Human Figure Floor Lamps from Bizzotto

Tired of the usual floor lamps you see in stores near where you live? Seeking something a little more contemporary, stylish, different … fabulously unique? These human figure floor lamps from the Italian furniture design company Bizzotto may well be an appealing prospect for your living room, dining room or even bedroom. They will add a decidedly human figure loving ambiance to the décor.

The life sized human figure floor lamps come in either a naked male form or a naked female form. There male form is in a seated position as though talking to a group of friends. In this regard, the lamp would ideally be placed next to a sofa, armchair or indoor bench where it can become part of the social arena of the home. The female form is standing in a contrapposto pose with her hands on her hips. This is very much a model pose frequently copied by young women wanting to appear sexy. As such, this lamp is deal for placement in a corner of an interior space or by a door.

Each of the floor lamps is headless and instead comes with a large lampshade matching the color of the body. Incidentally [note: when slightly miss-typing this word the spell checker offered up “indecently” as a possible correct spelling. Make of that what you will.] , the floor lamp bodies are available in white, black and a variety of other colors. If you have a home needing some extra eclectic décor, these human figure floor lamps with shades for heads, will make a perfect addition.

Modern Architecture

Your Facebook profile could get you the sack

By Robert Powell | Lovemoney.com

“Making the world more open and connected” is the mantra trumpeted by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg as the key aim behind his social networking giant.

And isn’t that a nice, fluffy idea?

Well, it is, so long as you know exactly who you are being open and connected with. And as one lowly ex-employee recently found: most of the time, you don’t.

iFool

Samuel Crisp is a genius. Or, more accurately, he was, until he got sacked from Apple’s ‘Genius Bar’ (that’s the repair shop to you and I) in Norwich for behaving like something of an iFool on his iPhone.

Yes, Mr Crisp took to Facebook to vent some rage against an app on his handset that had messed up (not the exact words used) the phone’s time zones.

He also poked fun at the tagline that was used by Apple to launch the Beatles' back catalogue: “Tomorrow is another day that’ you’ll never forget” by posting “tomorrow’s just another day that hopefully I’ll forget”.

Employment tribunal

After being shown the door by Apple, Mr Crisp appealed to an employment tribunal about his sacking. He contended that the remarks were private and hence should not have impacted on his employment.

However the tribunal sided with Apple and said that the comments could have easily been passed on without any control from Mr Crisp.

The tribunal also heard that the ex-Apple employee had become disgruntled with the company after missing out on a transfer to the United States.

Social media policy

Part of the reason why Apple was able to dispatch the loose-lipped worker so easily was that it had written in social media guidelines that all employees had to abide by.

In a copy of the document leaked to the magazine PC World, the company states that if you identify yourself as an Apple employee you “should ensure that content associated with you is consistent with Apple policies”.

It goes on to say that all Apple workers should comply with the company’s business conduct policy on threat of disciplinary action “up to and including termination of employment”.

A guideline Samuel Crisp now knows all too well.

Spleen venting

Employment disputes surrounding comments posted online have become more common over the last few years. And they don’t necessarily have to be of a direct ‘spleen venting against your employer’ nature to result in a sacking.

Personal insults against colleagues and unsavoury or ill-timed status updates and photos could also land you a booking at the job centre.
Yes, you may have thoroughly enjoyed your boozy weekend away with the lads – but there’s no need for the world to see you drinking tequila from an armpit, is there?

Job hunters beware

You should be even more cautious with your online identity if you’re currently on the job hunt. Almost half of employers reportedly check the Facebook accounts of applicants as part of the recruitment process.

So if you’ve just come out of university and are looking for a job, it’s probably best to give your online persona something of a face-lift before sending off any CVs.
But rude and insulting comments and aren’t the only things you should avoid putting online.

Holiday plans

Nothing says ‘come and burgle my empty house while I’m away’ like an excited status update boasting of a looming holiday.

If you do want all of your mates to know about your plush trip to New York, for goodness sake wait until you get back to brag about it.

