Tuesday, December 29, 2015
Thursday, December 17, 2015
Fed Raises Interest Rates, Citing Ongoing U.S. Recovery
WASHINGTON | BY HOWARD SCHNEIDER AND JASON LANGE
The Federal Reserve hiked interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade on Wednesday, signalling faith that the U.S. economy had largely overcome the wounds of the 2007-2009 financial crisis.
The U.S. central bank's policy-setting committee raised the range of its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to between 0.25 percent and 0.50 percent, ending a lengthy debate about whether the economy was strong enough to withstand higher borrowing costs.
"With the economy performing well and expected to continue to do so, the committee judges that a modest increase in the federal funds rate is appropriate," Fed Chair Janet Yellen said in a press conference after the rate decision was announced. "The economic recovery has clearly come a long way."
The Fed's policy statement noted the "considerable improvement" in the U.S. labour market, where the unemployment rate has fallen to 5 percent, and said policymakers are "reasonably confident" inflation will rise over the medium term to the Fed's 2 percent objective.
The central bank made clear the rate hike was a tentative beginning to a "gradual" tightening cycle, and that in deciding its next move it would put a premium on monitoring inflation, which remains mired below target.
"The process is likely to proceed gradually," Yellen said, a hint that further hikes will be slow in coming.
She added that policymakers were hoping for a slow rise in rates but one that will keep the Fed ahead of the curve as the economic recovery continues. "To keep the economy moving along the growth path it is on ... we would like to avoid a situation where we have left so much (monetary) accommodation in place for so long we have to tighten abruptly."
New economic projections from Fed policymakers were largely unchanged from September, with unemployment anticipated to fall to 4.7 percent next year and economic growth hitting 2.4 percent.
The Fed statement and its promise of a gradual path represented a compromise between policymakers who have been ready to raise rates for months and those who feel the economy is still at risk from weak inflation and slow global growth.
"The Fed is going out of its way to assure markets that, by embarking on a 'gradual' path, this will not be your traditional interest rate cycle," said Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic advisor at Allianz.
Fed officials said they were confident the situation was ripe for them to make a historic turn in policy without much disruption to financial markets, which had expected the hike this week.
U.S. stocks rallied on the news, in part because the Fed made clear it would proceed slowly with further tightening. Yields on U.S. Treasuries rose, while the dollar was largely unchanged against a basket of currencies. Oil prices fell sharply before paring losses.
The Federal Reserve hiked interest rates for the first time in nearly a decade on Wednesday, signalling faith that the U.S. economy had largely overcome the wounds of the 2007-2009 financial crisis.
The U.S. central bank's policy-setting committee raised the range of its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to between 0.25 percent and 0.50 percent, ending a lengthy debate about whether the economy was strong enough to withstand higher borrowing costs.
"With the economy performing well and expected to continue to do so, the committee judges that a modest increase in the federal funds rate is appropriate," Fed Chair Janet Yellen said in a press conference after the rate decision was announced. "The economic recovery has clearly come a long way."
The Fed's policy statement noted the "considerable improvement" in the U.S. labour market, where the unemployment rate has fallen to 5 percent, and said policymakers are "reasonably confident" inflation will rise over the medium term to the Fed's 2 percent objective.
The central bank made clear the rate hike was a tentative beginning to a "gradual" tightening cycle, and that in deciding its next move it would put a premium on monitoring inflation, which remains mired below target.
"The process is likely to proceed gradually," Yellen said, a hint that further hikes will be slow in coming.
She added that policymakers were hoping for a slow rise in rates but one that will keep the Fed ahead of the curve as the economic recovery continues. "To keep the economy moving along the growth path it is on ... we would like to avoid a situation where we have left so much (monetary) accommodation in place for so long we have to tighten abruptly."
New economic projections from Fed policymakers were largely unchanged from September, with unemployment anticipated to fall to 4.7 percent next year and economic growth hitting 2.4 percent.
The Fed statement and its promise of a gradual path represented a compromise between policymakers who have been ready to raise rates for months and those who feel the economy is still at risk from weak inflation and slow global growth.
"The Fed is going out of its way to assure markets that, by embarking on a 'gradual' path, this will not be your traditional interest rate cycle," said Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic advisor at Allianz.
