I don't know about you but I loathe acronyms. Yes, I know they have a convenience factor but they also seem to me to be potentially sinister, redolent of George Orwell's Newspeak. Our field has its fair share of them and woe betide anyone who uses one wrongly. Never, for example, say ESL or TESL when you mean ESOL or TESOL. Why? because you might unwittingly insult a learner by referring to ESL (English as a second language) when the learner might be a speaker of several languages with English some way down the pecking order: it is politically more correct to refer to English for speakers of other languages (ESOL). So important has this distinction become that the heavy hand of officialdom in the UK now requires people seeking British citizenship to demonstrate that they have at least ESOL Entry Level 3 from the national "skills for life" curriculum (strange distinction, after all we hardly need "skills for death"). Exam boards now dutifully provide ESOL qualifications that seem to have eclipsed the old EFL certificates, making English as a foreign language somehow less relevant.
So have EFL and TEFL lost status? Not exactly, but they imply the use of English in international situations, perhaps among non-native speakers. They still get a look in, but to teach English as a "foreign" language requires different emphases. For example, TESOL would require the teacher to concentrate on situations and contexts that the learners would meet in everyday life in an Anglophone country. TEFL, on the other hand, suggests an orientation towards travel and global situations. I don't dispute that these distinctions have their uses but the trouble is that you can see the potential for all sorts of new acronyms on the horizon. When we will start to teach EIL (English as an international language) or EIB (English for international business)? I'd happily settle for good, old-fashioned ELT (English language teaching).
An Acronym By Any Other Name
Christians celebrate Christmas to observe the birth of Jesus Christ, which is an event and not a tradition. But many other
Poinsettias are another traditional decorative flower used at Christmas. It is native to Mexico and is named after Joel
Poinsett, who was the first U.S ambassador to Mexico and who brought the plants to America in 1828. Mexicans believe the plants
were a symbol of the Star of Bethlehem and that's one reason they are associated with Christmas. There's also the story that a young
boy was going to see the Nativity Play at a church but realized he didn't have a gift for Baby Jesus. The boy gathered some green
branches, which others scoffed at. But as he placed them near the manger, a bright red poinsettia flower started to bloom on each
branch, which gave rise to their traditional use at Christmas.
Candy canes became a Christmas tradition not because their red and white stripes matched the colors of the season, but for
the most unusual reason of discipline. that's because they were first used as treats that were give to German children to keep them
well-behaved for the duration of church sermons. Over time, the legend of candy canes at Christmas came to be associated with some
of the strongest symbols and beliefs of Christianity: the Father, Son and Holy Ghost known as the Trinity, the Blood of the Son of
God, Jesus as the embodiment of holiness, purity and without sin and the Son of God as the shepherd of man. The candy cane
represents these symbols respectively with its three stripes, its red and white color and its shape.
Sending greeting cards during Christmas and the holidays is as prevalent today as the custom of giving gifts. The tradition
of sending Christmas cards started in 1840 in Britain with the start of public postal delivery service of the 'Penny Post.' Then from
about 1860, large numbers of Christmas greeting cards started to be produced. The popularity of the cards increased in Britain when
they could be sent by the postal service for one half-penny, which was half the price to post a standard letter at the time, if they were
in an unsealed envelope. Religious pictures of Mary, Joseph , Baby Jesus, the angels, shepherds and Wise Men were traditionally
placed on Christmas cards. Some cards today include scenes from the Nativity, but pictures of Santa Claus, winter scenery, Christmas
trees, gift packages and others are also depicted on contemporary Christmas greeting cards.
A Phone by Any Other Name...
I recently left the company I was working for and took a new position with a new employer at a much higher salary. My business is IT, and I left the comfort and stabilty of my old job to work for a startup firm which I think will be a big success. They knew they were going to have to pay for quality personnel so they had no problem meeting my demands in terms of salary, benefits and stock options. What I didn't realize is that while they aren't skimping on compensation, the office environment they provide leaves a lot to be desired.
I can put up with the miniscule cubical. I can live with the lack of natural light (although I feel like a cave troll). I can even do without the cafeteria, water cooler, and coffee maker. What I really miss is my old phone.
You see, my old phone was indeed, not an "old" phone. It was a multi-line handling, LCD displaying, caller IDing monster that gave me more options than a new car salesman. My "new" phone has none of those amenities. There is no transfer or hold button, no screen to display who is calling, no headset and no electronic directory. In short, the only difference between this phone and a Garfield phone you might buy at Spencer's Gifts is that this phone isn't shaped like a cartoon cat. My job would be so much easier and my days so much more productive if only we had a real office phone system in place. The current system is so poorly automated that only a very small percentage of the calls I get are actually meant for me. Likewise, I get several E-mails a day asking why I haven't returned phone calls in regard to messages I never received.
I guess the old addage that "you don't know what you've got until it's gone" really holds true in this case.
Since I came here, I have actively lobbied to have the old phone system replaced, but to no avail. I think I may be the only one here who knows what he's missing. Oh well...I'm sure I'm not the only one out there who has experienced this. Maybe you too have lost a beloved phone in a career move. I sympathize with you. I'd leave my number so we could comiserate, but you'd probably never reach me anyway.
Using Other Peoples Info To Increase Your Adsense Cash
Adsense is really making a huge impact on the affiliate marketing industry nowadays. Because of this, weak affiliate merchants have the tendency to die faster than ever and ad networks will be going to lose their customers quickly.
If you are in a losing rather than winning in the affiliate program you are currently into, maybe it is about time to consider going into the Adsense marketing and start earning some real cash.
Google is readily providing well written and highly relevant ads that are closely chosen to match the content on your pages. You do not have to look for them yourselves as the search engine will be the doing the searching for you from other people’s source.