But even then, try not to include any photos of the brand new laptop or iPad you brought back with you. There’s no need to give criminals a shopping list for your home now, is there?

Indeed, the fact that so many of us are posting this potentially risky info online has got insurers worried, with warnings that it may lead to higher premiums.

Photos and location data

Sharing photos is a key part of any social networker's online life. However, be careful which snaps you upload. As I mentioned earlier, embarrassing shots could land you in trouble with your employer.

But overly detailed and extensive photos of your home can also provide something of a road map for a robbery if accessed by the wrong person.

You should also be careful when using location-based applications. Facebook Places may allow you to check in with your flat mates at a pricey restaurant and show the world what a sophisticated palette you have, but it also lets burglars know that your property is empty.

Personal information

Obvious stuff really. Never, ever put your address, telephone number, birth date and place, mother's maiden name or any other personal information online.

On an obvious level this information can be used to locate your home and target you with phone, text and mail fraud or spam.

But further to this, many will use personal information as passwords for online accounts. Yet this information stops being so personal if you broadcast it to the world through your Facebook account. So don’t do it!

In fact, you shouldn’t be using personal information as passwords anyway.

An example. Last week the credit card of my somewhat techno-phobic parents was charged £130 for an Amazon gift voucher. How? Someone had mysteriously hacked into their Amazon account by cracking its cryptic password. And this unbreakable key word was… the home postcode.

Mind your privates

In addition to taking care over what you put online, it’s also worth keeping a firm grip on who exactly can access your information. You can do this by cranking up the privacy settings on any sites you use.

For example, Facebook asks that you specify which online groups can see what information of yours. For me, this option is set firmly to ‘friends only’. This means that only users that I agree to ‘befriend’ can get hold of the sparse collection of information on my profile.

Oak Wood Boxed Wine Stand for Easy Pouring

Bag-in-a-Box wine might have rather a down-market image in the United States but in other parts of the world it has become increasingly popular. However, it’s also steadily making inroads into the American market and that’s why a quick look at this excellent Bag-in-a-Box stand made from oak wood and metal is worthwhile. No longer will drips of wine have to be wiped from kitchen counter-top surfaces each time the wine is released.

Boxed wine basically consists of wine stored in a plastic bladder inside a corrugated fibreboard box. A tap is turned and the wine is released into the wine glass. Most people place the box over the edge of a kitchen counter-top with the tap facing towards the floor. They then move the box to a cupboard or refrigerator when the serving process has been completed. However, with this boxed wine holder, you can place the container directly on its own stand and, in the case of red wine at least, leave it in a particular spot until it has fulfilled its function.

A metal plate acts as a wine glass rest and also as a wine drop collector. The Bag-in-Box wine packaging was first invented in 1967 by Charles Henry Malpas and Penfolds Wines. Australia was the first country to see the boxes soar in popularity and they later entered the British and European markets. There are numerous benefits to boxed wine including a longer shelf life once the wine has been opened as compared to bottled varieties. This is because the sealed tap prevents air getting in unlike that of an opened cork. Another factor is that boxed wine packaging is cheaper overall than glass bottles.

This boxed wine holder can be placed just about anywhere. Possible beneficial locations include a living room cabinet, a patio bench, a dining room side table or placed on the side of a bath for easy refills during a long hot soak.

Architectural Condo Fish Bowl for Funky and Fabulous Fish

It’s not just humans that can move into contemporary apartments with a view of the sea. So can fish! This architectural condo fish bowl is for a fish or two that love to live the high life in surroundings other than a glass box, which you have to admit, are so 20th Century. No, your fishy friend will have windows to look out of and a sense of security and peace that cannot be achieved with wall-to-wall glass. All that’s missing is a television, cocktail bar and sauna.

Goldfish are actually relatively intelligent and have a memory span way beyond the few seconds that a popular myth suggests. They can be trained to take food from a human’s fingers and can differentiate between different colors, shapes and sounds. Goldfish can even recognise the different voices of home-owners in the home where they are kept. After an extended period, goldfish can often be seen awaiting food when humans move near to their tank, having learned that their approach often means food.

