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How to Estimate Calorie Needs for Dieting Athletes

If you are a dieting athlete, simply cutting your calories will impact your performance. Your focus should be lowering the percentage of body fat you carry. If you know what your weight-loss goal is, you can calculate your total daily calories and the ideal amounts of carbohydrate, protein, and fat.

Cutting calories drastically impairs your performance. Therefore, the recommendation is to maintain weight (but shift your percentage of fat to lean) while you’re training and use the “off season” for weight loss.

If you must lose while training (because you’re a year-round athlete), weight loss of 1/2 to 1 pound a week is the recommendation. Losing weight more quickly causes loss of muscle glycogen (the form of energy that is stored in the muscles) and muscle tissue loss as well.

Rapid weight-loss diets that are low in carbohydrates are particularly dangerous for athletes. Most of these diets cause water loss, which can lead to impaired cardiac function, inability to maintain body temperature, and muscle cramping.

To calculate your caloric needs first find your Basic Metabolic Rate (BMR).

Your BMR indicates the number of calories you need to maintain heartbeat and breathing.

How Many Calories Your Body Needs Per Day for Basic Energy Needs
Age	Use This Equation to Calculate Your BMR
Men	*
18 to 30	[15.3 x weight (in kilograms)] + 679
30 to 60	[11.6 x weight (in kilograms)] + 879
Older than 60	[13.5 x weight (in kilograms)] + 487
Women	*
18 to 30	[14.7 x weight (in kilograms)] + 496
30 to 60	[8.7 x weight (in kilograms)] + 829
Older than 60	[10.5 x weight (in kilograms)] + 596

Then multiply it by the activity factor that applies to you in the following table.

Most athletes fall in the heavy range for physical activity. Therefore, their BMR would be multiplied by 1.9–2.1.

Activity Factors
Exercise Level	Description	Factor
Very Light	Extremely sedentary, largely bed rest	1.2–1.3
Light	No planned activity, mostly office work	1.5–1.6
Moderate	Walking, stair climbing during the day	1.6–1.7
Heavy	Planned vigorous activities	1.9–2.1

The recommended weight loss for athletes in training is 1/2 to 1 pound per week.

So, here’s the breakdown:

Calorie deficit per week: 3,500 (calories in a pound) x 1/2 to 1 = 1,750–3,500

Calorie deficit per day: 1,750–3,500 ÷ 7 (days in a week) = 250–500

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-estimate-calorie-needs-for-dieting-athletes.html

How to Follow Sentry Rules

When you’re sentry in the Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard, or Marine Corps, it’s important to take your responsibility seriously. Follow these 11 rules, no matter which military branch you’re in, and you’ll never go wrong!

Take charge of this post and all government property in view.

Walk my post in a military manner, keeping always on the alert, and observing everything that takes place within sight or hearing.

Report all violations of orders I am instructed to enforce.

Repeat all calls from posts more distant from the guard house than my own.

Quit my post only when properly relieved.

Receive, obey and pass on to the sentry who relieves me, all orders from the Commanding Officer, Command Duty Officer, Officer of the Deck, and Officers and Petty Officers of the Watch only.

Talk to no one except in the line of duty.

Give the alarm in case of fire or disorder.

Call the Officer of the Deck in any case not covered by instructions.

Salute all officers and all colors and standards not cased.

Be especially watchful at night, and, during the time for challenging, to challenge all persons on or near my post and to allow no one to pass without proper authority.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-follow-sentry-rules.html

Determining Whether You Really Want to Become a U.S. Citizen

Becoming a U.S. citizen carries important duties and responsibilities, as well as rights, rewards, and privileges. Before you make the decision to pursue U.S. citizenship, you need to be aware of what you stand to lose and what you stand to gain and be sure you're ready to fulfill all the obligations of a good citizen.

Naturalization refers to the process by which immigrants become citizens. In most cases, if you were not born in the United States, you must be naturalized to become a U.S. citizen.

What you lose

When you become a U.S. citizen, you must give up all prior allegiances to other countries. Although nobody will care if you root for your birth country in a soccer match (actually, some soccer fans may care, but the U.S. government certainly won't), you won't be able to defend that country against the United States in times of conflict or war. You must also be willing to serve your new country, the United States of America, when required. What this means is that if the U.S. is at war or in the midst of some other type of crisis, you need to be willing to take up arms for the U.S. or otherwise aid the military effort in whatever capacity is needed.

Giving up your allegiances to other countries doesn't necessarily mean you have to give up your citizenship in other countries. You may be able to maintain your original citizenship(s) and hold U.S. citizenship (having citizenship in more than one country is known as dual citizenship). The United States allows dual citizenship (though it is disfavored). Some countries do not allow dual citizenship. If you are a citizen of such a country, you will likely give up your citizenship upon naturalizing to U.S. citizenship. This information may affect your decision to apply for U.S. citizenship. To find out if your citizenship can be affected, check with the embassy of each country in which you have citizenship.

What you gain

The United States Constitution, the country's most important document and essentially the rulebook for how the U.S. government runs, guarantees all people living in the United States, whether U.S. citizens or not, certain rights. Freedom of religion and speech, the right to peaceable assembly, and the right to a fair trial if you're ever accused of a crime are all important freedoms guaranteed to everyone in the United States.

U.S. citizens, both born and naturalized, however, are eligible for many additional benefits based on their status as U.S. citizens. These include the following:

The right to vote and, therefore, to have a voice in government

The right to hold elected office (except for the offices of President and Vice President, which are reserved for natural-born citizens)

Certain government jobs

Public education

Scholarships

Grants

The ability to petition for immediate relatives to join you in the U.S. without being subject to visa limits

Protection from forced removal from the country

Certain types of public assistance

Your rights and responsibilities as a U.S. citizen

When you become a naturalized U.S. citizen, you must take the Oath of Allegiance. The Oath of Allegiance is your promise to the government and the people of the United States that you will

Support and defend the Constitution and the laws of the United States against all enemies.

Support, defend, and obey the laws of the United States.

Swear allegiance to the United States.

Serve the United States, if required, in times of war or national emergency. You may be called to serve in the military or help U.S. military efforts in some capacity.

Give up any prior allegiances to other countries.

In addition to the responsibilities outlined in the Oath of Allegiance, U.S. citizens have other important duties:

Serving on a jury: One of the most important rights in the U.S. is the right to a trial by a jury in most cases. Serving on a jury when asked is an important obligation of U.S. citizens in order to protect the U.S. system of justice, in which the power still rests with the people.

Although there is a small chance you may never be called to report for jury duty, know that if you do receive a notice to report, you're legally compelled to do so. Failure to report for jury duty can result in a fine, jail time, or both.

Voting: The United States has a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. The ultimate political authority is not in the hands of the government or of any single government official — instead, the ultimate political authority is in the hands of the people. Citizens of the United States have the right to change or abolish the government or to amend the Constitution. U.S. citizens exercise their power by voting for elected representatives.

Being tolerant of others: The U.S. is a melting pot, a combination of many different cultures and ethnic races. People living here need to be tolerant of all races, religions, and cultures.

