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From college major to career

missCarrie
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For those of you who are on the fence about what to study in your post-secondary institution, The Wall Street Journal posted up a chart about the unemployment percentage and average earnings. The data was collected from the 2010 Census, and even though money isn’t everything, it would be nice to know that what you’re going into will offer a stable job and financial security (enough to meet your basic needs). They also posted up another article called “Engineering, Computer-Science Pay More Than Liberal Arts“, which may or may not encourage you to pursue what your original plan for a job.

Just remember: try to think of your own needs when choosing a career. Although your parents would love you to be (insert typical job), there is more than just that job in life to choose from.

Bottled Worlds

E
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While doing my weekly rounds of web-surfing, I’ve come across really astonishing things – one of which are these minuscule bottles (maybe I have a fad for miniature artwork, I’m not exactly sure…)

Photo credits to this blog and this deviantART artist… Yes, I have a knack for being very descriptive in my writing. Now now, I shan’t delay the awesomeness that is about to come!

Video of The Day: Epic Tea House Server

Bill
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What has two hands, fifteen cups, fifteen plates, a sense of balancing superior to most, and an uncanny ability to not get burned?  This guy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ScoqxZro9NU

He works at a tea house in Iran, but I’m pretty sure he belongs in Cirque Du Soleil. I’ve watched this video several replays at a time, and still can’t seem to figure out how he was able to do such a feat with ease and relatively no burns! Although I’ve been pro-silver platter my entire life, this gentleman definitely puts up a strong argument in favour of handiwork.

My “Three Things” to make a difference

Bona
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My “Three Things” to make a difference

As part of the City of Calgary’s 3 Things for Calgary Campaign, here are my three things to make our city a better place:

1. Volunteer with Youth Central
Whether you’re volunteering at a homeless shelter, for senior citizens, or for children with disabilities, you will be making a difference in someone’s life. Every kind gesture touches a person out there, whether you know it or not.
2. The Golden Rule: Treat others the way you want to be treated
How do you feel when you are insulted or humiliated by someone? If you don’t like to be treated that way, then don’t do it to other people. Consider their feelings as you would for yourself.
3. Organize a social event that brings everyone closer
Whether it’s with your family, friends, neighbours, or classmates, everyone is brought together when they attend a social event together. Who doesn’t want to meet new people and have fun? It makes our world a livelier, friendlier, and better place.

 

Jack and Jill is not (quite) as bad as it looks

Bona
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If you want a good laugh, then Jack and Jill starring Adam Sandler is right for you. It is a hilarious film that will have you slapping your knee and will put you in a good mood. However, if you are looking for a movie that has depth and meaning to it, then you might want to spend your $12 elsewhere. Several parts within the movie are good (mostly hilarious, some touching, some shocking), but the flow is somewhat jarring and the storyline is poor.

[youtube UF_7poMGpGc]

Basically, the movie plays up all the “urban legends” about having a twin. For example, one twin gets it all and the other twin is stuck in their shadow. Another example would be how two people act identical but in their minds, they’re completely different and their differences (which are really their similarities) drive each other mad.

Generally, I like Adam Sandler and his movies. Unfortunately, Jack and Jill isn’t one of his better ones. His acting skills are obviously good (playing both Jack and Jill), but the lines and the plot just aren’t as good as most of his other movies.

In the end, I would have to say that if you watch the different trailers, then you’ve pretty much seen all the best funny parts. Everything else is awkward transitioning. However, the ending, which is also predictable, is somewhat touching and increases the movie’s meaningfulness from zero to… a bit.

The early bird is the slimmer bird

MJ
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When we’re kids, we wake up at six or seven to catch our favorite show in the morning. Then we’d have a nice cup of milk, then hit the hay at nine. But as we get older, we tend to sleep later and wake up later (unless it’s a school or work day, of course). And this, my late night prowlers, is partially what makes you overweight.

Studies by scientists at the University of South Australia show that kids who slept earlier and woke up earlier were 1.5 times less likely to be obese. The number of hours that each kid slept did not matter, only the times of the day at which they slept and woke up. Also, kids who tend to sleep late were twice as physically inactive. And not only that but they also spend more time in front of the TV or computer. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

"It's not the Big Mac I swear! It's the Mac!"

So it isn’t just the fact that we sleep less than the recommended amount. It’s also when we choose to sleep. For those people who wake up early in the morning, they are more likely to get exercise, just as people are more likely to be technologically active (whether it’d be social networking or watching TV) during the night. The early sleepers tended to get about 30 minutes more exercise than the late night sleepers. And those late night sleepers tended to play games or be online about 50 minutes longer than early sleepers. And on a random note, the late night sleepers had fewer siblings and came from a lower income household in a big city.

One of the major problems is that so many students remain sitting in front of the computer far longer than they should. The issue with getting sleep earlier doesn’t just have to do with computers and TV but procrastination. In an ideal world, we’d do our work as they’re assigned, take a break by watching some TV or chatting with friends online then going to sleep early (around 10 or 11 p.m.). Then we’d start off the next day, early, get some exercise and continue our daily routine. But to be frank, so many of us tend to sleep late, push our work aside, wake up late on weekends, trying to catch up on lost sleep and what do we get? Fat.