Fed officials said they were confident the situation was ripe for them to make a historic turn in policy without much disruption to financial markets, which had expected the hike this week.
U.S. stocks rallied on the news, in part because the Fed made clear it would proceed slowly with further tightening. Yields on U.S. Treasuries rose, while the dollar was largely unchanged against a basket of currencies. Oil prices fell sharply before paring losses.
POLICY STILL ACCOMMODATIVE
Yellen on Wednesday said the Fed had no desire to curb consumers from spending or businesses from investing. She emphasized that interest rates remained low even after the rate hike, near levels economists regard as appropriate for a recession.
"Policy remains accommodative," Yellen said. "The U.S. economy has shown considerable strength. Domestic spending has continued to hold up."
Fed policymakers' median projected target interest rate for 2016 remained 1.375 percent, implying four quarter-point hikes next year. Based on short-term interest rate futures markets, traders expect the next rate hike in April.
A Dec. 9 Reuters poll showed economists forecasting the federal funds rate to be 1.0 percent to 1.25 percent by the end of 2016 and 2.25 percent by the end of 2017.
The rate hike sets off an immediate test of new financial tools designed by the New York Fed for just this occasion, as well as a likely reshuffling of global capital as the reality of rising U.S. rates sets in.
To edge the target rate from its current near-zero level to between 0.25 percent and 0.50 percent, the Fed said it would set the interest it pays banks on excess reserves at 0.50 percent, and would offer up to $2 trillion in reverse repurchase agreements, an aggressive figure that shows its resolve to pull rates higher.
The impact on business and household borrowing costs is unclear. One of the issues policymakers will watch closely in coming days is how long-term mortgage rates, consumer loans and other forms of credit react to the rate hike.
(Additional reporting by Lindsay Dunsmuir and David Chance in Washington, Ann Saphir in San Francisco and Jonathan Spicer and David Gaffen in New York; Editing by Paul Simao).
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen holds a news conference in Washington
December 16, 2015.
REUTERS/JONATHAN ERNS
Source from : Reuters
Friday, October 30, 2015
WHO_Q&A on the carcinogenicity of the consumption of red meat and processed meat
October 2015
1. What do you consider as red meat?
Red meat refers to all mammalian muscle meat, including, beef, veal, pork, lamb, mutton, horse, and goat.
2. What do you consider as processed meat?
Processed meat refers to meat that has been transformed through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavour or improve preservation. Most processed meats contain pork or beef, but processed meats may also contain other red meats, poultry, offal, or meat by-products such as blood.
Examples of processed meat include hot dogs (frankfurters), ham, sausages, corned beef, and biltong or beef jerky as well as canned meat and meat-based preparations and sauces.
3. Why did IARC choose to evaluate red meat and processed meat?
An international advisory committee that met in 2014 recommended red meat and processed meat as high priorities for evaluation by the IARC Monographs Programme. This recommendation was based on epidemiological studies suggesting that small increases in the risk of several cancers may be associated with high consumption of red meat or processed meat. Although these risks are small, they could be important for public health because many people worldwide eat meat and meat consumption is increasing in low- and middle-income countries. Although some health agencies already recommend limiting intake of meat, these recommendations are aimed mostly at reducing the risk of other diseases. With this in mind, it was important for IARC to provide authoritative scientific evidence on the cancer risks associated with eating red meat and processed meat.
4. Do methods of cooking meat change the risk?
High-temperature cooking methods generate compounds that may contribute to carcinogenic risk, but their role is not yet fully understood.
5. What are the safest methods of cooking meat (e.g. sautéing, boiling, broiling, or barbecuing)?
Cooking at high temperatures or with the food in direct contact with a flame or a hot surface, as in barbecuing or pan-frying, produces more of certain types of carcinogenic chemicals (such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heterocyclic aromatic amines). However, there were not enough data for the IARC Working Group to reach a conclusion about whether the way meat is cooked affects the risk of cancer.
6. Is eating raw meat safer?
There were no data to address this question in relation to cancer risk. However, the separate question of risk of infection from consumption of raw meat needs to be kept in mind.
7. Red meat was classified as Group 2A, probably carcinogenic to humans. What does this mean exactly?
In the case of red meat, the classification is based on limited evidence from epidemiological studies showing positive associations between eating red meat and developing colorectal cancer as well as strong mechanistic evidence.