Although you aren't legally compelled to perform some of these duties — for instance, no one will take you to jail if you don't exercise your right to vote — you will deprive yourself of the important benefits of living in the United States if you don't participate.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/determining-whether-you-really-want-to-become-a-us.html

How Can Mold Affect Your Health?

Molds are an easygoing but pervasive group of funguses. All they ask from us is access to a consistently damp environment like a bathroom or leaky attic. In return, they’ll propagate and provide us with a host of irritating and sometimes serious health conditions.

Research studies have shown that mold can cause unpleasant respiratory symptoms in otherwise healthy adults and children. Scientists also know that many people suffer from mold allergies. In addition, if you have a chronic respiratory illness or your immune system is compromised due to a medical condition or illness, mold can cause further health problems. What researchers haven’t been able to prove are the often-publicized claims that exposure to “black mold” causes memory loss, headaches, fever, and rashes.

Alternaria, aspergillus, cladsporium, and penicillium are the most common indoor molds. Stachybotrys chartarum (black mold) isn’t rare, but it’s also not as common as the other four fungi.

Mold can bring on many respiratory woes

Mold spores fly through the air into your nose, mouth, and lungs each time you breathe. These invaders can set off alarms in your respiratory tract whether or not you have any other allergies or illnesses. Although symptoms aren’t life-threatening in these cases, they can make you feel pretty miserable. If you’re experiencing some of these maladies, mold might be the culprit:

Cough

Post-nasal drip

Runny nose

Scratchy throat

Sneezing

Watery, itchy eyes

In addition, if you work in an environment where you’re constantly exposed to high levels of mold, such as on a farm, in a greenhouse, or in a lumber mill, you run a greater risk of developing hypersensitivity pneumonitis (HP). HP is an inflammation of the lungs that can either be acute or chronic. The acute form can cause fever, chills, and body aches. The long-range form can cause lung scarring. Both acute and chronic HP can cause you to cough and be short of breath.

You can often detect mold through sight or smell. Mold appears as black, gray, white or green spots and emits an unpleasant, musty odor.

If you’re already ill, mold can make you sicker

If you have a chronic respiratory disease, such as asthma or cystic fibrosis, you need to guard against regular exposure to mold. Mold can exacerbate your symptoms, causing you to develop allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABA). Although this form of ABA won’t damage your lungs, it will make you wheeze and cough and, in severe cases, you’ll become short of breath.

People who have compromised immune systems should also avoid moldy environments. If your immune responses are impaired because you’ve had chemotherapy or a bone marrow transplant for instance, you’re at greater risk for acquiring an invasive form of ABA that destroys lung tissue.

You can easily destroy small amounts of mold on hard surfaces with a solution of ten parts water to one part chlorine bleach. You’ll have to remove and discard softer surfaces that can’t be bleached, such as carpeting and upholstery.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-can-mold-affect-your-health.html

Using Costco Credit Card Processing for eBay Sales

If you're running an eBay auction business or store, you know that accepting credit card payments can be expensive. However, Costso offers some true discount credit card processing: a one-stop merchant account and gateway! You can not only buy tuna fish in bulk with a Costco membership, but also obtain a reasonably priced way to handle a merchant account through the NOVA Network.

Costco got together with Elavon, one of the nation's largest processors of credit card transactions, to offer Costco Executive members a discounted Internet credit card processing service. Costco Executive membership brings the cost of a Costco membership up from $45 to $100, but you get the benefit of receiving 2 percent back for most purchases (not including tobacco, gas, food, and some other purchases).

Monthly fees (normally $4.95 a month), as well as the $25 application fee, are waived for Costco Executive members.

Costco Executive Member Internet Credit Card Processing Fees
Fee	Amount
Telephone order fee	1.99% plus $0.27
Internet sales fee	1.99% plus $0.27
Transaction fee to Elavon per transaction	$0.27
Monthly minimum transactions	$20.00

To get an Internet commerce account, you should already have the following in place:

Products and pricing

A return and refund policy

An active customer-service phone number

Posted delivery methods and shipment time

A privacy policy stating that you will not share your customer's information with any other entity

A registered domain in your name or in the name of your business

A secure order page with https and lock

To begin the application process, follow these steps:

Go to the Costco website.

At the top of the home page, click the Services link.

Scroll to the Services for Your Business area and click the Merchant Credit Card Processing link.

Read the information and click the Apply Now link.

Type your Executive Membership number, and fill out the secure form.

Filling out the form online speeds up the application process.

After sending your form, you'll receive a full application package by two-day mail. A representative will also contact you by telephone.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/using-costco-credit-card-processing-for-ebay-sales.html

How to Write a Twitter Bio That Promotes Your Business

Your Twitter marketing campaign should begin with a well-thought out Twitter bio. You can use your bio to explain yourself in 160 characters, which is 20 more characters than Twitter allows in regular tweets. Your bio gives you the chance to tell the world who you are, what you do, and what you like.

The right kind of bio conveys one or two basic ideas so that people who see it understand what you do. Don’t make the mistake of trying to cram as much stuff into the bio as you can. Just give a basic idea about who you are and what you do. Or, if you’re creating an account for your business, talk about what your company is and what it does.

Here are a few examples of good bios. The first group of examples say what the person does, which is useful in the case of consultants and other people who offer their services; it helps Twitter users who read the bio to easily figure out how/if the person can help solve their problems.

Obsessed with social communication. Author of Twitter Marketing for Dummies and Brandswag founder/CEO.

Humor writer, copywriter, professional blogger, and social media guy.

Passionate about small business marketing, networking, and social media.

I run an Indian art advisory based in Delhi. I would qualify as an amateur bike restorer, natural-born traveler, and professional socks collector.

The next group of bios also provides good examples, showing what the company does. As in the case with personal Twitter accounts, providing this information helps those who read the bio to better understand how the company can assist them with their needs.

Remember everything using Windows, Mac, Web, iPhone, BlackBerry, Palm Pre, Windows Mobile, and more . . .

Year-round, professional Equity dinner theater with Broadway musicals, plays, children's shows, and concerts.

Start, Grow, and Track your Campaigns — Web marketing software for everyone, made by ### Co.

### Tape is the original elastic therapeutic tape used by professional athletes and medical practitioners. Supports and offers instant pain relief.

The last example even lists a benefit to the user in instant pain relief. But they all say what the people or businesses do, what drives them, and on a personal level, what interests them.

If you choose to include benefits to potential customers in your Twitter bio, don’t confuse a feature with a benefit. A feature is what something does; a benefit is what the customer gets from it.

Short is better than long. Just because you have 160 characters to write your bio doesn’t mean that you need to use all of them. If you can do it in 100, leave it at that.

The wrong Twitter bio is actually a missing one. At the very least, people will think you don’t want anyone to know that much about you. At worst, they’ll think you’re a spammer who couldn’t be bothered to make a bio for a throwaway account that’ll be gone in five days. And somewhere in the middle, other Twitter users will think you’re just someone who tried Twitter for a few days before giving up.

If you’re worried about anonymity, consider the following thoughts before you worry unnecessarily:

You’re already on the Internet.

You don’t have to include personal details about yourself.

