Friday, October 22, 2010

8 Things You Should Always Pay For – No Matter What

Hard times call for hard choices – especially when it comes to prioritizing which bills get paid. But there are some bills you should keep high on the priority list, no matter what. A Tennessee homeowner found out the hard way this month when his house caught fire and the firefighters arrived – and just watched it burn to the ground. The homeowner, who lived outside the city limits, had forgotten to pay a $75 annual fire service fee. Walletpop.com has listed the eight things you should pay before anything else:
 
1. Home and auto hazard insurance.
2. Life insurance (if you have dependents)
3. Utilities
4. Medications, medical tests and exams and urgent care
5. Bald tires and bad brakes
6. Roadside assistance service
7. Homeowners’ Association (HOA) dues
8. Property taxes

Crazy Interview Attire

Getting ready to meet with a prospective employer? If so, we have a bit of advice to pass along – leave your cat suit and pajamas at home. In a recent survey, OfficeTeam asked human resources managers to recount the strangest interview outfits they had heard of or seen. Here are just of few of the more bizarre examples:
 
A blanket worn as a shawl
Spandex
A skirt made out of plastic
A cat suit
A top held up with a big safety pin
A crazy hat
Leather pants and cowboy boots
A braid with pink bows
Jeans with suspenders
A Star Trek T-shirt
 
These flashy outfits were more fitting for a night on the town than an interview:
A tube top
Low waist pants
A micromini and fishnet stockings
A leather vest with no shirt
A sequined top
A very low cut blouse
 
Then there were those who channeled the ‘80s with these getups: 
A jumpsuit
A shirt off the shoulder
Acid-washed jeans
Bright yellow shoes
A tie-dye T-shirt from the ‘80s
Dressing up as a ‘Gothic
A tank top and baggy jeans
Green and blue hair
 
Perhaps these applicants were trying to show they were team players:
A basketball jersey
Tennis shoes
A jogging suit
Yoga or exercise clothes
A baseball cap
 
 
These applicants prove you can be too casual:
A sweatshirt and sweatpants
Pajamas with slippers
A cut-off T-shirt and pants
A bandana and torn jeans
 
Interviews can be “sink or swim,” but these job seekers were too literal in their interpretation:
A swimsuit and cover-up
A sundress and flip-flops
Bermuda shorts
A Hawaiian shirt and jeans
 
This wardrobe “don’t” should have been obvious:
An applicant wore the uniform from his former employer

Finding Felons In Your Family

According to Ancestry.com, one in eight Americans has a felon in their family tree. If you’re curious whether any of your ancestors did time for a crime, Ancestry.com has posted a collection of nearly 75,000 records of prisoners from the nation’s most infamous U.S. penitentiaries, including McNeil Island, Alcatraz and Leavenworth, among others. The prison record collection spans 1875 to 1963 and even includes photo ID cards of nearly 3,500 inmates who did time in McNeil Island. If your ancestor served time at one of these institutions, they could easily have rubbed elbows with some of America’s well-known criminals also found in the collection, including Al Capone and Robert Stroud, known as “The Birdman of Alcatraz.” This collection also reveals other notable facts about our nation’s criminal past, including:
 
·         Louisiana, Texas, Georgia, Mississippi and Oklahoma top the list of “worst-behaved” states. The “best-behaved” states include Maine, Minnesota, North Dakota, Rhode Island and New Hampshire.
·         Some of the most common offenses perpetrated by the inmates included bank and postal robbery, which were most common in maximum-security facilities. Mail fraud, IRS law violations and counterfeiting topped offenses of those in medium-security facilities.
·         From the late 1870s through the mid 1900s, if you committed a felony your chances of going to the slammer were about 1 in 10, surprisingly comparable to today.
·         The average length of sentence that an inmate served was nearly 2 1/2 years.
Check out the details at www.ancestry.com/blacksheep.

Women More Charitable Than Men

According to a study by The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University, females are more generous when it comes to being charitable than men. In all income groups, women are more likely to give – sometimes twice as much a men. In the study’s middle range of income, $43,500 to $67,532, the average donation was $728 from women and $373 from men. World Vision says those findings mirror what it is seeing among its supporters across the country. Among the nearly 885,000 Americans who sponsor a child through the organization, three out of four are female.