Limited evidence means that a positive association has been observed between exposure to the agent and cancer but that other explanations for the observations (technically termed chance, bias, or confounding) could not be ruled out.
8. Processed meat was classified as Group 1, carcinogenic to humans. What does this mean?
This category is used when there is sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans. In other words, there is convincing evidence that the agent causes cancer. The evaluation is usually based on epidemiological studies showing the development of cancer in exposed humans.
In the case of processed meat, this classification is based on sufficient evidence from epidemiological studies that eating processed meat causes colorectal cancer.
9. Processed meat was classified as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1). Tobacco smoking and asbestos are also both classified as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1). Does it mean that consumption of processed meat is as carcinogenic as tobacco smoking and asbestos?
No, processed meat has been classified in the same category as causes of cancer such as tobacco smoking and asbestos (IARC Group 1, carcinogenic to humans), but this does NOT mean that they are all equally dangerous. The IARC classifications describe the strength of the scientific evidence about an agent being a cause of cancer, rather than assessing the level of risk.
10. What types of cancers are linked or associated with eating red meat?
The strongest, but still limited, evidence for an association with eating red meat is for colorectal cancer. There is also evidence of links with pancreatic cancer and prostate cancer.
11. What types of cancers are linked or associated with eating processed meat?
The IARC Working Group concluded that eating processed meat causes colorectal cancer. An association with stomach cancer was also seen, but the evidence is not conclusive.
12. How many cancer cases every year can be attributed to consumption of processed meat and red meat?
According to the most recent estimates by the Global Burden of Disease Project, an independent academic research organization, about 34 000 cancer deaths per year worldwide are attributable to diets high in processed meat.
Eating red meat has not yet been established as a cause of cancer. However, if the reported associations were proven to be causal, the Global Burden of Disease Project has estimated that diets high in red meat could be responsible for 50 000 cancer deaths per year worldwide.
These numbers contrast with about 1 million cancer deaths per year globally due to tobacco smoking, 600 000 per year due to alcohol consumption, and more than 200 000 per year due to air pollution.
13. Could you quantify the risk of eating red meat and processed meat?
The consumption of processed meat was associated with small increases in the risk of cancer in the studies reviewed. In those studies, the risk generally increased with the amount of meat consumed. An analysis of data from 10 studies estimated that every 50 gram portion of processed meat eaten daily increases the risk of colorectal cancer by about 18%.
The cancer risk related to the consumption of red meat is more difficult to estimate because the evidence that red meat causes cancer is not as strong. However, if the association of red meat and colorectal cancer were proven to be causal, data from the same studies suggest that the risk of colorectal cancer could increase by 17% for every 100 gram portion of red meat eaten daily.
14. Is the risk higher in children, in elderly people, in women, or in men? Are some people more at risk?
The available data did not allow conclusions about whether the risks differ in different groups of people.
15. What about people who have had colon cancer? Should they stop eating red meat?
The available data did not allow conclusions about risks to people who have already had cancer.
16. Should I stop eating meat?
Eating meat has known health benefits. Many national health recommendations advise people to limit intake of processed meat and red meat, which are linked to increased risks of death from heart disease, diabetes, and other illnesses.
17. How much meat is it safe to eat?
The risk increases with the amount of meat consumed, but the data available for evaluation did not permit a conclusion about whether a safe level exists.
18. What makes red meat and processed meat increase the risk of cancer?
Meat consists of multiple components, such as haem iron. Meat can also contain chemicals that form during meat processing or cooking. For instance, carcinogenic chemicals that form during meat processing include N-nitroso compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Cooking of red meat or processed meat also produces heterocyclic aromatic amines as well as other chemicals including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are also found in other foods and in air pollution. Some of these chemicals are known or suspected carcinogens, but despite studies provided data on red meat and more than 400 epidemiological studies provided data on processed meat).
19. Can you compare the risk of eating red meat with the risk of eating processed meat?
Similar risks have been estimated for a typical portion, which is smaller on average for processed meat than for red meat. However, consumption of red meat has not been established as a cause of cancer.