The Immortal Jellyfish

richie
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Turritopsis-nutricula, the jellyfish that can live forever.

When you think of immortality, what comes to mind? For me, I imagine vampires, Voldemort, and gods from mythology. But never would I have imagined that the embodiment of immortality would have been none other than the humble jellyfish.

Turritopsis nutricula is a species of hydrozoan (jellyfish) that is capable of a process named transdifferentiation.  This means that after becoming a mature “adult” jellyfish, it can regress back into its infant stage, known as its “polp” form.

The majority of jellyfish species only have lifespans ranging from a few days to a few months. Natural selection has allowed this marvelous creature to theoretically live forever as long as they aren’t eaten or overcome by disease. But this presents a bit of a problem. With an immortal jellyfish roaming around, scientists fear that they might clog the ocean. These types of jellyfish reproduce constantly, so, what is stopping them from taking over?

Its a bit of a scary thought, but these jellyfish do provide some benefits to the world. The process of transdifferentiation has inspired scientists to find a method of mending damaged or dead tissues in the human body using stem cells. Who knows, this little creature could be the key to curing cancer and preventing aging!

3 Things for Calgary (Victoria Edition)

victoria
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So, if you’ve been around this blog at all, you may have already heard about Nenshi’s 3 Things for Calgary, an initiative for Calgarians to do three things to make Calgary an even more awesome place than it already is. Personally, I think this idea is great. It’s valuble to understand that a positive action, no matter how small, can still make a change in our community. Keeping this in mind, here are my three things that I plan to do for Calgary.

1. Clean up litter! As someone who in the past has lived in lots of other cities, I can confidently say that Calgary is one of the cleanest cities I’ve ever lived in. However, that’s not to say I haven’t seen the occasional littering around the city. Thus, from now on, I’ve pledged to clean up and dispose of litter and other waste that I might see around the city to the best of my ability.

2. Support Calgary’s culture! I love the arts and would love to experience more of our local culture for myself. This can be as simple as reading more books written by local authors and listening to music by local artists. It can also be as involving as attending more regional theater and film festivals or heading to more performances by local groups like Theatre Calgary or the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra (as long as my wallet permits it!)

3. Volunteering! Personally, I think that volunteering is great. Not only are you helping out the city, you’re also developing lots of skills that will help you later in life. Furthermore, I find that volunteering is both a great way to meet new people and to pad out your resume. I definitely want to volunteer even more around the city this year. For those not in the know, Youth Central and Volunteer Calgary are great places for youth to easily find volunteering oppurtunities around the city.

So yeah, let’s all work together to make Calgary the best city in the world!

Remembrance Day Poetry: Two Minutes

sarena
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Do not think of blood red poppies,

Do not think of forlorn crosses,

Do not think of crying larks,

Do not think of quarrelling foe.

 

Think of those who gave up life,

Think of those who dared death,

Think of those husbands, sons and lovers lost,

Think of those last hugs, goodbyes and kisses blown.

 

Imagine loveless nights on cold hard ground,

Imagine thousands of miles between lost affection and empty people

Imagine unimaginable agony and bullet holes,

Imagine giving up your life for the greater good.

 

Thank soldiers who traded life for peace,

Thank brothers and sons who left severed promises back home,

Thank lovers who broke their hearts for you,

Thank husbands who gave up family for a cause worth fighting for,

 

Use your two minutes wisely…

Uno, Deux, Three Things for Calgary

admin
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I have lived in Calgary all my life and I’ve grown up with the beauty of this city. Right now, if you look out from Crescent Road, you can see the array of multicolored autumn leaves. It makes you realize that to keep this city as naturally beautiful as it is, we all have to contribute. The mayor has asked everyone of us in the city to get involved, and in order to get this up and running, it starts from us. (Ooooh, I feels so philosophical today). This is how I’m doing my share:

1. Our city would look lovely with a bit more arts and culture. I’ve decided that I can donate some of my art to brighten up public spaces. I could potentially offer my art to the Children’s Hospital, or the public library.

2. This winter, my brother and I are going to shovel peoples’ walks without getting paid. It’ll be fun to go running up and down the sidewalk with our shovels positioned in front of us. It’s also a nice feeling when your neighbors get out of their houses the next day and wonder who shoveled all their walkways 🙂

3. I’m in the YVC (Youth Volunteer Corps) club at school, so to do our city some good, I’ll encourage my friends to join volunteering events in and outside of school. Instead of partying or doing other teenager-like fun things, we could all just sign up for the same project; have fun and do good things are the same time — score!

Okie people, go start on your 3 things now. For more information on this, go to the Facebook page and get ideas. Woohoo~

Now for some quality webcam motivational pics.

Ready


 

 

 

 

 

 

Set…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GOGOGO!