You can always protect your updates.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-write-a-twitter-bio-that-promotes-your-busi.html

Nurture Your Children's Positive Body Image for Healthy Outlook

Children pick up behaviors by watching grown-ups. If you show your children nutritious eating habits, they’re more likely to follow your example. If you’re constantly dieting and criticizing your body, they’ll begin to disrespect theirs, too.

A study conducted by Glamour magazine on 4,000 young women examined the effects that their mothers’ dieting had on their eating habits. The subtle messages that daughters of dieters received from their parents greatly affected them. The more often a mother dieted, the greater the likelihood that her daughter dieted, too, regardless of the child’s age. The study also revealed that a father’s teasing about his daughter’s body often had a stinging effect on body image and dieting behavior.

Letting your children know that they are loved and perfect just the way they are is a good strategy. If they don’t feel criticized by you for their size or shape, they’ll become able to accept and feel good about themselves. Let them share their thoughts about their size with you. Help them to discover that people come in all shapes and sizes and that their outsides have nothing to do with their insides.

Focus on the tangible things that the child excels at — notice and acknowledge when her room is cleaned, she helps a friend, or finishes her homework without being told. This allows the child to view herself in a positive way.

You know many wonderful and unique things about your child. Have you shared them with him lately? Consider the following list. Your opinions can color your child’s body perception in subtle ways.

Examine your expectations of your child’s body.

Examine your own beliefs and prejudices about body weight.

Link respect for diverse body shapes and sizes with diversity of race, ethnicity, and so on.

Realize that it’s okay to criticize a child’s behavior, but it’s not okay to criticize the child.

Take the opportunity to praise a child’s behavior, and make the compliment specific.

Don’t model poor behavior by criticizing your own body shape, make excuses for not exercising because of your weight, or talk about your need to diet.

Encourage eating only in response to hunger.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/nurture-your-childrens-positive-body-image-for-hea.html

How to Encourage Employees to Handle Workplace Conflicts

It’s common for employees to want to save face and try to resolve a conflict without their manager’s involvement. So, if those involved all feel confident they can handle the situation on their own, let them work it out.

Even though you aren’t guiding them through the conflict resolution process, you can help employees prepare for the conversations that they’ll have with each other. Communicate your expectations for follow-through clearly, and include housekeeping details and decisions such as the following:

Whether their communication will be part of their personnel files

Confidentiality — who needs to know about the meeting and agreements

The timeframe in which you expect them to meet

Your availability for the meeting if needed and how they’ll let you know

What type of feedback you’ll need from their meeting (written or verbal)

How they plan to address future disagreements

How often and in what format you’d like to be informed about progress

The exact date you’ll be checking back in with them

When and where they’ll meet (think safety, comfort, and time of day)

Resources they may need from you, such as access to a private meeting room or someone to cover their shifts

Whether agreements will be in writing or a handshake will do, as well as the level of detail needed in an agreement (such as a summary for you but a detailed document for them)

What they’ll do if they come to a standstill

What homework or preparation is needed prior to the meeting so they have important information on hand

Let both parties know you’re rooting for them, that you have confidence in their ability to look at the situation from each other’s point of view, and that you’re ready to help them as needed.

Coach the parties at various points in the process doing the following:

Ask them to treat each other with common courtesy and to walk away from the conversation without doing additional damage to each other.

Ask them to listen, and assure them that listening doesn’t mean agreeing with what the other person is saying. Listening demonstrates that you respect the other person enough to hear what’s important to her. Ask them not to interrupt one another, and encourage note taking when the urge to say something out of turn arises. Discuss the importance of restating what they heard the other say as a way to demonstrate a willingness to begin to see the other person’s perspective.

Encourage sharing. In one-on-one conversations, you may have heard some key information that, if it were shared, would help create understanding and move the parties forward.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-encourage-employees-to-handle-workplace-con.html

Conferences for Day Traders

Although day trading is a deskbound pursuit, you may want to get out into the world to learn more about trading and research different companies with products for day traders. Many of the exchanges and larger day trading brokerage firms have their own seminars and conferences, but a few are open to the public.

Brokerage firms offering many seminars and training programs may have higher commissions than firms offering less service, but the additional expense may be worth it, especially as you’re getting started.

The Money Show

The Money Show is a series of investment conferences held in different major cities around the country. Some focus on specific topics, such as trading and foreign exchange, while others run the gamut. Registration is free, which means that, once you show up, people will be trying to sell you stuff.

Although these vendors can be distracting to an established trader, they can be helpful to new traders looking to find out more about all the different software and services available. The conferences also have high-profile speakers, so you can learn from Wall Street celebrities. The Money Show website includes articles, podcasts, and free online courses to help you learn more about trading.

Trading Forum

The Trading Forum is sponsored by Traders’ Library, which sells research materials and investing books. The conference isn’t cheap, but it covers specific trading strategies and information. It also offers a good introduction to trading. Although a bit pricey, the information is worth the money, especially if the conference happens to be close to where you live.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/conferences-for-day-traders.html

How to Play Barre Chords Based on E Minor on the Guitar

After you’re familiar with the basic feel and movement of playing the major barre chords on a guitar, you want to learn how to play the minor barre chords. By learning to play the minor barre chords based on E, you can add another chord quality to your repertoire (which is a fancy French word for “bag of tricks” that musicians frequently use in discussing their music).

Forming an E-based minor barre chord is similar to forming a major barre chord. Form a barre chord starting with an open Em chord but fingering it with fingers 3-4 (instead of the normal 2-3 fingering). Next, lay your first finger across all the strings on the other side of the nut and then slide the shape up one fret, producing an Fm chord.

Although you can use typical barre approach of sliding the entire left-hand shape up (toward the body of the guitar) one fret to form the Fm barre pattern, you don’t need to go through all that. The following simple steps describe another way to approach the Fm barre chord:

Play an F major barre chord based on E major.

Remove your second finger from the 3rd string.

The first-finger barre, which is already pressing down all the strings, now frets the new note on the third string.

That's it. That’s all you need to do. You can instantly change a major barre chord to a minor barre chord by removing just one finger. You can use this approach to play any of the 12 minor chords by moving the Fm chord to the appropriate fret.

If you’re not sure whether you’re playing a barre chord on the correct fret, try alternating the chord with its open-position form, playing first the barre and then the open form (if it has one). Play the two versions in rapid succession several times. You can then hear whether the two chords are the same or different. (This is also good practice for switching quickly between chords that have no fingerings in common.)

Now try playing the simple progression shown in the following figure, which uses both major and minor barre chords. The dots above the slashes in bars 2 and 4 are called staccato marks. They tell you to cut the notes short. (Instead of playing daahh-daahh-daahh, play di-di-di.) The best way to do this is to slightly release your left-hand finger pressure right after you strum the chord. The symbols at the end of the measures 2 and 4 are called rests. Don’t play during a rest.

Now try playing the progression shown in this figure two frets higher than the figure indicates. This two-fret variation gives you a D-Bm-Gm-A progression. You’ve just transposed (changed the key of) the progression quickly and easily — through the magic of movable chords!