20. What is WHO’s health recommendation to prevent cancer risk associated with eating red meat and processed meat?
IARC is a research organization that evaluates the evidence available on the causes of cancer but does not make health recommendations as such. National governments and WHO are responsible for developing nutritional guidelines. This evaluation by IARC reinforces a 2002 recommendation from WHO that people who eat meat should moderate the consumption of processed meat to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. Some other dietary guidelines also recommend limiting consumption of red meat or processed meat, but these are focused mainly on reducing the intake of fat and sodium, which are risk factors for cardiovascular disease and obesity. Individuals who are concerned about cancer could consider reducing their consumption of red meat or processed meat until updated guidelines related specifically to cancer have been developed.
21. Should we eat only poultry and fish?
The cancer risks associated with consumption of poultry and fish were not evaluated.
22. Should we be vegetarians?
Vegetarian diets and diets that include meat have different advantages and disadvantages for health. However, this evaluation did not directly compare health risks in vegetarians and people who eat meat. That type of comparison is difficult because these groups can be different in other ways besides their consumption of meat.
23. Is there a type of red meat that is safer?
A few studies have investigated the cancer risks associated with different types of red meat, such as beef and pork, and with different kinds of processed meats, like ham and hot dogs. However, there is not enough information to say whether higher or lower cancer risks are related to eating any particular type of red meat or processed meat.
24. Could the preservation method influence the risk (e.g. salting, deep-freezing, or irradiation)?
Different preservation methods could result in the formation of carcinogens (e.g. N-nitroso compounds), but whether and how much this contributes to the cancer risk is unknown.
25. How many studies were evaluated?
The IARC Working Group considered more than 800 different studies on cancer in humans (some studies provided data on both types of meat; in total more than 700 epidemiological studies provided data on red meat and more than 400 epidemiological studies provided data on processed meat).
26. How many experts were involved in the evaluation?
The IARC Working Group consisted of 22 experts from 10 countries.
27. What actions do you think governments should take based on your results?
IARC is a research organization that evaluates the evidence on the causes of cancer but does not make health recommendations as such. The IARC Monographs are, however, often used as a basis for making national and international policies, guidelines and recommendations to minimize cancer risks. Governments may decide to include this new information on the cancer hazards of processed meat in the context of other health risks and benefits in updating dietary recommendations.
Source from ; WHO
1. What do you consider as red meat?
Red meat refers to all mammalian muscle meat, including, beef, veal, pork, lamb, mutton, horse, and goat.
2. What do you consider as processed meat?
Processed meat refers to meat that has been transformed through salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, or other processes to enhance flavour or improve preservation. Most processed meats contain pork or beef, but processed meats may also contain other red meats, poultry, offal, or meat by-products such as blood.
Examples of processed meat include hot dogs (frankfurters), ham, sausages, corned beef, and biltong or beef jerky as well as canned meat and meat-based preparations and sauces.
3. Why did IARC choose to evaluate red meat and processed meat?
An international advisory committee that met in 2014 recommended red meat and processed meat as high priorities for evaluation by the IARC Monographs Programme. This recommendation was based on epidemiological studies suggesting that small increases in the risk of several cancers may be associated with high consumption of red meat or processed meat. Although these risks are small, they could be important for public health because many people worldwide eat meat and meat consumption is increasing in low- and middle-income countries. Although some health agencies already recommend limiting intake of meat, these recommendations are aimed mostly at reducing the risk of other diseases. With this in mind, it was important for IARC to provide authoritative scientific evidence on the cancer risks associated with eating red meat and processed meat.
4. Do methods of cooking meat change the risk?
High-temperature cooking methods generate compounds that may contribute to carcinogenic risk, but their role is not yet fully understood.
5. What are the safest methods of cooking meat (e.g. sautéing, boiling, broiling, or barbecuing)?
Cooking at high temperatures or with the food in direct contact with a flame or a hot surface, as in barbecuing or pan-frying, produces more of certain types of carcinogenic chemicals (such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heterocyclic aromatic amines). However, there were not enough data for the IARC Working Group to reach a conclusion about whether the way meat is cooked affects the risk of cancer.
6. Is eating raw meat safer?
There were no data to address this question in relation to cancer risk. However, the separate question of risk of infection from consumption of raw meat needs to be kept in mind.
