You Are Not Special

“Even if you’re one in a million, on a planet of 6.8 billion that means there are nearly 7,000 people just like you. Imagine standing somewhere over there on Washington Street on Marathon Monday and watching 6,800 ‘yous’ go running by. And consider for a moment the bigger picture: your planet, I’ll remind you, is not the center of its solar system, your solar system is not the center of its galaxy, your galaxy is not the center of the universe. In fact, astrophysicists assure us the universe has no center; therefore, you cannot be it. Neither can Donald Trump… which someone should tell him…”

~ David McCullough, Jr


Read full transcript here:You Are Not Special Commencement Speech

Good Life

Oh this has gotta be the good life
This has gotta be the good life
This could really be a good life, good life.

~One Republic, Good Life

Book List for May

1. Teacher Man, Frank McCourt
   
2. Hooking Up, Tom Wolfe
   
3. Alias Grace, Margaret Atwood
   
4. Atonement, Ian McEwan
   
5. Accordion Crimes, E. Annie Proulx
   
6. As I Lay Dying, William Faulkner
   
7. Mrs. Dalloway, Virginia Woolf
   
8. A Piece of My Heart, Richard Ford
   
9. Bridget Jones's Diary, Helen Fielding
   
10. Fear and Trembling, Amelie Nothomb
    
11. Crossing the Border, Joyce Carol Oates
    
12. The Blind Assassin, Margaret Atwood
    
13. Angela's Ashes, Frank McCourt

Dogs vs. Cats

The world is divided into "dog people" and "cat people", with each person passionately believing that his or her preferred pet is superior. Now, a new study has put an end to this long debate, by claiming that dogs are better than felines.
And thus, while attempting to quantify the characteristics of both cats and dogs, researchers have pitted cats against dogs in 11 categories to find who really is superior amongst the two.

1. BRAINS

At 64 grams, the average dog brain is far bigger than its feline equivalent, which weighs in at a mere 25 grams. But then the average dog is much heavier than the average cat. If instead you measure brain mass as a percentage of body mass, cats win by a whisker.

However, in the number of neurons in the cortex, or executive brain, cats trounce dogs, with 300 million neurons compared with a piddling 160 million.

Winner- Cats

2. SHARED HISTORY

Recent DNA studies suggest that domestication of dogs could be as recent as 16,000 years.

However, evidence from ancient Egyptian burials and hieroglyphs indicates that cats were popular in homes from about 3000 BC onwards, implying that cats might have wormed their way into our homes and hearts from an early stage, reports New Scientist.

Winner- Dogs

3. BONDING

Dogs put through the "strange situation" test respond to their owner like a child to the parent. But the experiment with cats did not reap the same results in cats as the lab setting was very upsetting and stressful for them, presumably because cats tend not to leave their territory.

But the researchers suspect that cats bond with their owners in much the same way that dogs do - if only they could be persuaded to take the test.

Winner- Dogs

4. POPULARITY

Although worldwide figures are hard to come by, recent studies show that in the top 10 cat-owning countries there are almost 204 million felines. Pet pooches in the top 10 dog-owning countries number fewer than 173 million.

Winner- Cats

5. UNDERSTANDING

Even dogs with more limited comprehension can often recognise and respond to dozens of commands and requests for objects.

Researchers said that cognitively speaking, cats are similar to dogs, so you would expect them to have similar patterns of behaviour and abilities. A big difference is that they are not compliant or motivated, making them devilishly hard to work with.

Winner- Dogs

6. PROBLEM SOLVING

If offered a choice between two pieces of string, one with a morsel of food at the end, neither cats nor dogs could pull on the string attached to the reward.

The researchers conclude that dogs’ collaborations with blind owners, they often take the usual canine role of junior partner, but when the need arises they step in to solve problems their human cannot master.

Winner- Dogs

7. VOCALISATION

A study revealed the subtlety with which cats can use their crooning to ensnare us. By embedding an urgent high-frequency miaow into a blissed-out purr, they produce a sound that brings out our nurturing side.

Karen McComb from the University of Sussex in Falmer, UK, who analysed these "solicitation purrs", suggests they work on a subliminal level in much the same way as a baby's cry, which has a similar frequency range. And here, cats get the cream for their guile.

Winner- Cats

8. TRACTABILITY

Dogs learn in the same way as human infants, and this process, called pedagogy, entails implicit teaching, with the dog attending to cues such as eye contact, gesture and vocalisation, and then directly imitating the actions of its master.

While people have not really tried training cats, not much is known of the full extent of their abilities. Researchers believe that “dogs really want to do it. They are more interested and take it more seriously."

Winner- Dogs

9. SUPERSENSES

While a dog's keen nose is legendary, cats are no mean sniffers either. In fact, because there is so much variability among breeds of dog, the average cat, with its 200 million smell receptors, actually has a more acute nose than the average dog.