Who Do You Trust?

Americans don’t put much trust in major institutions these days, according to an AP/National Constitution Center survey. When asked “What public institutions do you trust,” Americans said:
 
1. The military – 43%
4. Organized religion – 18%
2. Small business – 39%
5. Banks, financial institutions – 6%
3. Scientific community – 30%
 

Top 10 Pet-Friendly Cities

Portland, Oregon, tops the list of best places to live with pets, according to a new report from Livability.com. The cities on the list have pet-friendly parks and trails, quality veterinary care, active animal-welfare groups, as well as an abundance of pet boutiques and retail shops. The top 10 cities include:
 
1. Portland, Oregon
6. Eugene, Oregon
2. Colorado Springs, Colorado
7. Asheville, North Carolina
3. Rocky Mount, North Carolina
8. Albuquerque, New Mexico
4. Boulder, Colorado
9. Nashville, Tennessee
5. Santa Cruz, California
10. Louisville, Kentucky

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

10 Major Mistakes Job Hunters Make

With the highest unemployment rate in more than 20 years, over 40 million people are now circulating résumés. But many haven’t looked for jobs in a long time and are falling victim to 10 common mistakes. According to Bob Gerberg Jr., CEO of ERI, many talented and marketable people are simply doing the wrong things. Gerberg says the 10 major mistakes that millions of people make are:
 
·       They use old-style historical resumes that no longer work.
·       They rely on old job hunting methods and don’t follow a plan.
·       They never market their transferable skills.
·       They don’t minimize their liabilities.
·       They don’t know how to find enough public openings.
·       They never send resume to their best prospects.
·       They never get considered for private jobs.
·       They don’t go after exciting new industry options.
·       They don’t act on leads to private jobs.
·       They come across as average in interviews.
 
Gerberg advises job seekers to use these key rules to drafting an outstanding résumé that will work.
·       Your résumé must be one page in length.
·       The jobs you are going after must be listed first.
·       The top third of your résumé must be a 20 second summary.
·       Any liabilities must never be disclosed.
·       Your transferable skills must be emphasized.
·       Your résumé must have a first class image.
·       Your résumé must be scanning ready with relevant key words.

Throw Your Own Great Funeral

Funeralwise.com, which provides “free, do-it-yourself funeral planning,” suggests individuals think about throwing their own funeral on October 30th, the 11th annual Create a Great Funeral Day. To help, Funeralwise.com is offering free funeral planning and cash prizes to survey participants who share their views about “living” funeral services. The sweepstakes were inspired by the film “Get Low,” starring Robert Duvall, Bill Murray and Sissy Spacek, which tells the true story of a Depression-era man who threw himself a funeral party while he was still alive so he could hear what people would say about him. The sweepstakes survey asks the following questions, among others:
 
·       Would you like to attend your own funeral if you could?
·       Would you consider throwing yourself a funeral before you die?
·       Have you wondered who would come to your funeral?
·       What kind of funeral would you prefer - a somber traditional funeral, an upbeat celebration of life, or no funeral at all?
 

Germiest Hot Spots At School

Break out the hand sanitizer! A recent study conducted by the University of Arizona in a K-12 school system found that the germiest place at school is the cafeteria table. Researchers swabbed classrooms and common area surfaces to determine the relative numbers of total bacteria and on frequently touched. In addition to the cafeteria table, the most contaminated sites include: 
 
·       The computer mouse, which harbored nearly twice as many bacteria as desktops
·       The bathroom paper towel handle
·       Water fountain
·       Bathroom sink faucets
·       Library table
·       Computer keyboard

Most/Least Ticketed Cars

Believe it or not, it is not flashy red sports cars that get cited for speeding the most. However, if you happen to see a middle-aged man driving a foreign vehicle or a Hummer, look out. A new study by Quality Planning reveals the vehicles with the highest and lowest percentages of traffic violations, and the Mercedes-Benz SL-Class tops the list, racking up the most violations. On the opposite end of the scale, 6 of the 10 least ticketed cars were GM models. Quality Planning determined each vehicle’s number of moving violations per 100,000 miles driven. The top 10 most and least ticketed vehicles:
 