7. Red meat was classified as Group 2A, probably carcinogenic to humans. What does this mean exactly?
In the case of red meat, the classification is based on limited evidence from epidemiological studies showing positive associations between eating red meat and developing colorectal cancer as well as strong mechanistic evidence.
Limited evidence means that a positive association has been observed between exposure to the agent and cancer but that other explanations for the observations (technically termed chance, bias, or confounding) could not be ruled out.
8. Processed meat was classified as Group 1, carcinogenic to humans. What does this mean?
This category is used when there is sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans. In other words, there is convincing evidence that the agent causes cancer. The evaluation is usually based on epidemiological studies showing the development of cancer in exposed humans.
In the case of processed meat, this classification is based on sufficient evidence from epidemiological studies that eating processed meat causes colorectal cancer.
9. Processed meat was classified as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1). Tobacco smoking and asbestos are also both classified as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1). Does it mean that consumption of processed meat is as carcinogenic as tobacco smoking and asbestos?
No, processed meat has been classified in the same category as causes of cancer such as tobacco smoking and asbestos (IARC Group 1, carcinogenic to humans), but this does NOT mean that they are all equally dangerous. The IARC classifications describe the strength of the scientific evidence about an agent being a cause of cancer, rather than assessing the level of risk.
10. What types of cancers are linked or associated with eating red meat?
The strongest, but still limited, evidence for an association with eating red meat is for colorectal cancer. There is also evidence of links with pancreatic cancer and prostate cancer.
11. What types of cancers are linked or associated with eating processed meat?
The IARC Working Group concluded that eating processed meat causes colorectal cancer. An association with stomach cancer was also seen, but the evidence is not conclusive.
12. How many cancer cases every year can be attributed to consumption of processed meat and red meat?
According to the most recent estimates by the Global Burden of Disease Project, an independent academic research organization, about 34 000 cancer deaths per year worldwide are attributable to diets high in processed meat.
Eating red meat has not yet been established as a cause of cancer. However, if the reported associations were proven to be causal, the Global Burden of Disease Project has estimated that diets high in red meat could be responsible for 50 000 cancer deaths per year worldwide.
These numbers contrast with about 1 million cancer deaths per year globally due to tobacco smoking, 600 000 per year due to alcohol consumption, and more than 200 000 per year due to air pollution.
13. Could you quantify the risk of eating red meat and processed meat?
The consumption of processed meat was associated with small increases in the risk of cancer in the studies reviewed. In those studies, the risk generally increased with the amount of meat consumed. An analysis of data from 10 studies estimated that every 50 gram portion of processed meat eaten daily increases the risk of colorectal cancer by about 18%.
The cancer risk related to the consumption of red meat is more difficult to estimate because the evidence that red meat causes cancer is not as strong. However, if the association of red meat and colorectal cancer were proven to be causal, data from the same studies suggest that the risk of colorectal cancer could increase by 17% for every 100 gram portion of red meat eaten daily.
14. Is the risk higher in children, in elderly people, in women, or in men? Are some people more at risk?
The available data did not allow conclusions about whether the risks differ in different groups of people.
15. What about people who have had colon cancer? Should they stop eating red meat?
The available data did not allow conclusions about risks to people who have already had cancer.
16. Should I stop eating meat?
Eating meat has known health benefits. Many national health recommendations advise people to limit intake of processed meat and red meat, which are linked to increased risks of death from heart disease, diabetes, and other illnesses.
17. How much meat is it safe to eat?
The risk increases with the amount of meat consumed, but the data available for evaluation did not permit a conclusion about whether a safe level exists.
18. What makes red meat and processed meat increase the risk of cancer?
Meat consists of multiple components, such as haem iron. Meat can also contain chemicals that form during meat processing or cooking. For instance, carcinogenic chemicals that form during meat processing include N-nitroso compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Cooking of red meat or processed meat also produces heterocyclic aromatic amines as well as other chemicals including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are also found in other foods and in air pollution. Some of these chemicals are known or suspected carcinogens, but despite studies provided data on red meat and more than 400 epidemiological studies provided data on processed meat).
19. Can you compare the risk of eating red meat with the risk of eating processed meat?
Similar risks have been estimated for a typical portion, which is smaller on average for processed meat than for red meat. However, consumption of red meat has not been established as a cause of cancer.