It’s very important to change the water in a fish bowl on a frequent basis if there is no water pump or filter. Fish poop a lot and this build-up of waste can become toxic and lead to premature death for the goldfish. If you haven’t already and you’re considering a fish bowl like the one mentioned on this page then it’s imperative you do a little research on how best to look after the fish and make sure everything is in good working order.

This stylish architectural fish bowl will not only be functional for keeping fish but will also become a decorative feature in a room. Friends, family and guests will not be able to take their eyes from the fish condo and will no doubt harbour a little jealously that your goldfish has such swish and sophisticated living quarters. Children will love it.

How to Scope your Projects

The "project scope" consists of all of the things that must be produced to complete a project. These 'things' are called deliverables and you need to describe them in depth as early in the project as possible, so everyone knows what needs to be produced. Take these 5 Steps to scope your projects:

 Step 1: Set the Direction

Start off by setting the direction for the project. Do you have an agreed Project Vision, Objectives and Timeframes? Are they specified in depth and has your customer agreed to them? Does everyone in the project team truly understand them and why they are important? Only by fixing the project direction can you truly fix the project scope.

 Step 2: Scope Workshops

The best way to get buy-in to your project scope is to get all of the relevant stakeholders to help you define it. So get your project sponsor, customer and other stakeholders in a room and run a workshop to identify the scope. What you want from them is an agreed set of major deliverables to be produced by the project. You also want to know "what's out of scope".

 Run the workshop by asking each stakeholder for a list of the deliverables they expect the project team to deliver. Take the full list of deliverables generated in the workshop and get them to agree on what's mandatory and what's optional. Then ask them to prioritize the list, so you know what has to be delivered first.

 Step 3: Fleshing it out

You now have an agreed list of deliverables. But it's still not enough. You need to define each deliverable in depth. Work with the relevant people in your business to describe how each deliverable will look and feel, how it would operate and how it would be supported etc. Your goal here is to make it so specific that your customer cannot state later in the project that "when they said this, they really meant that".

 Step 4: Assessing Feasibility

So you now have a detailed list and description of every deliverable to be produced by your project, in priority order and separated as mandatory / optional. Great! But is it feasible to achieve within the project end date? Before you confirm the scope, you need to review every deliverable in the list and get a general indication from your team as to whether they can all be completed before your project end date. If they can't, then which deliverables can you remove from the list to make your end date more achievable?

Step 5: Get the thumbs up

Present the prioritized set of deliverables to your Project Sponsor and ask them to approve the list as your project scope. Ask them to agree to the priorities, the deliverable descriptions and the items out of scope.

 By getting formal sign-off, you're in a great position to be able to manage the project scope down the track. So when your Sponsor says to you in a few weeks time "Can you please add these deliverables to the list?", you can respond by saying "Yes, but I'll either have to remove some items from the list to do it, or extend the project end date. Which is it to be?". You can easily manage your Sponsors expectations with a detailed scope document at your side.

Twitter reveals top subjects of 2011

London, Dec 7 (IANS) Micro-blogging site Twitter has revealed the most popular topics for tweets in 2011

#egypt and #tigerblood. The first refers to the unrest in Egypt and the second to a comment made by actor Charlie Sheen following his sacking from a hit US comedy.

The hashtag is used to group together tweets relating to the same subject.

Sheen made the headlines in 2011 for a series of public rants that culminated with the comment to online celebrity gossip site RadarOnline: 'My fangs are dripping tiger blood.'

He joined Twitter and had one million followers in the first 24 hours of his sacking, believed to be a record for the site, BBC reported.

He used the site to comment on the dispute between him and the producers of the 'Two And A Half Men' show.

The resignation of Egypt president Hosni Mubarak, which triggered a series of uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa, topped the news list.

It was followed by the US special forces' raid on Osama bin Laden's hideout in Pakistan, and the Japanese earthquake in third place.

