 2,000
people using both real and fictional ads, researchers found that
“I approve this message” did not change their perception of
positive ads or personal attack ads, but did increase their
confidence in politicians using policy-based attack ads.</span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-69946776719824789252020-10-09T14:41:00.005-05:002020-10-09T14:41:41.502-05:00Laughter and Smiles<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Find a mirror and observe your face for a while.
Look very carefully at your face. It is said that the face is a
reflection of the mind. Is your face shining or gloomy? Is it
tense or relaxed? Is it joyful or irritated? Or is it more or
less blank?</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Smile at yourself in
the mirror. Watch your smile. Does your smile look natural and
comfortable? Is your facial expression too hard to express a big
smile because of tension?</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Relax your shoulders
and close your eyes. Then smile gently and feel your brain. Can
you feel your face and brain become relaxed with your smiling?
Soon you will feel the same comfort in your heart, as there is
an energy line that connects your heart to your brain.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Now laugh intensely,
shaking your whole body. First, make your face laugh, then your
chest, your belly button, your knees, and finally your toes.
When you are laughing, every energy center in your body is wide
open, from the top of your brain to the bottom of your feet. Now
you will be brimming over with energy.<br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><i>Incidentally, we are
30 times more likely to laugh if we are with others. Laughing
makes us more productive and seem more competent at work.
Simpler jokes are considered funnier than complex ones.
Laughter helps deal with stress. Even smiling helps.</i></span></p><p> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-80940018980346170362020-10-09T14:38:00.004-05:002020-10-09T14:38:56.718-05:00Equinox<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Sept.
22: Happy Equinox! At 9:15 a.m. EDT (1315 GMT), autumn arrives
in the Northern Hemisphere while the Southern Hemisphere will
have its first day of spring. It happens two times a year,
Vernal & Autumnal, spring and fall.<br />
</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">"Equinox" literally
means "equal night", giving the impression that the night and
day on the equinox are exactly the same length; 12 hours each -
about equal almost everywhere on Earth.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><i>Incidentally, the
biggest difference between the equinox and the solstice is
that a solstice is the point during the Earth's orbit around
the sun at which the sun is at its greatest distance from the
equator, while during an equinox, it is at the closest
distance from the equator.</i></span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-61236448144828144912020-10-09T14:37:00.004-05:002020-10-09T14:37:31.846-05:00Birthday Cake Origin<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The ancient Egyptians are actually credited with “inventing”
the celebration of birthdays. They believed that when pharaohs
were crowned gods it represented their “birth” as a god and the
day needed to be celebrated. <br />
</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Ancient Greeks borrowed
the tradition and decided it would be even better with the
addition of a sweet treat. They made moon-shaped pies to honor
Artemis, goddess of the moon, and added lit candles to make the
cakes shine like the moon. That is where we get birthday candles
tradition from.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Since the ingredients
to make a cake were expensive, the tradition did not become
popular until around the Industrial Revolution when the
ingredients started to become more plentiful.</span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-79552393055331600112020-10-09T14:33:00.003-05:002020-10-09T14:33:32.871-05:00Cholesterol Level Myths<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Setting targets for ‘bad’ (LDL) cholesterol levels
to ward off heart disease and death in those at risk might seem
intuitive, but decades of research have failed to show any
consistent benefit for this approach, reveals an analysis of the
available data, published online in BMJ Evidence Based Medicine.<br />
<br />
Cholesterol-lowering drugs are now prescribed to millions of
people around the world in line with clinical guidelines.<br />
<br />
Those with poor cardiovascular health; those with LDL
cholesterol levels of 190 mg/dl or higher; adults with diabetes;
and those whose estimated risk is 7.5% or more over the next 10
years, based on various contributory factors, such as age and
family history, are all considered to be at moderate to high
risk of future cardiovascular disease.<br />
<br />
Although lowering LDL cholesterol is an established part of
preventive treatment, the approach has never been properly
validated, say the researchers. They systematically reviewed all
published clinical trials comparing treatment with one of three
types of cholesterol lowering drugs (statins; ezetimibe; PCSK9)
with usual care or dummy drugs (placebos) for a period of at
least a year in at-risk patients.<br />
<br />
Each of the 35 included trials was categorized according to
whether it met the LDL cholesterol reduction target outlined in
the 2018 American Heart Association/American College of
Cardiology guidelines.<br />
<br />
The researchers then calculated the number of people who would