You do not have to spend time in choosing different kind of ads for different pages. And no codes to mess around for different affiliate programs.
You will be able to concentrate on providing good and quality content, as the search engines will be the ones finding the best ads in which to put your pages on.
You are still allowed to add Adsense ads even if you already have affiliate links on your site. It is prohibited, however, to imitate the look and feel of the Google ads for your affiliate links.
You can filter up to 200 URLs. That gives you a chance to block ads for the sites that do not meet your guidelines. You can also block competitors. Though it is unavoidable that Adsense may be competing for some space on web sites that all other revenues are sharing.
Owners of small sites are allowed to plug a bit of a code into their sites and instantly have relevant text ads that appeal to your visitors appear instantly into your pages. If you own many sites, you only need to apply once. It makes up for having to apply to many affiliate programs.
The only way to know how much you are already earning is to try and see. If you want out, all you have to do is remove the code from your site.
The payment rates can vary extremely. The payment you will be receiving per click depends on how much advertisers are paying per click to advertise with the use of the AdWords. Advertisers can pay as little as 5 cents and as high as $10-12, sometimes even more than that too. You are earning a share of that money generated.
If your results remain stagnant, it can help if you try and build simple and uncluttered pages so that the ads can catch the visitor’s eyes more. It sometimes pay to differ from the usual things that people are doing already. It is also a refreshing sight for your visitor once they see something different for a change.
Publishers also have the option of choosing to have their ads displayed only on a certain site or sites. It is also allowed to have them displayed on a large network of sites. The choice would be depending on what you think will work best for your advantage.
To get an idea if some Adsense ads you see on the search engines has your pages, try to find web pages that have similar material to the content you are planning to create and look up their Adsense ads.
It is important to note that you cannot choose certain topics only. If you do this, search engines will not place Adsense ads on your site and you will be missing out a great opportunity in making hundreds and even thousands of dollars cash.
It is still wise to look at other people’s information and format your Adsense there. Just think about it as doing yourself a favor by not having to work too hard to know what content to have.
Topic to be avoided includes gambling, firearms, ammunition, tobacco or drugs. If you are being offered more cash in exchange of doing Adsense with these kinds, it is just like signing your own termination paper.
With all the information that people need in your hands already, all you have to do is turn them as your profits. It all boils down to a gain and gain situation both for the content site owners and the webmasters or publishers.
Make other people’s matter your own and starting earning some extra cash.
Obesity, Sexual Health and Other Health Effects
Summary:
This article talks about the health effects of being obese. Aside from diabetes, coronary heart disease, and certain ulcers, recent medical studies reveal that obesity may also lead to low testosterone levels and hamper the sexual health of many men.
Keywords:
sexual problem
Article Body:
Obesity has been getting the attention of many health specialists because of the ill-effects it brings. Obesity is defined as an abnormal accumulation of body fat. Individuals who are 20 to 40 percent over one's ideal weight is considered as mildly obese, 40 to 100 percent over the their ideal weight is considered moderately obese, and 100 percent over one's ideal weight is considered severely obese. Body mass index, calipers, waist-hip ratio are some of the methods that are commonly used to measure body fat.
Obese individuals might be prone to health risks like cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, certain types of ulcers and diabetes, and coronary heart disease. Recent medical studies reveal that obesity may also lead to low testosterone levels and hamper the sexual health of many men. It is suggested that obesity is a significant predictor of low testosterone. These studies add that gaining ten percent in one's appropriate Body Mass Index (BMI) may lead to decreased testosterone levels by about ten percent. Because of this, fat or over weight individuals may have up to 25 percent less total testosterone than their fit counterparts. In addition to this, obesity may lead to high blood pressure, a condition that usually brings no obvious symptoms. High blood pressure may cause the blood vessels to harden and damage the lining of the blood vessels. Because of this development, less blood which carries oxygen and nutrients flow to the penis. Decreased blood flow may cause difficulties in achieving and maintaining erections. High blood pressure may also interfere with ejaculation and reduce libido. Many medications used to treat high blood pressure may also bring similar adverse effects.
Obesity may also heighten the risk of developing several health conditions that may include the following:
arthritis and other orthopedic problems like lower back pain
hernias
heartburn
adult-onset asthma
high cholesterol levels
gallstones
irregular monthly periods and absence of menstruation (amenorrhea)
infertility and pregnancy complications
shortness of breath
sleep apnea and other sleeping disorders
skin disorders that develop because of bacterial breakdown from sweat and other cellular material in thick folds of skin
One of the probable causes of obesity high calories in diets coupled with inactivity. A study conducted by the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report in February, 2004 showed that Americans consumed more calories than they did 30 years ago. The study found out that from 1971 to 2004, American women increased their calorie consumption from 1542 calories per day to 1877. The men on the other hand, at the same time frame, increased their calorie intake from 2,450 to 2,618.
With the rise of calorie intake also came the decline of physical activities. However, less than 1/3 of adults engage in the appropriate amounts of exercise. In addition, 40% of adults in the United States do not participate in any physical activity while 43% of adolescents spend more than 2 hours in front of the television. It is recommended that individuals should accumulate at least 30 minutes among adults and 60 minutes among children of moderate physical activity three times a week. More are recommended to prevent weight gain or to lose weight.
Obese individuals who want to improve their sexual health and overall well-being should engage in regular exercise and healthy diets. Exercise is good for different people of all ages, sex, and weight. It is necessary to maintain overall health and enhanced well-being. Individuals who decide to include a regular program of physical activity should consult doctors and other health professionals for advice. This is important because a lot of individuals tend to workout too much or workout improperly, which may do more harm than good. Understanding healthy lifestyles and eating regimens may enable individuals to lose essential amounts of weight.