'More than anything, these trends demonstrate how Twitter connects people with common interests. Instead of watching the news at home alone, we watched them together on Twitter,' Twitter said in its official blog.

உலகில் ஒரே ஒரு நாடு மட்டுமே தமிழ் எண்களை நாணயத்தாள்களில் பயன்படுத்துகிறது. அது மொரீசியசு (Mauritius ) மட்டுமே....

(நன்றி: தமிழ்)

மொரீசியசு , சிங்கப்பூர், இந்தியா, இலங்கை ஆகிய நான்கு நாடுகளின் நாணயங்களில் தமிழ் எழுத்துக்கள் பொறிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளன.

சிறப்பாக மொரீசியசு நாட்டின் நாணயங்களில் தமிழ் எழுத்துகள் மட்டுமல்லாது தமிழ் எண்களும் பொறிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளன.

உலகில் ஒரே ஒரு நாடு மட்டுமே தமிழ் எண்களை நாணயத்தாள்களில் பயன்படுத்துகிறது. அது மொரீசியசு (Mauritius ) மட்டுமே. (தமிழ் எண்கள் ௦ - 0, ௧- 1, ௨- 2,௩- 3, ௪- 4, ௫- 5, ௬- 6, ௭- 7, ௮- 8, ௯- 9) மொரீசியசு நாட்டின் ரூபாய் தாளில் தமிழில் எழுத்துக்களும், எண்களும் ( ரூ.100 தமிழில் ௧௦௦) இடம் பெற்றிருப்பதை இப் படத்தில் காணலாம். நாணயத்தில் பொறிக்கப்பட்டுள்ள படம் மொரீசியசு தமிழரான (Renganaden Seeneevassen) ரங்கநாதன் சிறீனிவாசனுடையது.

கன்னட, தெலுங்கு, மராட்டிய மக்கள் தங்களை எண்களை மறக்காமல் பேருந்துகளிலும், அரசுத்துறைகளிலும் பயன்படுத்துகிறார்கள். எங்கோ தூரத்தில் ஆப்பிரிக்காவின் அருகில் உள்ள மொரிசியசு அரசு தமிழ் எண்களை பயன்படுத்துவது பெருமைக்குரியதே. மொரீசியசில் 30000 க்கும் மேற்பட்ட தமிழர்கள் வாழ்கின்றனர்

Six Foot Life-Sized Santa Claus for Festive Home Parties

Will you be entertaining lots of guests this Christmas? Do you want a feature in your home that will both surprise and entertain family members and children? If so, look no further than this fabulous life-sized Santa Claus which measures 6 foot tall when in a standing position. Incidentally, he can also be moved into a sitting position and be seated on any sofa, chair or bed in the house. He’s so realistic that visitors will do a double-take when first coming across the festive figure.

 Santa Claus is an unmistakable character that is an essential part of the modern Christmas. Children adore him and adults have fond memories of his visits to their homes when they were kids themselves. Just the sight of Santa Claus in his distinctive red and white costume brings a smile of happiness and recognition to the majority of people. That’s why this life-size Santa Claus will make a wonderful decorative addition to a home which will be hosting some jolly festivities and family gatherings.

The 6-foot tall Santa comes with a display platform upon which his feet are attached. This allows the tall figure to be placed anywhere on flat ground whether on carpets, wooden floors, tiles or concrete. You can position the Santa in a standing position next to a doorway, table, Christmas tree, staircase or in the center of a room. Alternatively, he can be seated on a sofa, armchair, bed, bench or even at a piano. The possibilities are limitless. He will become a magnet for fun festive photo opportunities that will be remembered forever.

History of Concrete, Masonry & Steel

(Thankyou: Sidney M. Levy)

History of Concrete

Concrete is an ancient material of construction, first used during the Roman Empire, which extended from about 20 B.C.to 200 A.D.The word concrete is derived from the Roman concretus, meaning to grow together. Although this early mixture was made with lime, cement, and a volcanic ash material  called pozzolana,concrete today is a sophisticated material to which exotic constitutents can be added and, with computer-controlled batching, can produce a product capable of achieving 50,000 psi compressive strength.