Winner- Cats

10. ECO-FRIENDLINESS

A medium-size dog's ecological footprint - the area of land required to keep it fed - is 0.84 hectares annually. Meanwhile, an average cat's ecological pawprint, at just 0.15 hectares, looks positively virtuous.

Winner- Cats

11. UTILITY

Dogs can hunt, herd and guard. They can sniff out drugs and bombs and even whale faeces; they guide blind and deaf people, race for sport, pull sleds, find someone buried by an avalanche, help children learn and possibly even predict earthquakes. Cats are only good if you have an infestation of rodents.

Winner- Dogs

And thus, with more points in their favour, dogs have emerged as a clear winner in the battle between the pets.

SOURCE: www.indianexpress.com

Atlas Shrugged Part 1 Trailer

Finally, the film adaptation of Ayn Rand's most popular novel (and probably one of the best books ever written) Atlas Shrugged is set to hit the big screen on April 15.

2011 Oscar Nominees for Best Original Song

I See the Light
Music by Allan Menken
Lyrics by Glenn Slater
(Tangled)




Coming Home
Music and Lyrics by Tom Douglas, Troy Verges, Hillary Lindsey
(Country Strong)




If I Rise
Music by A.R. Rahman
Lyrics by Dido and Rollo Armstrong
(127 Hours)


We Belong Together
Music and Lyrics by Randy Newman
(Toy Story 3)

2011 Forecast for the Rabbit

The Typical Characteristics of Rabbit

Cuddly, warm and affectionate are the attributes of the Rabbit. Mysterious and a great party-giver and host, the Rabbit enjoys being the centre of attention once in a while. The Rabbit is occasionally over cautious and can be a bit boring. He is also one of the luckiest signs in the Chinese Astrology chart.

Forecast for 2011

The Rabbit will have found the momentum during 2010 quite unsettling, little realizing that his accomplishments during the year will set him up beautifully for his own year in 2011. This will be a stunning and most favorable year for him, especially in regard to work and career. His ability to interact with others will put him in the lead for any promotions at work. Also, if the Rabbit is considering a completely different career, this is the perfect time to explore his options. Not only will the change energize him but he will feel happier than he has done in some time. March to May and October to November will be important times for career developments. Finances during the Rabbit’s own year are buzzing, with his luck running high! He may see a salary increase, receive a gift or make extra money from a hobby or entrepreneurial idea. Socially, August, September and December will be hectic! Single Rabbits could meet their significant other this year and the relationship could move very fast. Those with partners will find their relationship becomes more serious and important. Stress and worry over decisions may drain the Rabbit’s vitality during 2011 and it’s very important he gets enough rest and relaxation. He must also remember to call on friends and loved ones for support and advice during any challenging times.

Interesting Rabbit Facts:

Zodiac Stone: Pearl
Special Flower: Jonquil
Best Hours: 5-7 am
Season: Spring
Horoscope Colors: Grey, White

Source: Moonslipper.com

Christmas Lights by Coldplay

"Those Christmas lights
Light up the street
Down where the sea and city meet
May all your troubles soon be gone
Oh Christmas lights, keep shining on"

Thought-Provoking

Lesson 102

EVERYTHING I REALLY NEED TO KNOW I LEARNED FROM NOAH'S ARK
Author Unknown

• Plan ahead. It wasn’t raining when Noah built the ark.
  
• Stay fit. When you’re 600 years old, someone might ask you to do something Really big.
  
• Don’t listen to critics. Do what has to be done.
  
• Build on the high ground.
  
• For safety’s sake, travel in pairs.
  
• Two heads are better than one.
  
• Speed isn’t always an advantage. The cheetahs were on board, but so were the snails.
  
• If you can’t fight or flee–float.
  
• Take care of your animals as if they were the last ones on earth.
  
• Don’t forget that we’re all in the same boat.
  
• When the doo-doo gets really deep, don’t sit there and complain–shovel!
  
• Stay below deck during the storm.
  
• Remember that the ark was built by amateurs & the Titanic was built by professionals.
  
• If you have to start over, have a friend by your side.
  
• Remember that the woodpeckers INSIDE are often a bigger threat than the storm outside.
  
• No matter how bleak it looks, there’s always a rainbow on the other side.
  
• DON’T MISS THE BOAT !!!!

Lesson 101

All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten

-excerpted from the book, All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten by Robert Fulghum

ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW about how to live and what to do and how to be I learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate-school mountain, but there in the sandpile at Sunday School.

These are the things I learned:

• Share everything.
  
• Play fair.
  
• Don't hit people.
  
• Put things back where you found them.
  
• Clean up your own mess.
  
• Don't take things that aren't yours.
  
• Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody.
  
• Wash your hands before you eat.
  