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-play-barre-chords-based-on-e-minor-on-the-g.html

Preparing to Bring Your Siberian Husky Home

To get your house ready for a Siberian Husky, purchase a few items that will keep your dog happy and safe — and prevent you from making last-minute trips to the pet store.

Collars and leashes

ID tags

Food and water dishes

Grooming tools (including a rake, a wide-toothed metal comb, a slicker brush, a pin brush, a dematting tool, a spray bottle filled with water, and a grooming table)

Dog bed

Gates (to restrict your Husky’s access to certain areas of the house, especially before he is completely house-trained)

Safe chew toys

Pet door (if you have a fenced yard for your Husky to enter)

Outdoor run or kennel

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/preparing-to-bring-your-siberian-husky-home.html

Requisitos de una PC para Ejecutar Windows 7

Cuando visite el salón de exposición de una tienda en busca de una PC que ejecute Windows 7, visite también el Welcome Center (Centro de bienvenida) de Windows: Haga clic en Start (Inicio), clic derecho en Computer (Computadora) y elija Properties (Propiedades). ObserveO el área System (Sistema) de la ventana para ver qué tan alta es la calificación que Windows le da a esa PC en una escala de 1.0 (pobre) a 7.9 (rápida). Una PC requiere el hardware de la siguiente tabla para ejecutar Windows 7 eficazmente.

Parte	Requisito
Procesador (CPU)	CPU de 1 GHz o superior
Memoria (RAM)	1 GB RAM
Espacio libre en el disco duro	16 GB
Unidad de discos	Unidad DVD
Memoria gráfica	128 MB o superior

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/requisitos-de-una-pc-para-ejecutar-windows-7.html

M&A Letter of Intent: Financing Contingency

Most letters of intent (LOI) contain some info about where Buyer proposes to obtain the dough needed to effect the M&A transaction. Sellers should pay very careful attention to this part of the LOI. The phrase you’re on the lookout for is financing contingency.

A financing contingency is a hedge for Buyer. He’s saying he may not have the money right now and hopes to obtain it before closing, but he wants a way out of the deal in the event that he can’t get the necessary money.

As a Seller, tread carefully if a Buyer is asking for a financing contingency, especially if the Buyer is a large company or a private equity (PE) firm. A financing contingency is not inherently bad — deals can still get done if a Buyer wants to include one — but Sellers should try to move forward with an LOI that doesn’t include a financing contingency if at all possible.

If Buyer decides not to do the deal, all he has to do is claim he can’t get the money. The inability to get the money contradicts his claims to be a big PE firm or another sizable company: If Buyer is using his strong financial position to entice Seller, then why would that Buyer need a financing contingency?

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/ma-letter-of-intent-financing-contingency.html

Common Excel 2010 Hot Keys to Perform Formula Commands

You activate all of the Excel 2010 hot keys by pressing down the Alt key before you type the various sequences of mnemonic letters. All the hot key sequences for selecting the most common formula-related commands in Excel 2010 begin with the sequence Alt+M because the M in forMulas was the only mnemonic key still available (F was already assigned to the File menu commands).

After you know to press Alt+M to access one of the commands on the Formula tab of the Ribbon, it’s pretty easy sailing, if for no other reason than the commands on the Formula tab are pretty evenly and logically laid out.

Hot Keys	Excel Ribbon Command	Function
Alt+MF	Formulas→Insert Function	Opens the Insert Function dialog box (same as clicking the Insert Function button on the Formula bar
Alt+MUS	Formulas→AutoSum→Sum	Selects the occupied range above the cell cursor and inserts SUM formula to total the range
Alt+MUA	Formulas→AutoSum→Average	Selects the occupied range above the cell cursor and inserts AVERAGE formula to calculate the average of total in the range
Alt+MUC	Formulas→AutoSum→Count Numbers	Selects the occupied range above the cell cursor and inserts COUNT formula to count the number of values in the range
Alt+MI	Formulas→Financial	Opens a drop-down menu listing all Financial functions — click name to insert function into current cell
Alt+ME	Formulas→Date & Time	Opens a drop-down menu listing all Date and Time functions — click name to insert function into current cell
Alt+MN	Formulas→Name Manager	Opens Name Manager dialog box showing all range names in workbook where you can add, edit, and delete names
Alt+MMD	Formulas→Define Name	Opens New Name dialog box where you can assign a name to the cell selection or define a new constant
Alt+MS	Formulas→Use in Formula	Displays drop-down menu with range names in workbook that you can insert into current formula by clicking
Alt+MC	Formulas→Create from Selection	Opens Create Names from Selection dialog box where you indicate which rows and columns to use in naming cell selection
Alt+MH	Formulas→Show Formulas (Ctrl+`)	Displays and then hides all formulas in cells of the worksheet
Alt+MXA	Formulas→Options→Automatic	Turns automatic recalculation back on
Alt+MXE	Formulas→Options→Automatic Except for Data Tables	Turns automatic recalculation back on for all parts of the worksheet except for ranges with Data Tables
Alt+MXM	Formulas→Options→Manual	Turns on manual recalculation
Alt+MB	Formulas→Calculate Now (F9)	Recalculates formulas throughout the entire workbook when manual recalculation is turned on
Alt+MJ	Formulas→Calculate Sheet (Shift+F9)	Recalculates formulas in the current worksheet when manual recalculation is turned on

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/common-excel-2010-hot-keys-to-perform-formula-comm.html

Discovering Ecotourism

Ecotourism is about doing more than simply enjoying your surroundings; it’s about understanding them while making sure that your travel doesn’t affect them negatively. As an ecotourist, you enrich your mind, spirit, and the local economy without harming the local ecosystem. More than anything, ecotourism is traveling with care and awareness.

Defining ecotourism

There’s a lot of confusion, even in the travel industry, about what ecotourism is. The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) says that ecotourism is “Responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and sustains the well-being of the local people.” TIES believes that ecotourism should

Minimize impact

Build cultural and environmental awareness and respect

Provide positive experiences for both visitors and hosts

Provide direct financial benefits for conservation

Provide financial benefits and empowerment for local people

Raise sensitivity to a host country’s political, environmental, and social climates

Support international human rights and labor agreements

Local communities see ecotourism as a way to bring in travelers who are willing to pay a bit extra if they know that their money goes toward saving endangered species or conserving their natural ecosystems.

Hitting the ecotourism hotspots

Internationally, a growing number of regions are becoming popular ecotourism destinations. Some of the most popular locations with an increasing number of ecotourism attractions and services include:

Africa: Kenya and Swaziland have become two of the most popular hotspots. Their national parks, deserts, and forests, as well as rich wildlife and traditional culture (such as the Kenyan Masai tribe), make them extremely popular places to visit but also put huge pressure on the tourism industry to make sure that the recent marked increase in tourism is managed sensitively.

Caribbean and Central America: Some of the fastest-growing ecotourism spots in the world are beach and rainforest areas found in small countries like the Dominican Republic, Belize, and Costa Rica. Costa Rica has become one the most popular ecotourism destinations in the Americas thanks to government support for tourism and the country’s unmatched variety of rainforests, volcanoes, mountain ranges, and beaches.

Europe: Although museums and historical sites immediately come to mind, European countries offer plenty of ecotourism options, too. Cycling and hiking holidays are especially popular.