History of Masonry

The first recorded brick masonry units were made by the Egyptians in 10,000 B.C.and the Romans used brick in many of their structures 2000 years go. The Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt is the first recorded use of mortar. Brick manufacture and use occurred in the mid-1600s and was patterned on English methods and practices. It was not until 1930, however, that cavity wall construction (as we know it today) was introduced into the United States from Europe as a means of controlling moisture. This method provides a physical separation between the inner and outer wythes to serve as a drainage cavity for water, which would be expelled through weep holes in the outer wythe.

Masonry today is primarily devoted to the construction of brick, block, structural clay products, and natural and cast stone. Walls can be basically categorized as load-bearing or non-load-bearing walls, cavity walls, veneer walls, and solid walls. No matter the type of material used or the method by which the masonry wall is constructed, two components remain crucial:mortar and wall reinforcement.

History of Steel

Iron was produced by primitive man by placing iron ore and charcoal in a clay pot and building a fire in the pot, using a crude bellows to provide the forced draft that deposited iron at the bottom. It was not until the mid-1800s that Henry Bessemer, an English metallurgist, developed a process whereby forced air was introduced into the iron-refining procedure raising the temperature of the crucible so that impurities in the molten pig iron were burned away. In the process, a more malleable metal, steel, was created.

Large Tree Silhouette Wall Decal Brings the Beauty of Nature Indoors

Do you have a bare wall in your home which you do not quite know what to do with? Picture frames, art prints and wall sculptures are either not big enough or just make the room look rather boring. Instead, why not go for a large tree silhouette wall decal like the one shown in the pictures below? This vinyl attachment will cover an entire wall surface and add an eye-catching, nature-themed decorative feature to the whole interior space in which it’s placed.

The large tree wall decal can act as an artistic feature in itself or can alternatively merge with other decorative objects such as small pictures, coat hooks and even furniture. You can see an example of the latter idea in the image below where one can see a small paper lantern hanging from a hook in the wall where the decal’s branches reach. A piano sits below the overhanging branches and immediately sums up romantic images of music playing beneath canopies of branches outside on a warm summer’s day.

 The tree decal is made from self-gloss adhesive removable vinyl which is easy to work with. It can be moved from wall to wall and corrected without destroying the decal itself or the wall on which it is placed. The tree actually comes in four parts which makes it simpler than one would imagine being 72 inches in height and 55 inches in width. Pictured in black, the tree can also be purchased in a variety of other colors which might be more suitable to individual interior design schemes

5 Eye exercises to improve your vision

Author of this article Steven Aitchison

He is telling about him

I am the creator of Change Your Thoughts (CYT) blog and love writing and speaking about personal development, it truly is my passion. There are over 500 articles on this site from myself and some great guest posters.

If you want to learn more about my products you can check out Steven Aitchison's Products or check out my books and Kindle books on Amazon

 Over the last 10 – 15 years there has been a marked increase in the number of people who wear glasses and contact lenses. This can be put down to drastically increased computer usage both at home and at work, and increased television watching. Good news for opticians around the world – bad news for us, but it needn’t be!

 Our eyes need regular exercise in order to keep them healthy, just like any other muscle in the body. The thing is, we take it for granted that our eyes will eventually give up on us and we will eventually need glasses or contact lenses. This doesn’t have to be the case if you regularly exercise your eyes. Also, if you start wearing glasses or contact lenses your eyesight will only get worse over time rather than get better as your eyes will get used to the new lense and need even stronger lenses to function properly. Everybody who wears glasses and contacts will tell you their eyes have gradually got worse over time but they have put it down to their eyesight getting worse which is not necessarily the case.

This may sound quite controversial to some people and a lot of people are opposed to this advice when I have given it. Opticians are people of some authority so why would someone listen to me rather than someone who has had years of training and years of experience and have big fancy machines to test your eyes. Simple answer is that 90% of opticians would not be required if everybody done some sort eye exercise on a daily basis.

