IN YOUR FACE!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8339647.stm


Feeling grumpy 'is good for you'

An attack of the grumps can make you communicate better, it is suggested
In a bad mood? Don't worry - according to research, it's good for you.
An Australian psychology expert who has been studying emotions has found being grumpy makes us think more clearly.
In contrast to those annoying happy types, miserable people are better at decision-making and less gullible, his experiments showed.
While cheerfulness fosters creativity, gloominess breeds attentiveness and careful thinking, Professor Joe Forgas told Australian Science Magazine.
'Eeyore days'
The University of New South Wales researcher says a grumpy person can cope with more demanding situations than a happy one because of the way the brain "promotes information processing strategies".
Negative moods trigger more attentive, careful thinking, paying greater attention to the external world
Professor Joe Forgas
He asked volunteers to watch different films and dwell on positive or negative events in their life, designed to put them in either a good or bad mood.
Next he asked them to take part in a series of tasks, including judging the truth of urban myths and providing eyewitness accounts of events.
Those in a bad mood outperformed those who were jolly - they made fewer mistakes and were better communicators.
Professor Forgas said: "Whereas positive mood seems to promote creativity, flexibility, co-operation and reliance on mental shortcuts, negative moods trigger more attentive, careful thinking, paying greater attention to the external world."
The study also found that sad people were better at stating their case through written arguments, which Forgas said showed that a "mildly negative mood may actually promote a more concrete, accommodative and ultimately more successful communication style".
His earlier work shows the weather has a similar impact on us - wet, dreary days sharpened memory, while bright sunny spells make people forgetful.

Global Economy and Outsourcing is Good.

Trigor,

Since you and I both watched the movie "Outsourced" and we work in IT which has a lot of outsourcing to India and other places I wanted to see if you agree with my sentiment that Global Economy and Outsourcing is good.  It is very inconvenient and I, like many others, am directly impacted (my rate is down, less jobs available, etc.) I still believe it is a good thing because it makes the world depend on each other more thus making it more difficult for international conflict since we are so intertwined.  I believe that protectionism is bad and growth is good.  What do you think?

We are nothing but dust!

Before you read the question at hand, consider this: I am tired, my big project at work is at a standstill, it is hot and humid, and there is nothing good on TV. This unhealthy living environment brought an avalanche of unneeded thoughts about our existanse as a human race, and what it all means in the end.

Uh ... the end. The ultimate, fascinating finish line humans make movies about, compose books of, plays, discussions, spawn various religions trying to explain what happens when THE switch is actually pulled. I thought about this subject extensively, and went on various tangents analyzing what our existance of an individual human being means. And what did I come up with? Well, the answer is "Nothing". Think about it. We swirm in our everyday lives, get upset over little things, join the rest of the herd in a constant race for something that ultimately does not matter. Then some nuts try to convince us that there is light in the end of the tunnel, as long as we keep donating $ to their religious establishment. Then we die. Our intestants are pulled out, skin balzamed, and off we go into a wooden box six feet under. And we lay there. While decomposing.

So the question is: are our worries, worthless tragedies, soul suffering worth it, considering the ultimate end?

Fuck it ... if only my project worked ....

Is Spirituality crap?

Igor here is one I know you will enjoy :)  I am a big believer in Spirituality.  I believe in energy and healing and powers.  I believe people have extra senses that can be used to "see the future."  I believe in all that stuff.  How about you? :)

To cut you off an argument path I agree with you that there are plenty of charlatans out there just to make a buck on gullible people.  That being said, what do you think?

Is Baseball really a sport?

Is it? Is it worth national recognition? Lets take a closer look:

Most of the game of baseball players stand around. This could potentially explain why so many of them have bellies and are outright fat!

Why so many of baseball players behave like pigs (or camels, to be more precise) by spitting every 20 seconds or so, especially those statetioned in the dogouts (sp?)? Again, they are bored themselves of sitting and doing nothing for hours.

When hitter's bat comes in contact with the ball flying 90mph, does he really have control of where the ball will go? Yes, he can control the swing to send to the right or the left, but there is absolutely no room for precision. You can call me ignorant, you can tell me that I don't know what I am talking about, but you will NOT convince me that the player batting has solid control of hitting the ball. If he did, he would hit the damn thing, instead standing at the home plate and swinging the bat 15 times before finally making any contact.

You might say: well, look at all those combinations they might have to play! They have to think where to throw the ball. Well, gee: they have 4 bases, and possible combinations will account to what: 20?




Now, to comapare: pick any sport. How about soccer? Here are the facts:

To play soccer, you need to be able to run for 90 minutes. Put one of the baseball slobs in there, and see how fast the fatso will collapse.

To play soccer, you need to learn how to play as a TEAM. It is not about one guy kicking a ball, it is about passing, it is about working together on combinations to score.

To play soccer, one needs skills of controlling the ball. You know, things such as passing, kicking it, etc. Everyone puts their foot on the ball, and does something with it. It is not about chance, it is about skills and team work.

To play soccer, the team must have a leader, who organizes plays, who assists, who controls the tempo, who gets the ball to the right place at a right time. And in baseball? Everyone has their place, and coach replaces pitchers once in a while. Oh my, how exciting.


So, to conclude: soccer is ten times better than baseball, because soccer is a game of skill, fitness and finesse (you know those gourgeous kicks into the goal?). Soccer is played throughout most civilized world, and respected as a game, while baseball only took hold in US, Mexico (I think), and Japan.

Discuss.

Musicals are great!

Well, let the fun begin as I know what Igor is going to say on this subject.  To me there is nothing better than Singing in the Rain, Fiddler on the Roof, Jesus Christ Superstar and Fantom of the Opera.  I love seeing exceptionally talented people have to act, sing and dance in front of a live theatre audience.  Musicals are magical and I prefer them to Opera, Ballet, and regular theatre.  I appreciate the other disciplines but to me they are just not as interesting.