What makes a hero? - Matthew Winkler The Hero Archetype in Literature, Religion, and Popular Culture: (along with a useful PowerPoint presentation teachers can download at this URL: )Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction (users embark on their own hero's journey): American Masters Lesson from PBS for Teachers on George Lucas, the Power of Myth, and the Hero's Journey: an interactive approach to the Hero's Journey: of course, information about Joseph Campbell's works on the subject, on the Joseph Campbell Foundation site:The Hero With A Thousand Faces Hero's Journey (semi-biographical film):
» Giant List of Self-Care Skills for Babies,Toddlers and Preschoolers Positive Parenting Connection Giving children a chance to practice self-care skills is a fantastic way to help them feel capable and increase their self-esteem. It helps create a great sense of autonomy, a drive to learn and grow. Self-care is also an opportunity for children to feel in charge of their body and know that they are trusted by their parents. Here is a list of Self-Care Skills for Children From Crawlers to 5 years sorted by Age: Self-Care Skills for Babies (crawlers) to 12 months Throw own bib in laundry hamper Clean face and hands with damp wash cloth (finish up with help) Stow own shoes away (with help/works well to have one assigned spot) Feed self a snack (cereal 0’s, cubed soft fruits etc…) Hold a spoon and toothbrush to imitate parents/siblings Play alone for 10-30 minutes* Self-Care Skills from 12-18 monthsContinue all of the above plus Self-Care Skills from 18 months- 2 year olds Continue all of the above plus Undress pants/shorts Explore how to dress self (shirts tend to get stuck!) Peace & Be Well,
Free Food in Your Yard: Edible Weeds! Popular in Food & Drink Next time you're about to yank an offending plant from your immaculate garden of perennials, think twice: you just might be looking at dinner. Free dinner. Oh, I know what you're thinking: damn hippies! Always eating anything and everything that grows under the sun. Well, my friend, I may be a bit of a hippie, but that doesn't mean that you too can't partake in the pleasures of foraged food. I love the idea of going out in the wild to find food. Japanese Knotweed This stuff grows like a forest in the lot next to my house, and occasionally pops up in my yard. Knotweed is a crazy plant. The neighbor who told me the name of the weed also told us that it was edible, but that only the shoots were really worth eating. It turns out that this isn't true — I mean, I'm sure it's invasiveness is awful, but you can eat it when it gets big. I did manage to get a few shoots that were young, growing around my rhododendron. And it's good for you! It's also very high in vitamin C!
Polyphasic Sleep Log – Day 1 I’ve completed my first day on the polyphasic sleep schedule, napping for 20-30 minutes every four hours. It’s been almost 36 hours since I last awoke from a full night’s sleep. “Day” is a relative term on this schedule, since the daytime sleeping schedule is no different than the nighttime one. I’m not sure whether to think of today as “day 1″ (the day after my first night of sleep deprivation) or “day 2″ (the second day after I officially started this sleeping pattern). No serious problems thus far aside from some fatigue, lower concentration, and occasional sleepiness. Yesterday seemed tougher than it should have been, as I experienced some tiredness even though I was initially getting more sleep than usual by beginning the nap schedule after having a regular night’s sleep. Last night was semi-difficult, with lots of sleepiness and fatigue between the 1am and 5am naps. 5am was my normal waking time.
How I Lost Faith in the “Pro-Life” Movement UPDATE: Welcome readers from facebook and elsewhere! Please subscribe through the buttons at the right if you enjoy this post. The spring of my sophomore year of college I was president of my university’s Students for Life chapter. The fall of my junior year of college I cut my ties with the pro-life movement. I was raised in the sort of evangelical family where abortion is the number one political issue. My views on fetal personhood and women’s bodily autonomy have shifted since that day, but when I first started blogging a year and a half ago I was nevertheless very insistent that the pro-life movement should be taken at its word when it came to rhetoric about saving “unborn babies” from being “murdered.” I have come to the conclusion that I was wrong. As a child, teen, and college student, I sincerely believed that personhood, life, rights, and the soul all began at fertilization. I have come to the conclusion that I was a dupe. Banning Abortion Does Not Decrease Abortion Rates Addenda:
20 Ingredients To Memorize and Avoid In ANY Food You Consume | EU (Before It's News) by Marco Torres Copyright © Marco Torres, PreventDisease.com , 2013 published on PreventDisease.com 03 Mar 2013 re-published here under their terms of “Fair Use” Artificial flavors, colors, preservatives, emulsifiers, sweeteners have saturated the food supply for more than four decades. 1. Artificial flavorings are derived from chemicals made in a laboratory and offer absolutely no nutritional value and are a magnet for processed foods. 2. 3. Fractionating oil is a process most often used on palm and palm kernel oil that involves heating the oil, then cooling it quickly so that it breaks up into fractions (hence the name). Hydrogenated oils are oils that are often healthy in their natural state, but are quickly turned into poisons through the manufacturing and processing they undergo. 4. MSG is not a nutrient, vitamin, or mineral and has no health benefits. The single largest source of calories for Americans comes from sugar. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15.
