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Wikipedia defines road rage as a term used to refer to criminally violent behavior by a driver of an automobile, which thus causes accidents or incidents on roadways. Manifestations of road rage include cutting people off, speeding, tailgating other drivers, shouting verbal assault and giving other drivers the finger. Road rage is all about people not being able to control their temper and lashing out at other drivers or pedestrians.
And this violence doesnt have to come from the driver aiming at another driver; it can be a passenger against a pedestrian or other motorist as well. A report by the Australian Academy of Science states that researchers at the University of Western Australia surveyed offence reports compiled by police for the years 1991 to 1995 for incidents of road rage, and found that 797 road rage incidents had occurred in WA over the 5 years, and also that there was a generally increasing trend (from 119 incidents in 1991 to 198 in 1995). So the conclusion is: we are getting angrier!
Although, this road rage didnt seem to materialise into anything fatal. According to the Australian Bureau of Transport Safety, the number of road fatalities actually declined from 30 per 100,000 people in 1970 to under 10 per 100,000 in 1997. The overall number of fatalities declined from 3798 in 1970 to 1764 in 1997, despite the rapid growth in the number of cars on the road (4.8 million in 1970 compared to 11.4 million in 1997).
That said, since 1997 the fatality rate has done the reverse and actually rose to 1818 deaths in 2000. So maybe the failing public transport system (well in Sydney anyway) has finally taken its toll and forced even more commuters to switch to driving to work and maybe work has become more stressful with the increased hours and the struggle to balance work and home life that have both amplified over the past few years, leading to more road rage.
How to Manage Road Rage
The Australian Academy of Science report says that some psychologists recommend relaxation therapy for those that succumb to road rage, and driving manuals emphasise that people should use defensive driving techniques to help decrease their chances of becoming a victim of road rage. Ideas like following at a safe distance between your car and the one in front of you, and using your blinkers when changing lanes will mean you will be provoking less road rage by other drivers. Always empathise when driving - try to think about how other drivers would feel (and hence retaliate) if you cut them off or tailgated them.
If you are still really angry but dont want to cause any motor accidents, maybe you would like to try Road Rage Cards. With these, you can expose the cards to fellow drivers who are driving inconsiderately. Although, by helping you cool down these cards may do more harm than good to the readers, so be careful!
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If you don't like the weather in Sydney, wait 15 minutes. RachDegab
I altered this quote from one I found featuring St Louis instead. Now I dont know what the weather is like in St Louis, but current Sydney weather is awful! If its not drizzly and crap (especially on a Monday morning of course) its hot and suffocating. And when I say hot Im not talking about the sunny, surfy beach-hot with a cool wind thats loved by everyone because it means the exciting arrival of summer along with thongs and barbecues. No, Im talking about the dry, sun-less, high 30s extreme hot that hinders everybodys weekend plans and makes walking outside to put the washing on the line a near-death experience.
Its global warming I tells ya: this rise and fall in temperatures, humidity, cloud cover and the minimal rainfall, ranging from 5 to 10 monthly droplets per square metre is all our fault. Weve upset the earth and now its having a go at us. Its fighting back, saying Youve peeved me off now! So I will show you how big and powerful I am now and annoy the crap out of you with random, inconsistent weather that will leave you with hyperthermia, hypothermia and possibly an Armageddon all in the one day!
Shows the increase in temperature from the 1940-1980 period to the 1995-2004 period.
I feel sorry for my generation. We have to pick up the mess that the baby boomers created. But what are we going to do? We can always do it American movie-style and build some extravagant high-tech machine in 3 months, operated by inexperienced drill-operators and place humanity on the line with an American flag flapping in the wind behind us. Or maybe we should just start planning for the inevitable and mine shelters under our houses for when earth just becomes to unbearable to live on? We can form cities and build roadways underground and evolve to live like Antz from that Dreamworks film. What do you say?
No matter what we do, were in for a hell of a summer. If its reaching 37 degrees Celsius in November (spring) I just wonder how stinking hot its going to be in January or February, the hottest months of the year. Christmas is going to be spent inside with blaring air conditioners and I can only guess the amount of strain thats going to put on our already inadequate power supplies. I suppose well just have to chuck in some more coal, and build a few more power stations, all adding to the already ridiculous amounts of carbon dioxide emissions were pumping into the earths atmosphere. Its a vicious cycle. And the world knows about the effects of coal-burning: the Economist recently labelled the process as "Environmental Enemy No. 1.
So it looks like were buggered unless we find something thatll save us from the crap weve created for ourselves. Alternative forms of energy such as nuclear power have been discussed in the media recently, but is something going to eventuate soon? Or will we have to wait until everyone over 70 dies form heat exhaustion and acid rain destroys all of the earths crops? And what on earth is going to happen in regards to Sydneys water crisis?
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Why Swimming is Good For You
Our bodies are about 70% water; and while the lungs are filled with the air, the body is slightly less dense than the surrounding water, which exerts a buoyant force on it. So to stay afloat all that is required is a slight propelling of water downward relative to the body. Because we are buoyant in the water, there is less force placed upon our joints and bones during swimming. Think about the graceful movement of a swimmer doing freestyle along a swimming pool its such a majestic and seemingly easy form of exercise in comparison to the hard jolt of running on a bitumen road.
Hydration
Another benefit of swimming is the constant cooling down of the body from the surrounding water. But swimmers must be wary that just because they are presumably kept cool and refreshed throughout their swim, they are no more hydrated than they would be if jogging on the road instead. So remember to keep drinking water during a swim and afterwards. You may not feel thirsty at the time, but you really need to replace the water you are losing through sweat.
Aerobic Swimming
Fast swimming requires a high level of effort, meaning glycogen (stored glucose) rather than fat is burned. Prolonged exercise at lower intensity is better for fat-burning, and this is called aerobic exercise because it uses a relatively long exercise time, uses oxygen and maintains an increased heart rate. So if you want to burn fat it is better to swim at a moderate pace for longer instead of doing sudden bursts of sprint-swimming.
Bone Density
Now, because there is little impact on the joints and bones which will save on wear and tear, there is a related diadvantage of swimming in that it does barely anything for bone density. Bone density is important in protecting against diseases such as osteoporosis (porous bone - osteo = bone, porosis = porous) at the later stages of life. Achieving a higher peak bone mass through exercise and proper calcium intake during adolescence is important for the prevention of osteoporosis. So it's beneficial to engage in other forms of exercise that are higher impact such as walking or jogging.
An All-Round Form of Exercise
Swimming exercises almost all muscles in the body. Usually, the arms and upper body are exercised more than the legs. Those of you who engage in the sport will feel your arms tighten as you leave the pool so remember to stretch them after each session.
In competitive swimming, excessive leg muscles can be seen as a disadvantage as they consume more oxygen, which would be needed for the muscles in the arms, although this depends on the swimming style. While breaststroke generates significant movement with the legs, freestyle propels the body mainly with the arms. You can see the importance of having beefed up arms in regards to swimming if you just look at any Olympic Swimmer.
Even when you are not consciously swimming for exercise you will still be burning calories in the water. Just go to the beach and play around in the surf and youll still be exercising because of the resistance of the water! But I usually opt for the pool as there are less sharks, sting rays, and bluebottles
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Heres an idea: Next time a telemarketer calls you at home in the evening, say to them, I'm really busy right now, but if you'll give me your home phone number, I'll be sure and call you back when you are relaxing after a hard day at the office." Unknown
Now thats a novel idea. How annoying are telemarketers?! And the conniving little pains know exactly when to call because youd be home and available to answer the phone right in the middle of dinner. Or they call during the day to talk to someone who isnt at work and so will apparently be eager to let them crap on for 20 minutes about their Low low call rates or Amazing savings on your Home Loan. But no matter how busy or idle people are, no-one ever wants to hear from a telemarketer.
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According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, breast augmentation is the third most commonly performed cosmetic surgical procedure in the United States. In 2005, 291,000 breast augmentation procedures were performed.
Breast implants are usually incorrectly associated with silicone-filled sacs, but for the last 14 years this type of implant has been banned because it was believed that they could trigger connective tissue diseases and other problems. In 1992 the Food and Drug Administration reclassified the devices as experimental and restricted silicone gel-filled breast implants to clinical trials, primarily for women needing reconstruction because of mastectomy (the removal of a breast) or breast deformity, or for women with implants that need to be replaced.
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Humans Not As Genetically Identical As We Thought
Whats previously been taught is that of the 6 billion or so people on the planet, we all share 99.9% of each others genes and identity. These results came from the Human Genome Project 5 years ago and are now assumed to be very much wrong. Today, research was published in the journal Nature and ABC Science News reports that we are genetically more varied than what was once assumed.
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Everyone is beautiful if you squint a bit Unknown
Thats for sure, all the blemishes and imperfections of the person youre looking at arent noticed when youre squinting. But if you happen to be looking at someone who is terribly overweight, your squinting wont help you at all reducing the focus doesnt change the size of what youre looking at!
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Surviving The Heat Wave Heat Exhaustion is a Killer
Advanced hyperthermia (hyper = excessive, thermia = heat) can result in heatstroke or heat exhaustion. This occurs when the body produces or absorbs more heat than it can dissipate. Body temperatures above 40°C are life-threatening. At 41°C brain death begins, and at 45°C death is nearly certain.
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Even a broken clock is right twice a day Anonymous
Yes, but if the clock is broken we wont be looking at it to know what the time is and so we wont be around to see it being right twice a day.
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on Why Do We Need a Good Night's Sleep?
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