need to be treated in order to prevent one ‘event’, such as a
heart attack/stroke, or death, and the reduction in absolute
risk in each study that reported significantly positive results.<br />
<br />
Their analysis showed that over three quarters of all the trials
reported no positive impact on risk of death and nearly half
reported no positive impact on risk of future cardiovascular
disease.<br />
<br />
And the amount of LDL cholesterol reduction achieved did not
correspond to the size of the resulting benefits, with even very
small changes in LDL cholesterol sometimes associated with
larger reductions in risk of death or cardiovascular ‘events,’
and vice versa.<br />
<br />
Thirteen of the clinical trials met the LDL cholesterol
reduction target, but only 1 reported a positive impact on risk
of death; 5 reported a reduction in the risk of ‘events’. <br />
</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Among the 22 trials
that did not meet the LDL lowering target, four reported a
positive impact on risk of death while 14 reported a reduction
in the risk of cardiovascular events. This level of
inconsistency was evident for all three types of drugs.</span></p><p> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-50691684200457314392020-10-09T14:22:00.001-05:002020-10-09T14:22:40.370-05:00More McDonald's Facts<p> <span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">McDonald’s first drive-through opened in 1975 in
Sierra Vista, Arizona. The restaurant was located near a
military base, and soldiers were not allowed to leave their cars
while wearing fatigues.</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">There are almost more
than one-and-half times more McDonald’s locations than hospitals
in the United States.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The four McNugget
shapes have names; boot, bone, ball, and bell.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">McDonald's food is
served to more than 70 million people every day, with more than
75 burgers sold every second.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">A franchisee is
responsible for all the costs of running the restaurant while
also paying McDonald’s for rent (up to an average of 10.7
percent of their sales), a $45,000 franchisee fee, and a monthly
service fee equal to 4 percent of gross sales.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Add an egg to any
burger. Decide what kind of egg you want ( round McMuffin egg,
folded eggs, scrambled eggs or scrambled egg whites). You will
most likely have to pay somewhere between $1.19 and $1.59 for
the egg.</span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-49942764615353215882020-10-09T14:21:00.001-05:002020-10-09T14:21:15.172-05:00Windex Facts<p> </p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><b>Windex Facts</b> -
Things to never clean with Windex - Leather, “Do not use Windex
on leather furniture; its alcohol content can cause permanent
discoloration.”</span><br />
</p>
<div class="moz-signature"><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Plexiglass,
</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">“I often see
homeowners make this big mistake: they clean their art pieces
framed in plexiglass with original Windex,” says Maria Brophy,
owner of Brophy Art Gallery in San Clemente, California. “Windex
with ammonia will ruin the plexiglass.”</span></div>
<div class="moz-signature"><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> </span>
<div class="moz-signature"><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Shower
doors, </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">“In my
experience, Windex does not work well on soap scum buildup on a
glass shower door.”<br />
</span> </div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> </span>
<div class="moz-signature"><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> </div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> </span>
<div class="moz-signature"><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Stainless
steel, </span><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">“I
don’t recommend using Windex on stainless steel appliances,”
says Carol Smith, owner of Toronto-based Hireamaid. “Their
finishes and how they interact with Windex can vary."</span></div>
<div class="moz-signature"><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">TV
or computer screens, “Monitors can be damaged by the chemicals
in original Windex because they can warp plastics, including the
tint on your flat panel screen.”<br />
<br />
Copper, “The alcohol contained in Windex will affect the patina
of the copper and could cause permanent discoloration."<br />
<br />
Granite or marble, “Windex should not be used on granite or
marble kitchen tops. Cleaners like Windex can etch or dull the
surfaces of natural stone.”<br />
<br />
Laminate countertop or glass top stove, It’s important to note
that original Windex offers no disinfecting or cleaning
properties."<br />
<br />
Grout, Want the grout in your kitchen or bathroom to be white
and bright? Do not reach for Windex—it will not lighten up the
lining between your tiles.<br />
<br />
Bathtubs, Bathtubs, showers, and toilets are other areas you
will want to scrub down and disinfect and not with the original
Windex.</span>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-74809300158085059122020-09-24T12:18:00.005-05:002020-09-24T12:18:48.748-05:00National Monte Cristo Day, September 17<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">National Monte
Cristo Day recognizes the indulgent and delicious sandwich. A
Monte Cristo is a fried ham, turkey, and Swiss cheese sandwich.
