Inspirational and good news.
UnSuggester is a great tool to find things that you hate! I love it!
Type in a book that you really enjoy and the unsuggester will let you know what book you will find torturous. For example, here are unSuggestions Brave new world : and, Brave new world revisited by Aldous Huxley, perfectly it unSuggests that I read the Devil Wears Prada.
Gift baskets at the Academy Awards and Golden Globe Awards will become a thing of the past, according to recent news reports.  Ceremony reps for both shows confirmed that, starting in 2007, presenters will not be given extravagant grab bags, which have totaled up to $100,000 (US).
A Golden Globes rep alleged that all attendees (even in the audience) would receive gifts “valued at less than $600.” A rep for the Oscars stated that “the Academy would like to thank presenters in a way that doesn’t carry a tax burden.”
Taxes are one reason why gift baskets are being nixed. Under U.S. income tax law, the baskets are seen as income, not gifts, and are subject to heavy taxes. The IRS reached an agreement with the Academy for previous extravagant gifts, including sending tax forms to 2006 Oscar presenters.
Another reason why celebrities will take home less next year: Edward Norton. The actor criticized the practise, describing it as a waste. He is quoted in a future edition of New York magazine as saying: “I’m sick of this. It’s not who we are – it makes us look ridiculous and out of touch. If these evenings are going to be a celebration of our craft and what we express about what’s going on in the world, then picking through $35,000 gift baskets is disgusting and shameful.”
Voice-Activated Laptops for Our Injured Troops, known as Valour IT, tries to help wounded American soldiers psychologically recover from battle by blogging. Regardless (or irregardless if you’re Dubya Bush), of what you think of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan and Terror, humans who are injured still need support to heal their wounds. You can read about the success the program has had at the MediaShift blog at PBS.
“It started last year when Army Captain Chuck Ziegenfuss injured both his hands and wanted to get back to blogging. His blog readers pitched in for Dragon Naturally Speaking software, and he and another blogger, FbL, put together Valour-IT and have raised more than $330,000 with two online Veteran’s Day fundraisers fueled by milbloggers.”
Some new research (from a company that makes tea) has found that tea has a chemical that helps people be more attentive.
“Every cup of tea naturally contains the amino acid theanine. Tea is virtually the only dietary source of theanine, apart from the edible bay boletes mushroom, which explains why sometimes only tea will do.
The effects of 50mg theanine – the amount present in 2-3 cups of PG tips tea is known* to stimulate alpha brain waves which are associated with being relaxed yet alert. Alpha activity is thought to be important for the ability to focus attention.”
Researchers have discovered that in lab tests on animals soy helped restore the animal’s muscles. The animals had a multiple sclerosis (MS) like disease. Now they are theorizing that a similar treatment could work on humans. The soy-based substance that was used was Bowmann-Birk Inhibitor Concentrate (BBIC), and the results were promising.
“The scientists are not sure how BBIC works in multiple sclerosis, but they theorize that it suppresses the immune response to some extent, in addition to inhibiting proteases. Dr. Rostami sees BBIC as being used as a single therapy or in conjunction with other drugs in treating MS. He notes that because current therapies for MS involve injecting drugs such as interferon and copaxane, one goal is to develop an oral agent. BBIC could be given by pill daily.”