• Flush.
  
• Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
  
• Live a balanced life - learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.
  
• Take a nap every afternoon.
  
• When you go out into the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands, and stick together.
  
• Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the styrofoam cup: The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.
  
• Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we.
  
• And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK.

Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation. Ecology and politics and equality and sane living.

Take any of those items and extrapolate it into sophisticated adult terms and apply it to your family life or your work or your government or your world and it holds true and clear and firm. Think what a better world it would be if all - the whole world - had cookies and milk about three o'clock every afternoon and then lay down with our blankies for a nap. Or if all governments had a basic policy to always put thing back where they found them and to clean up their own mess.

And it is still true, no matter how old you are - when you go out into the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.

Hitik sa Bunga by Brownman Revival

Nakaranas ka na ba
Nakatikim ka na ba
Nakatanggap o nabigyan ng kahihiyan
Dahil sa iyong pinakikinggan
Dahil sa iyong pinanindigan
Dahil sa mahal mong kasintahan
o dahil sa iyong nakamtan

[chorus]
Inggit sa iyong narating
Pilit kang sisirain
Dyan sila magaling
Ilalagay ka sa alanganin

Kaya mag-ingat sa mga asal talangka
Hihilahin ka nila pababa
Namamato pag ika'y hitik
Hitik sa bunga [2x]

Dapat lagi kang listo
Bantayan ang iyong puso
Sa mga pabigat sa iyong pag-akyat
Pumipigil sa iyong pag-angat hmmm
[repeat chorus]

Mag-ingat sa mga asal talangka
Hihilahin ka nila pababa
Namamato pag ika'y hitik
Hitik sa bunga [2x]

A Poem by Win Pe

The Thitpoke Tree
(famous landmark on Rangoon University campus)

Most when I do not see it,
I see it in my heart.
Most when I am not near it,
it is near my thoughts,
attendant, attentive,
ready to slip in,
to spread its branches in the sky of my mind,

to flutter its leaves in the wind of memories.
In one of those classrooms
within easy reach of its falling leaf,
I learned to ride the pitch and yaw of reason.
It is not those classrooms I remember,
nor do I recall that heavy structure
where a piece of paper and a handshake confirm
some ability to cox the boat of intellect.
Most I remember
lying on back beside its roots,
looking into the deep well of its branches,
the sky at the other end like well-water
and I drinking deep.
Most I remember
taking my emotion and intuitions there,
letting the wind ruffle my deepest feelings
as it ruffles the leaf in the crook of a branch.
Man does not live in the edifices of reason.
Man does not dwell in the structures of intellect.
He lives as a tree lives,
open to the skies and winds of perception,
drinking the rain of passions and impulse,
soaking up the sunshine of affection.
The sap of feeling passes through him,
awakening each part of him to life.
So thitpoke tree,
let me live as you have lived for others,
and so will live to the wind and sun,
so let me live as you have lived for me.

Source: www.maymyanmar.com

P-noy's Inaugural Speech

Integrating the Internet into the Mathematics Classroom

Integrating the Internet into the Mathematics Classroom

View more presentations from sspengler.

The Best of Queen Seon Deok

This is one of the best scenes in Queen Seon Deok.

Lady Mishil reveals her secret to Deokman

Study: Only Two Tasks Can Be Done at Once

By Rachael Rettner, LiveScience Staff Writer

For those who find it tough to juggle more than a couple things at once, don't despair. The brain is set up to manage two tasks, but not more, a new study suggests.

That's because, when faced with two tasks, a part of the brain known as the medial prefrontal cortex (MFC) divides so that half of the region focuses on one task and the other half on the other task. This division of labor allows a person to keep track of two tasks pretty readily, but if you throw in a third, things get a bit muddled.

"What really the results show is that we can readily divide tasking. We can cook, and at the same time talk on the phone, and switch back and forth between these two activities," said study researcher Etienne Koechlin of the Université Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris, France. "However, we cannot multitask with more than two tasks."

The results will be published this week in the journal Science.

Multitasking in the brain

The MFC is thought to be part of the brain's "motivational system." Specifically, it helps monitor the value of rewards and drives a person's behavior according to that value. In other words, it's where rewards are represented in the brain.

Scientists knew that a region at the very front of the brain, called the anterior prefrontal cortex (APC), was involved in multitasking. But they weren't sure how the MFC was involved. Are the rewards for the different tasks represented separately? Or summed together?

Koechlin and his colleagues had 32 subjects complete a letter-matching task while they had their brains scanned with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The subjects saw uppercase letters on a screen and had to determine whether those letters were presented in the correct order to spell out a certain word. They were given money if they performed the task with no errors.

The researchers saw that, the higher the monetary reward, the more activity there was in the MFC.