North America: The beautiful, extensive, but increasingly overcrowded national parks continue to attract visitors to North America, with Alaska and Canada growing in popularity. Heading to some of the slightly less popular but equally stunning parks spreads out the impact more equally.

South America: Brazil, Ecuador, and Peru are high on ecotourism lists, especially the Amazon region in Brazil, the snow-capped volcanic mountains and indigenous populations in Ecuador, and the Andes in Peru.

Southeast Asia: Indonesia and Thailand are the most popular destinations in this region, with their rainforests and mountain ranges contrasting with stunning beaches. An increasing number of ecotourists also are visiting countries such as Cambodia, Laos, and Nepal — although garbage on the popular route toward Mount Everest has been a problem in Nepal.

An increasing number of guidebooks highlight the attractions of these natural parts of the world. You also can type ecotourism into your favorite Internet search engine to find plenty of ecotourism options.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/discovering-ecotourism.html

What Are a Trustee’s Fiduciary Duties?

As a trustee, you have a fiduciary duty to the trust. You must always act in accordance with the terms of the trust instrument. Your attorney can advise you as to the law regarding your duties and limitations. To avoid potential lawsuits or problems, you will need to know how much discretion you are empowered to exercise in administering the trust. You will also want to obtain errors and omissions insurance.

Exercising discretion in trust administration

The degree of power you have to exercise discretion in your role as trustee depends on the language of the trust instrument. Some of this is dictated by tax law if you’re a family trustee. The grantor gives you a framework within which to work, but also trusts you to make the best possible choices when necessary.

Whether you have a great deal or only a tiny amount, some discretion is necessary as trustee. You must be able to make and change investments in a way you feel benefits the trust.

As trustee, you’re often in the position of acting in place of the grantor. Somehow, you’re expected to do what he or she would have done in the same situation. The closer your personal relationship with the grantor, the more likely you’ll be to act in a way in which the grantor would have approved. Applying what you know about the grantor to a situation can help you with difficult decisions.

Document everything that you’re asked to distribute by the beneficiary. If you’re helping him or her to buy a house, make sure that you have copies of all the house purchase documents. If it’s a request for school tuition, keep a copy of all the school bills you pay.

Obtaining errors and omissions insurance

In these litigious times, no one is immune to lawsuits, and that includes you in your role as trustee. In order to protect yourself, don’t forget to obtain errors and omissions insurance. This insurance protects against claims by beneficiaries that you haven’t fulfilled your fiduciary duty in the management and administration of the trust. Contact your insurance broker about obtaining this insurance, which is a deductible trust expense.

Without errors and admissions insurance, if you make a mistake in administering the trust, no matter how unintentional, a disgruntled beneficiary can go after you and your personal assets. If you have insurance coverage, the insurance company will defend you against a questionable lawsuit, because it won’t want to pay out a claim unless it feels the claim is justified. Buying this insurance is money well spent.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/what-are-a-trustees-fiduciary-duties.html

Tips for Building Loyal Online Customers

Getting traffic, or visitors, to your website is only the first step in building your online business. To be successful, you want to convert visitors into customers who keep returning to your site. Use these simple tips to build a loyal following of happy, satisfied customers for your online business:

Offer multiple ways for customers to communicate with you (including e-mail, phone, real-time online support, and online forums).

Respond to customer e-mail within 24 hours.

Engage customers by providing ways to interact with your site, such as participating in online communities, writing product reviews, and commenting on blogs.

Connect with customers through social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn and keep customers interacting with your online brand.

Make customers feel special by sending coupons and other exclusive offers to your registered users or frequent buyers.

Send customers tips or brief articles that show how to use your products or services to help save time, be more productive, or that is fun or innovative.

Give customers several payment options to make buying easy.

Offer free shipping — no strings attached.

Collect personal customer information (with permission) and use it to send special offers or gifts on birthdays and anniversaries and other special occasions.

Find creative ways to thank customers for visiting your site and for making a purchase.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/tips-for-building-loyal-online-customers.html

Lists for SharePoint Online Sites

SharePoint Online comes with a collection of standard lists and libraries. Microsoft has already taken the time to develop these in order to make your life as a developer easier, so you may as well use them. The following list introduces the standard SharePoint lists and provides brief descriptions:

Announcements: This list is for brief news items, quick status checks, and other quick-and-informative stuff.

Calendar: This calendar is strictly business — deadlines, meetings, scheduled events, and the like. You can synchronize the information on this calendar with Microsoft Outlook or other Microsoft-friendly programs.

Circulations: This list is for sending information around to team members via an e-mail notification; the list includes confirmation stamps, so members can indicate that they’ve seen what you wanted them to see. An example would be an important new company policy.

You can use the Circulations list to track that everyone has read and accepted the policy. Note that in order to see this list template, you must have the Group Work Lists feature activated.

Contacts: If you’re a regular Outlook user, you may have developed a list of contacts. If you haven’t, here’s your chance to list the people relevant to your team (such as partners, customers, or public officials). You can synchronize the SharePoint Contacts list with Microsoft Outlook or other programs that play nice with Microsoft products.

Custom List: If you’re trying to develop a list but none of the standard list types does what you have in mind, you can start from scratch with a blank list and drop in the views and columns you want.

Custom List in Data Sheet View: Here’s a familiar twist on the blank list: SharePoint shows it as a spreadsheet, so you can set up a custom list as easily as you would in Excel, specifying views and columns as needed. Note that this list type requires an ActiveX control for list datasheets; fortunately, Microsoft Office provides such a control.

Discussion Board: If you’re a seasoned netizen from the heyday of the newsgroup, this list will be a familiar place for online discussions. Naturally, you want to keep the discussion businesslike, so this list type helps you manage those discussions (for example, you can require posts to be approved before everybody can see them).

External List: Use this list type to create a list of data identified as an External Content Type. An External Content Type is a term used to describe groupings of data that live outside of SharePoint. An example might be data that lives in a backend system, such as SAP.

Import Spreadsheet: If you have data contained in an existing spreadsheet (created in Excel or another Microsoft-compatible program) that you want to use in SharePoint, you can import it into a list of this type. You get the same columns and data as the original spreadsheet.

Issue Tracking: If you want to organize your project team’s responses to a problem associated with (say) an important project, this is the type of list you use to set priorities, assign tasks, and keep track of progress toward resolving the issue.

*Languages and Translation: SharePoint offers a Translation Management workflow that helps assign translation tasks. This list type is for creating a list of the languages used in those tasks — and of designated translators for each language.

Links: This list type helps you organize links. The user can consult a list of web pages and similar online resources — and simply click to go to any of them.

Microsoft IME Dictionary List: Create a Microsoft Input Method Editor (IME) dictionary list when you want to use data in a SharePoint list as a Microsoft IME dictionary. Microsoft IME is a system that allows you to enter characters, such as Japanese or Chinese, not found on your keyboard.

When an application that supports these characters is running, a small virtual keyboard appears on your screen that allows you to enter the characters. The Microsoft IME Dictionary List allows you to store the various character values in SharePoint. Note that in order to see this list template, you must have the Group Work Lists feature activated.