Vehicles With Highest Percentage Of Violations:
 
Make/Model
Body Style
% Violations
Average Age
% Male
 
Mercedes-Benz SL-Class
Convertible
404%
53
41%
 
Toyota Camry-Solara
Coupe
349%
50
39%
 
Scion TC
Coupe
343%
30
39%
 
Hummer H2/H3
SUV
292%
46
73%
 
Scion XB
Hatchback
270%
37
40%
 
Mercedes-Benz CLS-63 AMG
Sedan
264%
46
58%
 
Acura Integra
Coupe
185%
33
60%
 
Pontiac Grand Prix
Sedan
182%
40
41%
 
Mercedes-Benz CLK 63 AMG
Sedan
179%
47
44%
 
Volkswagen GTI
Hatchback
178%
40
44%
 
 
Vehicles With Lowest Percentage Of Violations:
 
Make/Model
Body Style
% Violations
Average Age
% Male
Buick Rainier
SUV
23%
61
71%
Mazda Tribute
SUV
26%
36
29%
Chevrolet C/K- 3500/2500
Pickup
26%
40
86%
Kia Spectra
Sedan
27%
40
44%
Buick Lacrosse
SUV
32%
65
50%
Saturn Aura Hybrid
Sedan
37%
59
14%
Oldsmobile Silhouette
Minivan
37%
41
50%
Chevrolet Uplander
Minivan
38%
40
54%
Hyundai Tucson
SUV
38%
47
40%
Pontiac Vibe
SUV
39%
41
32%
 
For a complete list, see www.qualityplanning.com

Best/Worst States For Drivers

Forbes Magazine has ranked the country’s best and worst states for drivers. The magazine used four criteria: Insurance rates, average gas prices, legal protections for drivers and infrastructure/safety. California is the worst state to drive in – by far. The Golden State has the third-lowest rating for infrastructure/safety, the third-highest gas prices and the fifth-highest insurance. Legal rights for drivers aren’t so hot either. The best and worst states for drivers:
 
Best States For Drivers:
Worst States For Drivers:
1. South Carolina
6. Texas
1. California
6. Maryland
2. Nebraska
7. Kansas
2. Illinois
7. (Tie) Connecticut
3. Missouri
8 (Tie) New Hampshire
3. New York
7. (Tie) Rhode Island
4. North Dakota
8 (Tie) Wyoming
4. Michigan
9. Louisiana
5. Mississippi
10. (Tie) Tennessee, Arizona
5. Alaska
10. Washington

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Too Much TV Bad For Your Health

According to a new study from the University of Bristol, youngsters who spend hours each day in front of the TV or game console have more psychological difficulties like problems relating to peers, emotional issues, hyperactivity, or conduct challenges, than those who don’t. And – contrary to what earlier studies have indicated – the negative impact of screen time was not remedied by increasing a child’s physical activity. Researchers found that children who spent two hours or more a day watching television or playing on a computer had more psychological difficulties than kids who did not spend a lot of time in front of a screen. Even children who were physically active but spent more than two hours a day in front of a screen were at increased risk of psychological difficulties, indicating that screen time might be the chief culprit.

Forget About The Big Asteroids – It’s The Small Ones We Need To Worry About

Forget about big asteroids hitting earth, it’s the small ones that could cause an Armageddon. Known as “airbursters,” the small space rocks are a more immediate threat, according to scientists. They can cause localized destruction and may intrude in our airspace with little warning time. When an airbursting asteroid, called a bolide, exploded over an island region of Indonesia late last year, it rocked the residents’ world with an estimated energy release of about 50 kilotons, equal to some 110,000 pounds of TNT. The objects are expected to impact earth on average every two to 12 years.