The French sandwich called the croque-monsieur inspired the
Monte Cristo. However, the sandwich goes by other names, too.</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Bennigan’s founded
National Monte Cristo Day in June of 2015 to celebrate a
delicious sandwich loved across the country. The restaurant is
renowned across the globe for its World Famous Monte Cristo.<br />
<br />
While the Monte Cristo is typically a savory sandwich, sometimes
powdered sugar and jam preserves sweeten it. To achieve the
crispy outer coating, chefs dip the prepared sandwich in an egg
batter. Then they either pan-fry or deep-fry the sandwich to
perfection.<br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Some like to serve a
grilled version. Another version may be served open-faced and
heated under a grill or broiler. <i>Monte Cristo is one of my
all time favorite sandwiches.</i></span></p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-17414988335383492052020-09-24T12:17:00.005-05:002020-09-24T12:17:44.026-05:00Movie Theater Popcorn<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">The secret ingredient is in almost every bucket
of movie theater popcorn. Manufactured by Gold Medal, Flavacol
is the “secret sauce” most movie theaters use in order to
produce that popcorn flavor only found in cinemas, stadiums,
etc.</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Flavacol is a
butter-flavored, popcorn seasoning salt made of extra fine salt
flakes. The product is made of four ingredients: salt,
artificial butter flavor, and Yellow #5 and Yellow #6. The
latter are what give movie theater-style popcorn that signature
yellow color. <br />
</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">As MTV explains,
“Flavacol is used by theaters when cooking the popcorn, not as a
topping; it is basically salt with other stuff to give the
popcorn that movie theater flavor and color.” It gets added
during popping to give popcorn the yellow buttery color. It is
essentially just a super-fine salt with some coloring agents.
Flavacol contains a proprietary diacetyl-free butter flavoring.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><i>I get mine on Amazon
and it is good, but very salty. You can also use in on top of
popped popcorn. Start easy, little goes a long way.</i></span></p><p> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2778246985514299373.post-66659356509407264102020-09-24T12:16:00.007-05:002020-09-24T12:16:55.546-05:00Dr. Pepper<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">If
you want a drink to go with popcorn, Dr. Pepper is great. It is
actually a blend of 23 flavors. All the flavors mixed together
supposedly make up the smell of how a pharmacy smelled.<br />
<br />
The shelf life of Dr. Pepper depends on the container the soda
is in. In glass or cans it is about nine months, and in plastic
bottles is about three months. A lot of this depends on how long
you had the Dr Pepper, and if it has been opened or not.<br />
<br />
The 23 flavors are cola, cherry, licorice, amaretto (almond,
vanilla, blackberry, apricot, blackberry, caramel, pepper,
anise, sarsaparilla, ginger, molasses, lemon, plum, orange,
nutmeg, cardamom, all spice, coriander juniper, birch and
prickly ash. <br />
</span>
</p><p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">These flavors combined
made up the smell of the pharmacy where Dr Pepper was created.
Charles Alderton created Dr Pepper in 1885. He worked at a
drugstore in Waco, Texas and wanted to recreate the smell from
his pharmacy, because he liked how it smelled so much. He
successfully recreated the smell of his pharmacy which ended up
becoming the smell of Dr Pepper. People say there are still
places you can buy the original Dr Pepper made with real cane
sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, but supposedly it
does not taste as good as people have reported. They say it
tastes strange and does not taste like the Dr Pepper we all love
today.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">Not only can Dr. Pepper
be served cold but it can also be be served hot. Serving Dr.
Pepper warm was created as a winter time drink. To make this
drink you will need: Dr. Pepper, a lemon, a mug and a saucepan.
First you pour the soda into the saucepan and heat it to 180
degrees. Once the soda is heated up you pour it into a mug that
has a slice of them lemon in it to give it flavor.</span></p><p> </p>tfshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10608546472948922743noreply@blogger.com0