Project Tasks: If you’re a veteran of Microsoft Project 2010 (especially if you have Project — or a compatible equivalent — running in your organization), this list type is probably familiar. It’s essentially a big to-do list organized as a Gantt Chart (which you can, in fact, open with Project): a place to track team or individual progress on tasks and keep your eye on allocated resources and deadlines.

Status List: This list type offers a big-picture perspective of a project’s status. It’s a place to display goals for (say) a project and show how close you are to reaching them.

Survey: This list type is for gathering information, specifically by crowd-sourcing. Here’s where you put a list of questions you want people to answer. A survey list helps you formulate your questions and can summarize the responses you get back. The responses to the survey are stored in the list and can then be analyzed, charted, or exported.

Tasks: This list type is essentially a to-do list for a team or individual.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/lists-for-sharepoint-online-sites.html

How to Eat the Low-Carb Way

Eating the low-carb way means building your diet around lean proteins along with vegetables and fruits prepared fairly simply. If you were a meat-and-potatoes eater, focus on the meat more than the carb-heavy potatoes. The tips in the following list offer advice on what foods to choose:

Build your meals around fruits, vegetables, and lean protein food sources.

Choose whole grains or legumes for your daily carb choices. Minimize your intake of processed foods.

Choose very low-fat milk and dairy foods.

Choose monounsaturated rather than saturated fats.

Eat three or four meals per day. Never starve yourself and never skip meals. If you eat between meals, eat healthy foods that are also filling, such as apples or oranges.

Do not eat a full meal right before bedtime. A bedtime snack such as nonfat yogurt or cottage cheese and fruit is okay.

Drink plenty of water — eight glasses a day

Exercise moderately 30 to 60 minutes at least five times a week.

Practice the 90-percent/10-percent rule: Follow this plan 90 percent of the time, and treat yourself to a favorite food 10 percent of the time.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-eat-the-lowcarb-way.html

How to Use the Relative Dividend Yield Strategy to Choose Stocks

To determine whether a stock is underpriced or expensive, the relative dividend yield (RDY) strategy compares a stock’s yield to the dividend yield of the broader market.

RDY isn’t a good strategy for those seeking instant gratification. It’s a long-term strategy of three to five years that doesn’t rely on past earnings, forecasted earnings, or P/E ratios to determine valuations.

The relative dividend yield approach encourages investors to be patient, disciplined, independent, contrarian investors who move against the crowd by focusing on large companies that have experienced trouble but are familiar, well-known businesses stable enough to eventually recover. Using absolute yield to identify undervalued stocks can leave you in a lot of mature, slow-growth industries.

RDY investors want capital appreciation as well as income. Because the yield on a RDY stock doesn’t need to be very high (just higher than the market), it helps identify good values in both weak and strong markets. Using RDY over the long term provides a portfolio with a higher stream of income, a 1.5 to 2 percent better total return, and a lower risk than the S&P 500 index does.

The RDY reflects investor sentiment. According to Spare, a high RDY indicates despair in the market, whereas a low RDY signals investor enthusiasm. Following the relative dividend yield strategy, you buy when other investors are selling and sell when other investors are buying. This strategy’s followers expect the following:

High yield: All RDY stocks have higher than average yields. RDY investors don’t buy a stock until its yield is typically at least 50 percent higher than the market. By looking at yield, RDY identifies undervalued stocks, which are expected to eventually see capital gains in terms of price. Still, the high yield likely represents a significant amount of the investor’s returns.

Low risk: RDY stocks have lower risk than the rest of the market because they’re neglected stocks. When RDY identifies a potential candidate, the stock has already been beaten down and underperformed the market for some time. Because the stock’s share price has already seen a significant drop, it’s less likely to fall farther.

Long holding periods: The typical holding period for an RDY stock is three to five years. When the stock’s share price recovers and moves higher, it causes the stock’s relative yield to drop below the market’s yield, creating the sell signal.

Low turnover: Holding stocks for longer periods means you sell only about a quarter to a third of the portfolio in a given year, compared to a 100 percent turnover at most mutual funds. Low turnover leads to lower transaction costs, leaving more money to be invested and generating better returns. In addition, fewer sales means fewer capital gains realized in any given year, which leads to a lower tax bill.

Less volatility: Because RDY portfolios hold mostly large, mature companies with a reputation for paying consistent dividends, these stocks don’t fall as much as the broader market in bear markets or stay down as long.

RDY gives you buy and sell signals based on yield. This strategy seems a bit more complicated than the dividend connection, which uses absolute yield. Absolute yield looks at a company’s yield alone, independent of other variables, for buy signals.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-use-the-relative-dividend-yield-strategy-to.html

Network Administrator Account Security

The network administrator is responsible for setting up the network's security system. To do that, the administrator must be exempt from all security restrictions. Because of this the network administrator's account must be treated with extra caution.

Many networks automatically create an administrator user account when you install the network software. The username and password for this initial administrator are published in the network’s documentation and are the same for all networks that use the same network operating system.

One of the first things that you must do after getting your network up and running is to change the password for this standard administrator account. Otherwise, your elaborate security precautions will be a complete waste of time. Anyone who knows the default administrator username and password can access your system with full administrator rights and privileges, thus bypassing the security restrictions that you so carefully set up.

Don’t forget the password for the administrator account! If a network user forgets his or her password, you can log on as the supervisor and change that user’s password. If you forget the administrator’s password, though, you’re stuck.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/network-administrator-account-security.html

How to File an Insurance Claim with UPS

When you file a claim with UPS for damaged or lost eBay merchandise, the process is pretty straightforward and relatively painless. After they file and accept your damage claim, you get a check within five days.

For damaged packages, UPS has streamlined the process, although the buyer must make the claim. You can (if you really want to) call 1-800-PICK-UPS to file your claim, or you can file online. Be sure you make your report to UPS within 48 hours of delivery.

On the online claim form, you’ll be asked to input all information about the package and the damage. UPS seems to be familiar with its own handiwork because you get to select your particular type of damage from a menu.

After you’ve filled out and submitted the form, just sit on your haunches and wait for the UPS claims department to contact you.

You should print your form after filling it out so you can keep all claim reference information in one place.

After the buyer makes the claim, UPS sends a Damage/Loss Notification Letter form to the seller. The seller must fill out the form to state the item’s value and attach supporting documentation. The form can then be faxed back to UPS for final verification.

Remember to save the damaged item and all the packaging that it came in. UPS may send an inspector out to look at the package before they approve a claim.

If a UPS shipment appears to be lost, the seller must call UPS to request a package tracer. If UPS is unable to prove delivery, the claim is paid.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-file-an-insurance-claim-with-ups.html

Making Marriage Work For Dummies

Common Myths about Marriage

Focus on finding the truths that keep your marriage strong instead of allowing common myths about marriage to undermine your relationship. Examine these marital myths to view your marriage more clearly:

There’s only one right person for you.

Two people in a good marriage automatically grow closer with time.

When couples argue, it destroys the relationship.

Pursuing your own individual needs is incompatible with making a marriage work.

Marriage partners can fill the gaps in one another’s makeup.