New Form Of Uranium Discovered

Scientists say a newly discovered form of uranium could lead to nuclear power plants small enough to power an automobile. Researchers at the Los Alamos National Laboratory have created uranium nitride, a long-sought molecule that could provide cheaper and safer nuclear fuel. Smaller, cheaper and even portable nuclear power plants could come out of the discovery, researchers say, using uranium nitride as a next generation nuclear fuel. While uranium’s radiation can be deadly, the new molecule contains only depleted uranium. This makes it relatively harmless from a radiological standpoint and means it could be used in chemical and industrial applications.

E-Waste

Only 39% of Americans recycle all of their old electronic gadgets, according to a new report. Retrevo.com’s gadget census found only about a third of Americans say they recycle their gadgets, while another third said they haven’t gotten around to it or don’t care about recycling. Only 11% said recycling is not available in their area. According to the EPA, electronics made up 2% of municipal waste in 2008. From 1980 to 2007, 235 million pieces of electronics had accumulated in storage, including 65.7 million desktop computers, 42.4 million computer monitors, 2.1 million notebook computers, 99.1 million TVs, and 25.2 million hard copy peripherals. Considering the explosion in new devices since then, the numbers will only go up. Other survey highlights:
 
·         Only 15% of electronic waste, or e-waste, is recycled in the United States.
·         The top states in the country for gadget recycling include California, Minnesota, Maryland, and Oregon, which leads with 53% recycling.
·         The top four metro areas that recycle include the San Francisco Bay Area, Washington D.C. Metro Area, Phoenix and Los Angeles.
·         People in New York are more likely to have iPads, while Maryland has the greatest percentage of smartphones and flat panel televisions. Laptops are most popular in Colorado, e-readers in Massachusetts, point-and-shoot cameras in Michigan, and low-tech phones in Pennsylvania.
·         88% of Americans have a television in the living room, 68% in the bedroom, and 17% in the kitchen. Only 3% admitted having a television in the bathroom and 7% in the garage. Atlanta residents are most likely to have a TV in every room. 

Should Columbus Still Get His Own Holiday?

Yesterday was Columbus Day, though the only way most of us found out is when we realized there was no mail service. While most Americans say we should continue to honor Christopher Columbus’ achievement with a national holiday, far less consider it the most important holiday of the year. A new Rasmussen Reports survey found that 57% of adults feel America should continue to honor Columbus with a national holiday; 27% disagree; 15% aren’t sure; and only 9% consider Columbus Day to be one of our nation’s most important holidays. Another 37% see it as the least important, while 51% say it’s somewhere in between.

The ‘Pleasure Gap’

A “pleasure gap” exists between men and women during sex, a new survey by Durex indicates. The survey found:
 
·         25% of adults say they and their partner do not get an equal level of pleasure from sex.
·         17% say their partner gets more pleasure from sex than they do.
·         55% of men say they and their partner get an equal amount of pleasure from sex, compared with 44% of women who feel that way.

What Celebrity Boss Would You Like To Work For?

A new survey by the HR resources group Adecco shows that 37% of people would like Oprah Winfrey as their boss, 35% would like to work for President Barack Obama, and just 4% would like to work for ex BP CEO Tony Hayward. The survey was carried out to coincide with National Boss Day on October 16th. The celebrity boss American’s would most like to work for:
 
Oprah Winfrey
37%
Former GE CEO Jack Welch
12%
President Obama
35%
Facebook co-founder/CEO Mark Zuckerberg
9%
Donald Trump
28%
Joe Torre
9%
Michelle Obama
26%
Simon Cowell
8%
Former Pres. George W. Bush
19%
Former BP CEO Tony Hayward
4%
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
16%
None of the above
8%
Sarah Palin
15%
Other
7%
Martha Stewart
14%
 
 
 
Other findings:
·         78% of bosses said they felt closer to their staff since the economic downturn; 61% of employees agreed.
·         61% of workers consider themselves friends with their boss, but not when it comes to social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter – 82% do not connect with their boss in that way and 32% who were hooked-up with their boss through a social network site wished they weren’t.
·         88% of employees appreciate a boss who is willing to work alongside them to get the job done.
·         91% think their boss respects them; 86% trust their boss.
·         17% believe having an affair with the boss can lead to a better position.