But then they made the task more difficult. In addition to uppercase letters, the subjects were also presented with lowercase letters, and had to switch back and forth between matching the uppercase letters to spell out, say, T-A-B-L-E-T, and lowercase letters to spell out t-a-b-l-e-t.

During this dual task, the MFC divided up the labor. One hemisphere of the brain encoded the reward associated with the uppercase letter task, and so showed activity during that task, while the other region encoded the reward associated with the lowercase task, Koechlin said.

Essentially, the brain behaved "as if each frontal lobe was pursuing its own goal," Koechlin said.

To make things even more complicated, the researchers introduced a third letter-matching task. Here, they saw the subject's accuracy drop considerably. It was as though, once each hemisphere was occupied with managing one task, there was nowhere for the third task to go.

"[The] subjects perform as if they systematically forget one of the three tasks," Koechlin told LiveScience.

Decision-making

The results might also explain why humans seem to have a hard time making decisions between more than two things, Koechlin said.

Previous work has indicated that people like binary choices, or decisions between two things. They have difficulty when decisions involve more than two choices, Koechlin said. When faced with three or more choices, subjects don't appear to evaluate them rationally; they simply start discarding choices until they get back to a binary choice.

This is perhaps because your brain can't keep track of the rewards involved with more than two choices, Koechlin said.

Source: Live Science

Idus Martias

The Ides of March

(by Constantine P. Cavafy)

Fear grandeurs, O soul.
And if you cannot overcome
your ambitions, pursue them with hesitation
and caution. And the more you advance,
the more inquisitive, careful you must be.

And when you reach your peak, Caesar at last;
when you assume the form of a famous man,
then above all beware when you go out in the street,
a conspicuous ruler with followers,
if by chance from the mob approaches
some Artemidorus, bringing a letter
and says hastily "Read this immediately,
these are grave matters that concern you,"
do not fail to stop; do not fail to push aside
all those who salute and kneel
(you can see them later); let even the Senate
itself wait, and immediately recognise
the grave writings of Artemidorus.

Dim Lighting, Sunglasses, and Dishonesty

WASHINGTON: Dim lighting and sunglasses can encourage dishonest and unethical behavior, a new study finds.

Psychologists from University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill conducted studies to test whether darkness can license dishonest and selfish behavior.

In one study, participants were placed in a dimly or well-lit room. They were given $10 and asked to complete a worksheet and reward themselves with $0.50 from their supply of money for each correct step. Participants in the slightly dim room cheated more and thus earned more undeserved money than those in a well-lit room.

In the another test, some people wore sunglasses and others wore clear glasses while interacting with a stranger. Each had $6 to allocate between him-or herself and the recipient and could keep what they didn’t offer. People wearing shades behaved more selfishly by giving less than the others.

The researchers suggest that the experience of darkness may induce a sense of anonymity that is disproportionate from actual anonymity in a given situation.


SOURCE: The Times of India

Happy Valentine's Day!

Something to reflect on this Valentine's Day (From "The Prophet" by Kahlil Gibran)

LOVE

Then said Almitra, "Speak to us of Love."

And he raised his head and looked upon the people, and there fell a stillness upon them.

And with a great voice he said:

When love beckons to you follow him,

Though his ways are hard and steep.

And when his wings enfold you yield to him,

Though the sword hidden among his pinions may wound you.

And when he speaks to you believe in him,

Though his voice may shatter your dreams as the north wind lays waste the garden.

For even as love crowns you so shall he crucify you. Even as he is for your growth so is he for your pruning.

Even as he ascends to your height and caresses your tenderest branches that quiver in the sun,

So shall he descend to your roots and shake them in their clinging to the earth.

Like sheaves of corn he gathers you unto himself.

He threshes you to make you naked.

He sifts you to free you from your husks.

He grinds you to whiteness.

He kneads you until you are pliant;

And then he assigns you to his sacred fire, that you may become sacred bread for God's sacred feast.

All these things shall love do unto you that you may know the secrets of your heart, and in that knowledge become a fragment of Life's heart.

But if in your fear you would seek only love's peace and love's pleasure,

Then it is better for you that you cover your nakedness and pass out of love's threshing-floor,

Into the seasonless world where you shall laugh, but not all of your laughter, and weep, but not all of your tears.

Love gives naught but itself and takes naught but from itself.

Love possesses not nor would it be possessed;

For love is sufficient unto love.

When you love you should not say, "God is in my heart," but rather, I am in the heart of God."

And think not you can direct the course of love, if it finds you worthy, directs your course.

Love has no other desire but to fulfil itself.

But if you love and must needs have desires, let these be your desires:

To melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.

To know the pain of too much tenderness.

To be wounded by your own understanding of love;

And to bleed willingly and joyfully.

To wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving;

To rest at the noon hour and meditate love's ecstasy;

To return home at eventide with gratitude;

And then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips.