Jeudi 05 mai 2011

Osama Memes Are (Unsurprisingly) Everywhere. How Much Is Too Much?

cheap nike shoes storeOh, Internet. You're so predictable. Even before President Obama had made his announcement on Sunday night, the Internet was already swirling with rumors and speculations about the death of Osama bin Laden. And amid the rumors and speculation were, of course, jokes about the death of Osama bin Laden. (More on TIME.com: That MLK quote going around? It's sorta fake) There were of course the obvious jokes about Donald Trump wanting to see the death certificate. There were also the fake Twitter accounts, like @OsamaInHell. cheap hermes birkinThen came the photoshop jobs. And don't even get us started on the late-night jokes. And though these sorts of jokes and memes abound anytime something noteworthy happens in the world, when people make light of a particularly significant event, whether it be a catastrophe or the death of a terrorist, people are bound to be offended. As Brenna Ehrlich over at Mashable points out, some jokes can toe the line between funny and tasteless; others can just blow right past it. She points to Next Media Animation which released video "depicting bin Laden's gruesome death, soldiers urinating on his body, and, finally, his spirit being gang-raped by pigs. That video has since been taken down." So, yes, clearly some people can go too far. replica coach handbagsBut everyone's line of appropriate differs and when it comes to "appropriate" reactions to heavy news, well that's a pretty gray area to begin with. Some people genuinely react to serious or even tragic news by cracking jokes--this was also true before the Internet. (More on TIME.com: Inside bin Laden's hideout) So what to do if you're the sort of person who doesn't find these memes or wisecracks funny but actually find them outright offensive? It's probably best to ignore them--or avoid the Internet all together. Coach New ArrivalsThey're certainly not going away anytime soon. Or you could try to see the humor in things like Hitler's reaction to bin Laden's death.
Par zizihuang - 0 commentaire(s)le 05 mai 2011
Mercredi 04 mai 2011

Friends With Benefits: Being Highly Social Cuts Dementia Risk by 70%

nike sb shoesYet more evidence that friends and family are the best medicine: a new study finds that the most social seniors had a 70% reduction in the rate of cognitive decline, compared with their least social peers. The study followed 1,138 people for an average of five years. None of the participants, whose average age was 79.6, had dementia at the start of the study. Because the study followed people over time, starting from when they were mentally healthy, the findings shed light on the question of whether it's early signs of dementia that cause social isolation, or whether it's a lack of sociability that causes a greater risk of mental decline. "The problem was what came first, the chicken or the egg," says lead author Bryan James, a postdoctoral fellow at the Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center in Chicago. "We followed people for up to 12 to 14 years so we were able to look at not just changes in cognition but changes in social activity. birkin bag That way we were able to see which preceded the other." (More on Time.com: Feeling Alone Together: How Loneliness Spreads) To measure participants' levels of social activity, the researchers used a questionnaire that inquired about things like visits to relatives and friends; participation in activities such as bingo, sporting events, restaurant-going or volunteering; attendance at religious ceremonies; and active membership in groups like the Knights of Columbus. Responses to the questionnaire produced a numerical score of social activity. Each one-point increase on the social activity score was linked to a 47% drop in the rate of decline in cognitive function, the researchers found. An earlier study of the same group of elderly participants by the same researchers also found that each one-point increase in sociability reduced the risk of becoming physically disabled by 43%. "Not only is socializing linked to mental and thinking ability, it's also about how well you live independently," says James. (More on TIME.com: Friends Are Key to Health and Long Life) The researchers controlled for factors like personality and the size of participants' social networks and still found a large effect of actual social activity. Previous studies have found that severe social isolation is at least as deadly as smoking — doubling your risk of early death — and that those with more and higher-quality relationships are at lower risk for a host of illnesses including heart disease and stroke. Coach Outlet In fact, having strong friendships or family connections reduces your risk of early death more than exercising or avoiding obesity does — and as a bonus for most of us, it's more fun and takes less willpower. So why is interaction with friends and family so healing? Our stress response is intimately linked with our social connections — that's why holding Mom's hand, even as an adult, can lower blood pressure for most people, and why infants raised with minimal human contact are at many times the risk of childhood death as those with loving families.Coach Heels&Sandals Lack of social contact is stressful for all social animals, and high chronic stress increases risk of cardiovascular disease, some cancers, obesity, all mental illnesses and addictions. "Socializing relieves stress, and there's a huge connection between stress and problems with the brain as we get older," says James. (More on Time.com: The Soothing Effect of Mom's Voice) The evolution of the human brain seems to have been driven by the complexity of our social world. Our social life is the most complex of any primate and involves greater numbers of relationships. Coach HandbagsIndeed, in primates, the number of members involved in social groups is linked with bigger neocortexes — the region of the brain that is associated with the highest cognitive functions and is, in humans, most highly developed.
Par zizihuang - 1 commentaire(s)le 04 mai 2011
Mardi 03 mai 2011

Osama bin Laden Is Dead, United States Has Body

Nike outletOsama bin Laden, the glowering mastermind behind the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks that killed thousands of Americans, was killed in an operation led by the United States, President Barack Obama said Sunday. A small team of Americans killed bin Laden in a firefight at a compound in Pakistan, the president said in a dramatic late-night statement at the White House. (See TIME's 2001 cover story on the 9/11 attacks.) A jubilant crowd gathered outside the White House as word spread of bin Laden's death after a global manhunt that lasted nearly a decade. "Justice has been done," the president said. Former President George W. birkin bag Bush, who was in office on the day of the attacks, issued a written statement hailing bin Laden's death as a momentous achievement. "The fight against terror goes on, but tonight America has sent an unmistakable message: No matter how long it takes, justice will be done," he said. Few details were immediately available of the operation that resulted in bin Laden's death, although the president said none of the Americans involved was harmed. (See pictures of Osama bin Laden.) The development comes just months before the 10th anniversary of the Sept. Coach Handbags11 attacks on the World Trade Centers and Pentagon, orchestrated by bin Laden's al-Qaida organization, that killed more than 3,000 people. The attacks set off a chain of events that led the United States into wars in Afghanistan, and then Iraq, and America's entire intelligence apparatus was overhauled to counter the threat of more terror attacks at home. Al-Qaida was also blamed for the 1998 bombings of two U.S. Coach Bootsembassies in Africa that killed 231 people and the 2000 attack on the USS Cole that killed 17 American sailors in Yemen, as well as countless other plots, some successful and some foiled.
Par zizihuang - 1 commentaire(s)le 03 mai 2011
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