The goal of marriage is for both partners to get exactly what they want

How to Fight Fairly in Marriage

Accepting that you and your spouse will argue can help to strengthen the marriage, but only if you have the ability to fight fair. If a marital argument arises, use these tools to help resolve the conflict fairly and constructively:

Do be clear about what you want.

Do stick to the issues at hand.

Do look at both sides of the story.

Do listen more than you talk.

Do apologize when you’re wrong.

Don’t look for total victory.

Don’t prolong the argument.

Don’t nag or withdraw.

Don’t take the moral high ground.

Don’t go for the jugular.

Reducing the Stress on Your Marriage

Negative stress effects your emotion and physical well-being, as well as your marriage. Take time to identify the source of your stress and then utilize these tips to reduce stress on yourself and your marriage:

Talk to a friend.

Slow down.

Find time in your day to do something that makes you feel good.

Keep your sense of humor — even in difficult situations.

Don’t dwell on your mistakes.

Forgive yourself and your partner.

Don’t expect perfection — from your partner or yourself.

Find ways to take care of your partner — and yourself.

Change the scenery.

Eliminate unnecessary pressure and people.

Have a Sexier, More Exciting Marriage

A waning sex life is a complaint many couples have after years of marriage. Use these tips to keep the sexual chemistry alive in your marriage and improve your sex life:

Show your love every day.

Touch each other lovingly and sensuously.

Show and tell your spouse what pleases you.

Let your fantasies run free.

Make time to be alone together.

Play and laugh together.

Make special time for sex.

Become an artful kisser.

Talk sexy to each other.

How to Resolve Marital Money Differences

Money is a regular cause of marital problems. Recognize how your attitude about money affects your marriage and use these tips to help resolve your money-dealing differences:

Sit down with your partner and talk about the way each of your families of origin dealt with money.

Talk about the effects that past experiences may be having on your present attitudes about money. Ask yourself and your partner if those current attitudes and behaviors make sense.

Understand each other’s short- and long-term financial goals.

Understand that your different values and ideas about money require constant negotiation.

Respect each other’s values and preferences about spending and saving.

Brainstorm solutions that make you both feel comfortable.

Respect each other’s contribution to the marriage as equal — even if one partner earns most or all of the money.

Make sure you and your partner both have access to a significant portion of the money.

Agree on an amount that each spouse can spend without consulting the other.

>
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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/making-marriage-work-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.html

How to Make Your Swimming Pool More Efficient

Boosting the efficiency of your swimming pool is an important first step in reducing your carbon footprint and moving toward a more sustainable lifestyle. Here's how to make your swimming pool energy efficient so that when you add solar, you get the most bang for your buck:

Reduce bends in the piping: Sharp bends in the PVC piping slow down the flow and require more power to do the same job. Unfortunately, many pool installers completely fail this simple requirement. If your pipes are all over the place, rebuild the system. PVC is a cinch to work with.

Make sure that all valves are working properly: If you have gate valves, replace them with ball valves, which are more efficient. Make sure that all ball valves are completely open or closed.

Keep the filter clean: A dirty filter loads the pump, which costs a lot more power. If your filter is old, replace it. Cartridge filters are better than diatomaceous Earth.

Install a smaller, higher efficiency pump, and run it less each day: Use the smallest, most efficient pump possible — 3/4 horsepower is usually sufficient. If your pump is a few years old and wasn't designed with enough capacity for solar panel use, buying a new one will probably be economical. Most people will find that they can run their pool pump for much less time and still achieve satisfactory cleanliness. Give it a try.

A large power pump filters your pool water faster, and some people like that because it means you can run the pump less (which means you listen to it less). But here's the problem: If you're planning on putting up solar panels, the amount of heat they put into the pool is a function of how much time water is flowing through them; the quantity of water isn't as important. So if you have a large pump that moves water quickly, you're not optimizing your solar panels.

Install windbreaks around your pool. Wind can increase evaporation 300 percent or more, which wastes a lot of energy, much more than you may think.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-make-your-swimming-pool-more-efficient.html

Invest in Commodities through Steel Companies

Although futures contracts are available for all commodities from crude oil to coffee, there’s no underlying futures contract for steel. However, a number of exchanges have expressed interest in developing a steel futures contract, so keep an eye out for such a development.

For now, the best way to get exposure to steel is to invest in companies that produce steel, specifically globally integrated steel companies. The companies below are global leaders in the steel industry.

Company	Production (Million Metric Tons)
ArcelorMittal (worldwide)	78
Baosteel (China)	31
POSCO (South Korea)	30
Nippon Steel (Japan)	27
JFE Group (Japan)	27
Jiangsu Shagang (China)	21
Tata Steel (India)	20
Ansteel (China)	20
Severstal (Russia)	17
Evraz (Russia)	15

Source: International Iron and Steel Institute

The companies in Table 16-2 are the world leaders in the industry. However, not all are available for investment. Some of them are private, and others trade on foreign exchanges that don’t issue American Depository Receipts (ADRs). The following list represents good investments that not only are the best-run companies, but also display the greatest potential for future market dominance:

Arcelor-Mittal (NYSE: MT): Arcelor-Mittal resulted when the Indian company Mittal acquired the European Arcelor in 2006, in one of the biggest consolidation plays the industry has ever seen. Combining the number one and number two steel producers has created a dominant leader with output, almost double that of its nearest competitor. If you’re looking for broad exposure to the steel industry, you can’t go wrong with Arcelor-Mittal.

Gerdau (NYSE: GGB): Gerdau is a Brazilian vertically integrated steel producer with operations across several countries. Gerdau is a dominant player in the long steel category, with mills in Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, and the United States. It brought in a net income of more than $800 million in 2009, so you can remain confident that this company will generate long-term value for its shareholders.

Nucor Corp. (NYSE: NUE): The American steel industry remains a robust competitor on the global stage, despite the dominance of Asian (particularly Chinese) companies. Nucor operates almost exclusively in the United States; if you’re interested in getting exposure to the American steel market, consider investing in it.

Nucor is also one of the only companies to operate minimills domestically, which many argue are more cost efficient than the traditional blast furnaces.

U.S. Steel (NYSE: X): U.S. Steel, which was formed as a result of the consolidation of Andrew Carnegie’s steel holdings in the early 20th century, is one of the oldest and largest steel companies in the world. By itself, U.S. Steel represents the whole history of the modern steel industry. At one point, it was the largest producer of steel in the world.

Although it has scaled down its operations, it’s still a significant player in the industry today. U.S. Steel is involved in all aspects of the steel-making process, from iron ore mining and processing to the marketing of finished products.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/invest-in-commodities-through-steel-companies.html

Helping a Child with Asperger’s Syndrome Communicate

Children with Asperger’s Syndrome or another condition on the autism spectrum often struggle to understand what’s being said to them. To get around this, you can try several different communication styles. First, make your instructions, questions or conversation clear. To make sure you’re communicating clearly, try the following:

Speak slowly, and give only one instruction at a time: For example, rather than saying, ‘Go and brush your teeth then get dressed,’ ask your child to brush his or her teeth, then wait until that task is finished before you ask your child to get dressed. The same thing goes with questions. One thing at a time is always best.

