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Ettiquette

Understanding Memory

Ettiquette
by: Carol Dorman
Etiquette

Etiquette – such a pretty word. The very sound of it is classy – the kind of word you’d take home to meet Mother for a spot of tea and scones! Even its look, when written down is so “haute chic”. It must be good.

There are many forms of etiquette. Here are just a few I prepared earlier.

Wedding Etiquette: Don’t tell the bride your invitation never came – just assume she already knows and turn up anyway.

Restaurant Etiquette: USE THE SILVERWARE – DON’T STASH IT and strive to give the impression that French/Italian/Chinese/ whatever the cuisine speciality is/ is actually your first language (so never, I repeat, NEVER act surprised when your ordered dish arrives)

Table Etiquette: As above, except for the language bit. It should be noted, however, that “At-home-table Etiquette” allows for relaxing the silverware principle whenever the cricket’s on telly.

Dating Etiquette: “Yes” means "Yes", “No” means "No" and “Maybe” means "Possibly, but really, well…. No.”

(“I’ll call you” and “Let me think about it” both mean “HELL, NO!”)

Teenage Etiquette: Whatever Thorpie does because…Like, you know, it’s coz it’s really sick and stuff but don’t say anything coz that’d be really gay. Got me?

Ah, etiquette. Unpretentious, yet so powerful. One can sense when Etiquette enters the room. Heads turn, faces smile and all seems right with the world.

Extend that hand, embrace that small talk, master the subtle topic change and breathe again.

Understanding Memory
by: Paul Hegarty

It needs very little argument to convince the average thinking person of the great magnitude of memory, although even then very few begin to realize just how important is the function of the mind that has to do with the retention of mental impressions. The first thought of the average person when he is asked to consider the importance of memory, is its use in the affairs of every-day life, along developed and cultivated lines, as contrasted with the lesser degrees of its development. In short, one generally thinks of memory in its phase of “a good memory'' as contrasted with the opposite phase of " a poor memory.'' But there is a much broader and fuller meaning of the term than that of even this important phase.

It is true that the success of the individual in his every-day business, profession, trade or other occupation depends very materially upon the possession of a good memory. His value in any walk in life depends to a great extent upon the degree of memory he may have developed. His memory of faces, names, facts, events, circumstances and other things concerning his every-day work is the measure of his ability to accomplish his task. And in the social intercourse of men and women, the possession of a retentive memory, well stocked with available facts, renders its possessor a desirable member of society. And in the higher activities of thought, the memory comes as an invaluable aid to the individual in marshalling the bits and sections of knowledge he may have acquired, and passing them in review before his cognitive faculties —thus does the soul review its mental possessions.

As Alexander Smith has said: "A man's real possession is his memory; in nothing else is he rich; in nothing else is he poor." Richter has said: "Memory is the only paradise from which we cannot be driven away. Grant but memory to us, and we can lose nothing by death.'' Lactantius says: '' Memory tempers prosperity, mitigates adversity, controls youth, and delights old age."

But even the above phases of memory represent but a small segment of its complete circle. Memory is more than "a good memory"—it is the means whereby we perform the largest share of our mental work.

DUI - Blood Alcohol Content and the Effect of Time --Thomas Ajava
If you drive, you’ve probably heard at least a little about the infamous blood alcohol content standard. The magic number these days for using it to determine whether a person is driving drunk is .08. That being said, the issue of how consuming alcohol results in such a measurement over time is very misunderstood.

Let’s say you go to a swinging party. Your friends have already been going at it and the place is a bit wild. You do two shots and drink two mixed drinks in one hour. You are a male. Is your blood alcohol content over .08 or is it not? The answer is highly dependent on time.

The stomach and intestines are the primary absorption organs in the body. They break down materials into usable substances and move them into the body. It is a rather obvious thing to say that this process happens much quicker when consuming pure alcohol versus consuming alcohol with food. Food simply is going to take longer to break down.

So, what impact does all this have on your blood alcohol content level? Well, you are not going to be over .08 blood alcohol level if you do two shots in five minutes. It takes longer for the alcohol to enter your system. Two shots and two mixed drinks in an hour may do it, but you might need more time. What if we measure your blood alcohol content two hours later? You’ll definitely be over the limit because sufficient time will have passed for the alcohol to be consumed.

What about the notion that eating while drinking will slow things down? Well, it is true. A person drinking just plain alcohol might not reach their highest blood alcohol level until a whopping 3 hours after they finish drinking. Add food to the process and that time range can be extended to five or six hours.

This should make you think. How many times have you gone to a party and then reasoned that you were okay to drive because you had not had a drink in two hours? While you might have felt okay, your blood alcohol level would have been through the roof! If pulled over, you would’ve blown a number on a breathalyzer that would have caused you a host of problems and a night in the pokey.

Welfare now 2nd largest public expense

Social welfare spending rose to $36 billion in 2007-08, up 80% on the $20 billion spent in 1997-98, representing the second largest share of government recurrent resource allocation, Secretary for Labour & Welfare Matthew Cheung says.

During the same period the Social Welfare Department's subvention for non-governmental organisations also grew by more than 50%, from $4.5 billion in 1997 to $6.8 billion this year.

At the Institute of Social Service Development 10th anniversary reception today Mr Cheung said quality staff are very crucial to social services development, adding the number of registered social workers in Hong Kong has exceeded 14,300, from only about 8,300 in 1998.

Noting the looming global financial tsunami which would inevitably lead to growing demand for social welfare and much tougher challenges for social workers, Mr Cheung assured the Government will enhance communication with the welfare sector to ensure timely and proper assistance for people in need.