 

 

Video of the Day: Victoria- an inspiration to others

sheliza
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Victoria Rose Viren is an inspiration to others. In this video, she proves to everyone that obstacles can turn into a life lesson. This truly shows that you can do anything if you put your mind to it! 🙂

 

 

New European laser experiment?

Gary
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According to The Telegraph, a new laser experiment is being planned by European scientists in order to find answers to some fundamental questions in particle physics. The ELI Ultra-High Field laser is going to be made of 10 laser beams that will be all focused on one point to produce an even larger beam of light.  This laser will be strong enough to produce 200 petawatts of power, which is more than 100,000 times the power of the world’s combined electricity production. This powerful laser is theoretically strong enough to pull apart ghost particles that pop in and out of the fabric of space with its extremely powerful electric field.  By pulling these particles apart, scientists can observe the behaviour of these particles to better understand the reason our laws of physics behaves as it does.

This billion Euro project is expected to be finished by the end of the decade, so look forward to new mind blowing discoveries in the near future!

Website of the Day: Kijiji

agamjit
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Selling and buying stuff locally can be really frustrating. Kijiji.ca lets you put your classifieds online for free with 5,000 daily viewers! No registration is required and all you have to do is go the website, select your city and start selling and buying. The website runs on the bases of people posting their own ads and buyers looking through them in an organized way.

Interference


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kijiji is extremely easy to use and I often find myself going on it on a daily basis to check if my favourite video game is on sale. On the top right you can also post your ad for free and can also chose to pay for the ad to appear on their homepage or the top of the search category.

You can also chose the way you want to look for an item, and order the products by price or the time posted. The whole experience is very user-friendly.

Pros

Kijiji is a very easy way to find good deals online and there are no hassles of the shipping costs and giving your credit cards online and having to worry about scams. The website is very easy to use and has a lot buyers so it very easy to sell your product. It is absolutely free to post your classifieds and Kijiji doesn’t take a penny!

 

 

 

 

 

Cons

The website has a lot of classifieds so it is very hard to chose the right product. Sometimes the sellers are scams and are just trying to get your personal information. There  are a lot of classifieds so in order to get your item sold you have to have a good price or pay Kijiji to have on the top of every single page.

Final Impressions

Kijiji is a really good way to sell your products and offers a wide selection of classifieds and high rate of daily users.

Daniel Tammet: the man who sees numbers

Juliet
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Born in East London, England, Daniel Tammet was the oldest of nine children in his family. Growing up, Tammet had always been a little different. Instead of playing with the other kids on the playground, he would observe the numbers on the hopscotch squares and marvel at the patterns made by the spiraling leaves on trees.

Then, at the age of four, it was discovered that Daniel could do massive calculations in his head at astonishing speeds. While this may not seem like that extraordinary of feat because fast mental calculations can be taught and enhanced with practice, it is how Daniel does it that makes him extraordinary. You see, Daniel has a condition that scientists call synaesthesia, a neurological aberration in which stimulation in one sensory cortex also leads to stimulation in another sense or cognitive pathway. Thus, in Daniel’s case, he claims to “see” numbers in his head. For him, each number up to 10,000 has a unique shape, colour, size and texture. He describes 289 as a particularly ugly number, 25 as the kind of number you would invite to a party, six as a small nothingness, nine as a towering, intimidating number and pi as simply beautiful.

As a result, unlike the rest of us when we struggle to do mental math calculations in our heads, Daniel doesn’t need to consciously make an effort to solve math equations. For example, when asked to multiply two different numbers together, he describes the experience as seeing two separate entities in his synaesthetic landscape, the answer in the form of a separate entity that emerges as a bridge in between the previous two. Then, based on this new “landscape” of information, Daniel can interpret it to come up with the correct answer.

And this isn’t even the full extent of Tammet’s abilities. Watch the documentary on YouTube (click here) to learn about how he memorized over 20,000 digits of pi, gambled using his intuition in Las Vegas, and learned Icelandic in a mere seven days!

Anti-Horse Carriages

cathy
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Last month, a carriage horse in New York City died near Central Park. Just a few days ago, I came across another news article of another carriage horse collapsing along with a video. This recurring news sparked great concern to me because I never truly thought about the effects on horses caused by pulling carriages. Yes, the experience of riding on a horse carriage is like a fairy tale. And yes, it is romantic when newlyweds ride off in carriages. BUT NO, it is not okay to satisfy these fantasies of people by causing pain and danger to horses. It is absolutely heartbreaking to know the abuses that carriage horses face and to see them collapse in the middle of the street. These horses not only face harsh temperatures, either freezing cold or burning hot, some face abuses from their drivers such as being whipped. Conditions like these are the cause of carriage horses collapsing and even dying. When we see horses pulling heavy carriages up steep hills and in absolute poor weather conditions, we need to realize how painful and tiring it is for them.

News reports about carriage horses falling in the middle of the streets and dying have made me recognize the brutality of carriage industries. An increasing number of international cities like Paris, Toronto, and Beijing have already banned carriage horses which should also be done around the world to free these innocent animals from being attached to carriages.

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