Avoid sarcasm, metaphors and idioms: People on the spectrum find these really difficult to understand because they tend to take words and expressions literally. So if you want your child to know that you’re keeping an eye on him or her, don’t tell your child that (you can’t put an eye on someone without doing yourself a lot of damage) or worse, say “I’ve got eyes in the back of my head” (how scary!). If you remark that it’s “raining cats and dogs,” expect your child to look outside and be a little confused.

Be clear about what you mean, and be concrete when you talk about abstract concepts: This applies especially with things like feelings, which children on the spectrum will have even more difficulty understanding.

Be patient and give your child plenty of time to respond to any questions or requests: It will take your child more time to process verbal information than you may expect, so count to ten before expecting a response or before repeating your question.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/helping-a-child-with-aspergers-syndrome-communicat.html

What Happens to Our Bodies while We Sleep

You might think your brain and body spend their sleeping hours in a blissful state of restful inactivity, but it’s not so. There’s a lot going on inside you while you’re slumbering.

Here are some ways our bodily performance changes as we’re sleeping:

Digestive juices: The amount of acid in our stomachs typically decreases while we sleep, but if we’ve got an ulcer, it increases.

Hormone production: Two female reproductive hormones (follicle stimulating and luteinizing) are released during sleep. Additionally, growth hormone is released in children and young adults while they sleep.

Kidney performance: The rate at which our kidneys filter waste slows down while we’re sleeping. This reduction in renal production is why that first morning urine is so concentrated.

These alterations from waking life are slight compared to what happens in our brains, muscles, and circulatory system.

Our breathing, heart rate, muscle movements, and the like change according to whether we’re in NREM- or REM-stage sleep. During certain stages of NREM sleep, many of our bodily functions slow compared to normal waking levels, including brain activity, heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, and body temperature. Our muscles are relaxed and, for the most part, blood flow to the brain doesn’t change and sexual arousal doesn’t occur.

Based on brain-wave patterns, scientists know we pass through five stages of sleep. Stages one through four are NREM (non-rapid eye movement). The last stage is REM sleep. Our brains cycle through the five stages at 90 to 110-minute intervals, four to six times each night.

In REM stage, each of these processes increases beyond normal waking levels. In addition, blood flow to our brains can increase anywhere from 50 to 200 percent and sexual arousal increases. Our eyes move together, back and forth and up and down, as if we were awake and focused on a moving object. The muscles in our heart, lungs and such continue to move, but the muscles in our limbs become paralyzed.

During REM, the portions of our brain responsible for learning become active. Perhaps not coincidentally, REM is also the stage of sleep when we dream, although scientists can’t figure out why we dream.

Although there are still a lot of sleep-related questions to be answered, scientists have learned quite a bit about what happens to our bodies when we don’t get enough sleep. Researchers know that our ability to think quickly and clearly, solve math problems, remember details, and perform some physical tasks are diminished when we’re sleep deprived. People who go a very long time without sleeping can become paranoid and hallucinate.

If you want to take advantage of sleep’s benefits (both known and yet-to-be discovered), get the proper amount of rest. For adults, that usually means 7 to 8 hours of sleep per night.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/what-happens-to-our-bodies-while-we-sleep.html

Texting as a Web Marketing Technique

For a quick, inexpensive way to reach hundreds or thousands of people (especially teens), consider short message service, or SMS, which operates essentially like bulk e-mail by cellphone, as long as you have user permission to send these messages

If you’ve ever watched the blur of teenagers’ speeding thumbs, you’re well aware that teens, especially females aged 13 to 17, send thousands of text messages every month on their cellphones. It turns out that many other people do, too — about a trillion text messages per year, worldwide.

In an October 2010 report, The Nielsen Company reports that although texting falls off rapidly with age, users as old as 54 still send or receive hundreds of messages every month, making cellphone users appealing targets for specific messaging needs.

These needs may range from requests to text the characters 2HELP (24357) to make a $5 donation to the Red Cross for disaster relief, to a campaign (triggered perhaps from an online search) encouraging users to text a keyword to your number to receive a special mobile coupon.

The coupon or promotional code displays as a text message that they can show to receive a discount for an event admission or purchase.

Club Texting

TextBoard

Text2VIP

As recently as September 2010, eMarketer forecast that SMS would be “the biggest single mobile advertising format in 2011, with a 38 percent share of mobile advertising spending.” However, eMarketer also warns that SMS will decline in importance as smartphone users increase, shifting the spending focus to display and search advertising.

Never send unsolicited text messages to customers’ cellphones. Depending on an individual’s cellphone plan, a consumer might have to pay to receive text messages; in that case, the customer would be furious to receive spam. As with e-mail campaigns, always enable users to unsubscribe easily.

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Diagramming an Interaction Scenario in UML 2

All interaction diagrams capture at least one interaction, which is the interplay of messages sent between objects over time for a specific purpose. Usually the most important interactions you document are the major use-case scenarios. In this context, we use the term scenario as an instance of a use case. Each use case has a generalized description of its most common scenario — its main course or main flow. In such a flow, you describe the interaction of participating objects as an ordered set of steps or actions that an actor (or system) takes as the flow plays out.

A participating object takes a set of actions, communicating the results of one or more of these actions in a message to another participating object — which (in turn) takes its own set of actions and communicates. Sometimes the participating object needs help from other object, so it requests a service in a message to another participating object, which (in turn) takes its own set of actions and communicates. When you draw an interaction diagram, you emphasize the message sequences among the participating objects, as shown in Figure 1, and (usually) hide the internal actions.

Figure 1: A basic sequence diagram.

In the sample diagram in Figure 1, you can see the basic features of a sequence diagram. You diagram the participating objects as vertical lifelines. These lifelines consist of an icon indicating the type of participant (such as an object or an actor instance) at the top of a dashed line where you can indicate the messages sent and received by the participating object. Show the messages among the objects as directed arrows from sender to target object. In this diagram, the FirstObject informs the SecondObject that It's Your Turn, and later, the SecondObject informs the FirstObject that Now It's Your Turn. The convention is that time passes as you read down the page, though you can turn the diagrams so time runs from left to right. As is typical in these diagrams, the messages alternate.

Place the interaction in the contents area of a frame, and then place the diagram interaction's title in the odd-shaped heading area (a rectangle with a cut-off corner) in the upper-left corner. The heading contains a prefix that describes the type of interaction you've placed in the frame. The sample diagram shows the interaction as a sequence diagram, so the descriptive prefix can be sequence diagram (for which the typical abbreviation is sd).

The frame and heading, new in UML 2, are applicable to all UML diagrams. Because UML 2 must be backward-compatible with previous work, the frame and heading are optional, and for the most part, you don't need to use them. However, use them with interaction and behavioral modeling, as they form the basis for behavioral decomposition (as shown later in this chapter).

In Figure 2, you can see how the sequence diagram extracts and shows specific instances of communication among interacting entities. You don't show details of what must be done, just the messages — which makes it easy to see what's going on. This is an example of how UML uses abstraction to make your work understandable by hiding the details of internal behavior.

Figure 2: A sequence diagram.

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