Alternative Sleep Cycles: You Don't Really Need 6-8 Hours! Most people only think that there is one way to sleep: Go to sleep at night for 6-8 hours, wake up in the morning, stay awake for 16-18 hours and then repeat. Actually, that is called a monophasic sleep cycle, which is only 1 of 5 major sleep cycles that have been used successfully throughout history. The other 4 are considered polyphasic sleep cycles due to the multiple number of naps they require each day. How is this possible? How is this healthy? Well the most important of every sleep cycle is the Stage 4 REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, which has been shown to provide the benefits of sleep to the brain above all other stages of sleep. This way, you still get the benefits of 8 hours of sleep without wasting all of the time it takes to get to REM cycles, resulting in a much more efficient sleep cycle. Uberman Cycle: 20 to 30 minute naps every 4 hours, resulting in 6 naps each day. Everyman Cycle: One longer “core” nap that is supplemented with several 20-30 minute naps. Dymaxion Cycle:
How to Forecast Weather | Ever wondered how to forecast the weather without actually using instruments? Check the Clouds: Clouds can tell us a lot about the weather. Check the Humidity: If you’re one of those people whose hair gets all curly when it gets really humid out, you know exactly what this is about. Check the Animals: Birds only fly in the sky when they expect fair weather ahead. Look at the Rainbow (but only in the west) and look for a Red Sky: If you see one in the west, it means a major storm front is coming. Check the Air: If it smells like a compost heap, expect some rain soon. Check the Moon: Seen any red moons lately? Check the Wind: If you can tell which way the wind is blowing, you can tell if there is a storm approaching. A Few More Ideas: Make a campfire – If the smoke goes straight up, clear skies ahead. Check the grass – if it’s wet and dewy, that means it probably won’t rain.
27 Science Fictions That Became Science Facts In 2012 We may never have our flying cars, but the future is here. From creating fully functioning artificial leaves to hacking the human brain, science made a lot of breakthroughs this year. 1. Quadriplegic Uses Her Mind to Control Her Robotic Arm At the University of Pittsburgh, the neurobiology department worked with 52-year-old Jan Scheuermann over the course of 13 weeks to create a robotic arm controlled only by the power of Scheuermann’s mind. 2. Once the robot figures out how to do that without all the wires, humanity is doomed. 3. Photo Courtesy of Indigo Moon Yarns. At the University of Wyoming, scientists modified a group of silkworms to produce silk that is, weight for weight, stronger than steel. 4. Using an electron microscope, Enzo di Fabrizio and his team at the Italian Institute of Technology in Genoa snapped the first photos of the famous double helix.Source: newscientist.com / via: davi296 5. 6. ReCell by Avita Medical is a medical breakthrough for severe-burn victims. 7. 8. 10.
Psychology of Color [Infographic] Perhaps no choice is as vital to marketing as color. Whether you are selecting the color for a product or for your email marketing campaign, color has tremendous impact on all of us. Subconsciously, we associate different colors with different things. This infographic examines the psychology of color and looks at some common associations of different colors. It shows the overall importance of color to consumers and characteristics of many individual colors, and it also helps show the connection between graphic design and psychology. While color can be appealing to us visually, a lot more is going on behind the scenes than just an aesthetic. Embed This Graphic On Your Site <img src=” alt=”Psychology of Color Infographic” />Infographic by <a title=”WebpageFX” href=” Embed the Psychology of Color Infographic The psychology of color directly plays into consumer behavior.