 Of course there are exceptions and a lot of people might need glasses or contacts due to congenital problems or some kind of trauma however I believe most people who wear glasses do not need them or did not need them in the first place.

 I use the computer at home and at work for an average of 9 hours per day and do not need glasses. This is only because I have resisted listening to opticians who advised I need them. Instead I have exercised my eyes and after a few weeks of exercising my eyes, they have returned back to normal vision.

 I know I will get a lot of abuse for this post but I stand by what I am saying and advise you, if you are a glasses wearer or contact lenses wearer to try the exercises for a few weeks and let me know how you get on. What have you got to lose?

The exercises I use are pretty standard and have been in the public domain for years but they work for me and hopefully they will work for you. I have to give credit here to Marc Grossman after finding his articles on eye exercises a few years ago.

 5 Exercises to strengthen your eye muscles and improve your vision

1.Blinking

 Blinking is an often overlooked yet simple way to keep your eyes fresh and being able to focus longer. Computer users and television watchers tend to blink less, especially when they are intently focused on something. Try it just now as a simple exercise. For the next two minutes blink every 3 – 4 seconds. After you have done this for two minutes, mentally take note of how your eyes feel, are they strained, relaxed, tired. Now try and not blink for 30 seconds at a time for two minutes. Do you feel any difference?

 Whenever you blink your eyes are going into a brief period of darkness which helps to keep your eyes fresh and discharges previous information ready for new information, this helps to reduce eye strain.

 Your blink rate can also help with your communication skills. Think about someone who looked at you intently and you possibly felt threatened by them. What you may have missed is the fact that they had stopped blinking. When someone stops blinking and stares at you when you are talking it’s a sign of aggression. However whenever you are talking to someone and they are blinking at a 3 -4 second interval it’s a sign of a relaxed and friendly listener. Check out people’s blink rates the next time you are talking. Check out this article for more info Dramatically improve your eye contact skills

 2.Palming

This is done to relieve stress around the eyes and as a way to relax your eyes whilst taking a computer break.

 Instructions for palming

1. Take a few deep breathes before you begin.

2. Make yourself comfortable whilst leaning forward on a desk or with your elbows resting on your knees. Close your eyes.

3. Place your two hands over your eyes with the cup of your palm covering your eyes, your fingers on your forehead and the heel of your hand will rest on your cheekbone. Make sure you can blink freely and you are not putting too much pressure on your eyes.

That’s it. Palming gives you the opportunity to rest your mind and your eyes for a few minutes at a time. It may not sound much of an exercise but it can make a big difference in your working day if you stop for a few minutes and do this exercise.

3. Figure of eight

This is to exercise your eye muscles and increase their flexibility. This is quite a simple exercise but a good one.

 Imagine a giant figure of eight in front of you about 10 feet in front of you. Now turn the 8 on it’s side. Now trace the figure of eight with your eyes, slowly. Do it one way for a few minutes and then do it the other way for a few minutes. It may seem very alien at first but it’s worth persevering with it.

 4.Near and far focusing

This is one of my favourite exercises as you can do it almost anywhere, I say almost as I couldn’t imagine doing it on the underground without getting strange looks from those around me.

Instructions for Near and far focussing.

ü  Sit in a comfortable position, or stand, this will only take 2-3 minutes at a time.

ü  Put your thumb about 10 inches in front of you and focus on it.

ü  Now focus on something else about 10 – 20 feet in front of you.

ü  On each deep breath switch between focussing on your thumb and the 10-20 feet object in front of you.

This will strengthen the muscles in your eyes over time and improve your vision overall.

5.Zooming
This is another one of my favourites as it is very easy and quick to do.

 Instructions for zooming

ü  Sit in a comfortable position

ü  Stretch out your arm with your thumb in the hitchhike position

ü  Focus on your thumb as your arm is outstretched.

ü  Now bring your thumb closer to you, focussing all the time, until your thumb is about 3 inches in front of your face.

Now move your thumb away again until your arm is fully outstretched.

 Do this for a few minutes at a time throughout the day.