Monday, October 11, 2010

Scream Awards

Kristen Stewart, Megan Fox, Alexander Skarsgard, Mickey Rourke and Marilyn Manson are set to appear at the Scream 2010 awards on Spike TV. Former “Lost” co-stars Harold Perrineau, Henry Ian Cusick and Jorge Garcia from “Lost” will also be there. The Scream 2010 awards will also include a tribute to the iconic 1980s movie “Back to the Future” and its stars Michael J. Fox and Lea Thompson. For the full list of nominees, and to vote, click on www.scream.spike.com. Nominees include:
 
The Ultimate Scream: “Alice in Wonderland,” “Avatar,” “District 9,” “Inception,” “Iron Man 2,” “Kick-Ass,” “Lost,” “True Blood,” “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” and “Zombieland.”
Best Science Fiction Movie: “Avatar,” “District 9,” “Inception,” “Iron Man 2,” “Predators” and “The Road.”
Best Fantasy Movie: “Alice in Wonderland,” “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” “Kick-Ass,” “Toy Story 3,” “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” and “Where the Wild Things Are.”
Best Horror Movie: “The Crazies,” “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” “Paranormal Activity,” “Shutter Island,” “Thirst” and “Zombieland.”
Best TV Show: “Dexter,” “Doctor Who,” “Lost,” “True Blood” and “V.”
Best Fantasy Actress: Cate Blanchett – “Robin Hood,” Lily Cole – “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” Chloe Grace Moretz – “Kick-Ass,” Saoirse Ronan – “The Lovely Bones,” Kristen Stewart – “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” and Mia Wasikowska – “Alice in Wonderland.”
Best Fantasy Actor: Nicolas Cage – “Kick-Ass,” Johnny Depp – “Alice in Wonderland,” Tom Hanks – “Toy Story 3,” Aaron Johnson – “Kick-Ass,” Taylor Lautner – “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” and Robert Pattinson – “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.”
Best Science Fiction Actress: Scarlett Johansson – “Iron Man 2,” Mila Kunis – “The Book of Eli,” Evangeline Lilly – “Lost,” Ellen Page – “Inception,” Gwyneth Paltrow – “Iron Man 2” and Zoe Saldana – “Avatar.”
Best Science Fiction Actor: Sharlto Copley – “District 9,” Leonardo DiCaprio – “Inception,” Robert Downey Jr. – “Iron Man 2,” Matthew Fox – “Lost,” Josh Holloway – “Lost” and Denzel Washington – “The Book of Eli.”
Best Horror Actress: Julie Benz – “Dexter,” Emily Blunt – “The Wolfman,” Charlotte Gainsbourg – “Antichrist,” Milla Jovovich – “The Fourth Kind,” Anna Paquin – “True Blood” and Emma Stone – “Zombieland.”
Best Horror Actor: Leonardo DiCaprio – “Shutter Island,” Michael C Hall – “Dexter,” Woody Harrelson “Zombieland,” Stephen Moyer – “True Blood,” Timothy Olyphant – “The Crazies” and Alexander Skarsgard – “True Blood.”
Best Villain: Jackie Earle Haley as Freddy Krueger in “A Nightmare on Elm Street,” Stephen Lang as Col. Miles Quaritch in “Avatar,” Dieter Laser as Dr. Joseph Heiter in “The Human Centipede,” John Lithgow as the Trinity Killer in “Dexter,” Terry O’Quinn as John Locke/Smoke Monster in “Lost,” and Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko in “Iron Man 2.”
Best Superhero: Nicolas Cage – “Kick-Ass,” Robert Downey Jr. – “Iron Man 2,” Aaron Johnson – “Kick-Ass,” Chloe Grace Moretz – “Kick-Ass,” Zachary Quinto – “Heroes” and Tom Welling – “Smallville.”
Best Supporting Actor: Don Cheadle – “Iron Man 2,” Sir Ben Kingsley – “Shutter Island,” Joseph Gordon-Levitt – “Inception,” Christopher Mintz-Plasse – “Kick-Ass,” Mark Ruffalo – “Shutter Island” and Sam Trammell – “True Blood.”
Best Supporting Actress: Abigail Breslin – “Zombieland,” Jennifer Carpenter – “Dexter,” Marion Cotillard – “Inception,” Anne Hathaway – “Alice in Wonderland,” Yunjin Kim – “Lost” and Sigourney Weaver – “Avatar.”
Breakout Performance – Female: Deborah Ann Woll – “True Blood,” Gemma Arterton – “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time,” Morena Baccarin – “V,” Lyndsy Fonseca – “Kick-Ass,” Chloe Grace Moretz – “Kick-Ass” and Mia Wasikowska – “Alice in Wonderland.”
Breakout Performance – Male: Sharlto Copley – “District 9,” Andrew Garfield – “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,” Tom Hardy – “Inception,” Aaron Johnson – “Kick-Ass,” Xavier Samuel – “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” and Kodi Smit-McPhee – “The Road.”
Best Cameo: Bubo the Mechanical Owl – “Clash of the Titans,” Michael Caine – “Inception,” Rosario Dawson – “Percy Jackson,” Stan Lee – “Iron Man 2” and Bill Murray – “Zombieland.”
Best Ensemble: “Inception,” “Iron Man 2,” “Kick-Ass,” “Lost,” “True Blood” and “Zombieland.”
Most Memorable Mutilation: Body dissolved by hydrofluoric acid – “Saw VI,” Forced to cut off own flesh and arm – “Saw VI,” Heart cut out of chest, cut up into souffle and fed to people – “True Blood,” Scalped with a hunting knife – “Inglourious Basterds,” Surgically transformed into human centipede – “The Human Centipede” and Zombie shot in the mouth by flare gun – “Survival of the Dead.”
Best Fight Scene of the Year: Aisha vs. Clay – “The Losers,” Anti-gravity hotel fight – “Inception,” Hit-Girl vs. the Drug Dealers – “Kick-Ass,” Final battle: Iron Man and Rhodes vs. Vanko and the Drones – “Iron Man 2,” Final battle: Na’vi vs. the military – “Avatar” and Perseus and the Heroes vs. Medusa – “Clash of the Titans.”
Holy Sh*t! Scene of the Year: Damon Macready shoots little daughter Mindy in chest – “Kick-Ass,” The destruction of Los Angeles – “2012,” Dren mates with Clive – “Splice,” Freight train drives through city streets – “Inception,” Head twisted 180 degrees during sex – “True Blood” and Paris street folds over onto itself – “Inception.”
3-D Top 3: “Alice in Wonderland,” Avatar” and “Toy Story 3.”
Best F/X: “2012,” “Avatar,” “District 9,” “Inception,” “Iron Man 2” and “Zombieland.”
Best Comic Book Movie: “Iron Man 2,” “Kick-Ass” and “The Losers.”
Best Comic Book or Graphic Novel: “Asterios Polyp,” “Blackest Night,” “The Boys,” “Chew,” “Parker: The Hunter,” “Scalped” and “The Walking Dead.”

10/10/10 Weddings

Yesterday was a 10 for thousands of couples who tied the knot on 10/10/10. More than 32,000 Americans married yesterday, according to theweddingchannel.com and theknot.com. On October 10th last year, only 5,000 couples exchanged vows. Yesterday had the most weddings scheduled since July 7, 2007, which saw roughly 54,000.

Are You An iPhone Or Android Users?

According to the consumer electronics shopping and review site Retrevo.com, gadget owners exhibit different behavior and characteristics depending on the gadget “camps” they are part of.
 
·         31% of Android owners don’t have a landline phone, compared to only 23% of iPhone and BlackBerry owners.
·         iPhone owners are more likely to be younger than other smartphone owners. They also are more likely to make purchases with their handsets, watch TV online, and rent movies from Blockbuster.
·         Users of handsets powered by Google’s mobile OS are more likely to own a netbook (45%); use their smart phone for GPS navigation (31%); not read books (14%); and not recycle (9%).
·         BlackBerry owners are the most likely to own an old CRT TV (59%); get most of their music from the radio ( 23%); and recycle their old gadgets (38%).
·         Households using a Mac as their primary computer buy three times as many iPhones, and almost six times as many iPads, compared to other households.
·         Those who use Apple computers as their primary computer often have other PCs in the house, but households that use PCs as their primary computer rarely have Macs in the house.

Most Powerful Entertainers

The most powerful entertainer in 2010 is Johnny Depp, according to Entertainment Weekly’s annual ranking of the world’s 50 Most Powerful Entertainers. The magazine said, “With his uncompromising gonzo turn as Capt. Jack Sparrow in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl’ in 2003, his stardom went supernova. ... Depp can do anything he wants.” The top 10:
 
1. Johnny Depp
6. Robert Downey Jr.
2. Gaga
7. Sandra Bullock
3. Oprah Winfrey
8. Ellen DeGeneres
4. Simon Cowell
9. and Leonardo DiCaprio
5. Will Smith
10. Eminem

Unhappy Holiday Shoppers

A new survey by PriceGrabber reveals that consumers are more optimistic about holiday shopping overall. However, Forty-eight percent plan to spend less on 2010 holiday purchases, compared with 53% in 2009 and 71% in 2008; 54% of women plan to spend less, compared to 44% of men. Of the men who plan to spend less on holiday shopping this year, 51% cited lack of confidence in the economy. Fifty percent said they plan to spend less because they’re making less, and 39% cited an increase in the price of necessities (gas, food, etc.). Of women who plan to cut back on holiday spending, 48% said that an increase in the price of necessities, 46% said they are making less money, and 38% cited a lack of confidence in the economy. For those who will be spending this year, here’s what they plan on buying:
 
Men:
 
 
 
Clothing/Shoes
56%
Smartphone
26%
Hobby-related items
32%
eBook
23%
Jewelry/Watches
31%
Digital camera/camcorder
18%
Sporting goods
30%
HDTV/3DTV
17%
Laptop/Netbook
27%
Video game console
10%
 
 
 
 
Women:
 
 
 
Clothing/Shoes
74%
eBook
21%
Jewelry/Watches
36%
Smartphone
19%
Hobby-related items
31%
Digital camera/camcorder
16%
Sporting goods
22%
HDTV/3DTV
10%
Laptop/Netbook
21%
Video game console
10%

Thursday, October 7, 2010

2010 Ig Nobel Award Winners

What do bat sex, swearing and slime mold all have in common? Researchers studying those things are all recipients of this year’s Ig Nobel Awards. The prizes, awarded at a ceremony at Harvard University by the Annals of Improbable Research magazine, were started as a spoof of the prestigious annual Nobel Prizes. The Ig Nobels award achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think. Here are the 2010 Ig Nobel Award Winners:
 
Ig Nobel For Medicine: Psychologists Simon Rietveld and Ilja van Beest at the University of Amsterdam won for their research that showed that breathing difficulties brought on by asthma were relieved by repeated rollercoaster rides.
Ig Nobel for Physics: Lianne Parkin and her team at the University of Otago in New Zealand showed that if people wore their socks on the outside of their shoes, they’d be less likely to slip on icy surfaces.
Ig Nobel for Biology: Gareth Jones at Bristol University and collaborators in China won for showing that female fruitbats that perform oral sex on their mates copulated longer.
Ig Nobel for Peace: Psychologist Richard Stephens and others at Keele University proved that swearing relieves pain.
Ig Nobel for Engineering: Karina Acevedo-Whitehouse and others at the Institute of Zoology in London developed a way to collect fluids ejected from whales’ blowholes. Her team attached Petri dishes to small helicopters and flew them above whales.
Ig Nobel for Transportation: Mark Fricker and Dan Bebber at Oxford University used slime mold to model an effective railway network.
Ig Nobel for Management: Alessandro Pluchino and his team at the University of Catania showed that promoting employees at random increases company efficiency.
Ig Nobel for Public Health: Manuel Barbeito at the Industrial Health and Safety Office in Maryland proved that men with beards have a higher potential of being a laboratory hazard.
Ig Nobel for Chemistry: Eric Adams and others at MIT proved that oil and water actually do mix.
Ig Nobel for Economics: Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Merrill Lynch, AIG and Magnetar for “creating and promoting new ways to invest money – ways that maximize financial gain and minimize financial risk for the world economy, or for a portion thereof.”