20. What is WHO’s health recommendation to prevent cancer risk associated with eating red meat and processed meat?
IARC is a research organization that evaluates the evidence available on the causes of cancer but does not make health recommendations as such. National governments and WHO are responsible for developing nutritional guidelines. This evaluation by IARC reinforces a 2002 recommendation from WHO that people who eat meat should moderate the consumption of processed meat to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. Some other dietary guidelines also recommend limiting consumption of red meat or processed meat, but these are focused mainly on reducing the intake of fat and sodium, which are risk factors for cardiovascular disease and obesity. Individuals who are concerned about cancer could consider reducing their consumption of red meat or processed meat until updated guidelines related specifically to cancer have been developed.
21. Should we eat only poultry and fish?
The cancer risks associated with consumption of poultry and fish were not evaluated.
22. Should we be vegetarians?
Vegetarian diets and diets that include meat have different advantages and disadvantages for health. However, this evaluation did not directly compare health risks in vegetarians and people who eat meat. That type of comparison is difficult because these groups can be different in other ways besides their consumption of meat.
23. Is there a type of red meat that is safer?
A few studies have investigated the cancer risks associated with different types of red meat, such as beef and pork, and with different kinds of processed meats, like ham and hot dogs. However, there is not enough information to say whether higher or lower cancer risks are related to eating any particular type of red meat or processed meat.
24. Could the preservation method influence the risk (e.g. salting, deep-freezing, or irradiation)?
Different preservation methods could result in the formation of carcinogens (e.g. N-nitroso compounds), but whether and how much this contributes to the cancer risk is unknown.
25. How many studies were evaluated?
The IARC Working Group considered more than 800 different studies on cancer in humans (some studies provided data on both types of meat; in total more than 700 epidemiological studies provided data on red meat and more than 400 epidemiological studies provided data on processed meat).
26. How many experts were involved in the evaluation?
The IARC Working Group consisted of 22 experts from 10 countries.
27. What actions do you think governments should take based on your results?
IARC is a research organization that evaluates the evidence on the causes of cancer but does not make health recommendations as such. The IARC Monographs are, however, often used as a basis for making national and international policies, guidelines and recommendations to minimize cancer risks. Governments may decide to include this new information on the cancer hazards of processed meat in the context of other health risks and benefits in updating dietary recommendations.
Source from ; WHO
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Fires in Southeast Asia may be emitting more greenhouse gases than the entire U.S.
By JONATHAN KAIMAN
Contact Reporter Asia Environmental Issues
Octerber 21, 2015 2.39PM | Reporting from BeiJing
A toxic haze has repeatedly wafted over huge swaths of Southeast Asia in the last month, causing school closures, grounded flights, canceled events and widespread concern about public health risks across the region. Here’s what you need to know about the Great Haze of 2015.
Nearly 100,000 fires are burning, setting up what looks to be the worst fire year in the region since 2006. The carbon emissions from the blazes have now surpassed those of the entire United States — the world’s second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases — on 26 out of 44 days since September, according to a report by the World Resources Institute.
That’s because about half the fires are in peatland areas — concentrated mainly in South Sumatra, South and Central Kalimantan, and Papua — that are among Earth’s biggest carbon storehouses.
Compared with ordinary fires, peat fires can emit up to 10 times more methane, a greenhouse gas whose impact on climate change is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The immediate effects on health are even more worrying.
What’s going on?
Every dry season, parts of Indonesia’s Sumatra, Kalimantan and Papua areas are reduced to smoking, burned-out landscapes, as palm oil and paper-and-pulp plantation farmers burn forests to cheaply clear agricultural land.
The upshot is a whole lot of smoke — enough to create a billowy haze which, since late September, has engulfed swaths of Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, southern Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and the Philippines.
On Monday night, in parts of Singapore, one of the world’s most fastidious cities, readings of PM2.5 — particulate matter small enough to enter the bloodstream — soared to 471, shrouding the city in a deep grey smog that called to mind industrial centers like Beijing.
How bad is it, really?
It’s bad. Aside from posing a clear public health hazard — the World Health Organization estimated last May that 7 million deaths a year were linked to air pollution — the haze has put a major damper on the daily lives of millions.
Singapore canceled the 2015 FINA Swimming World Cup, and Malaysia canceled the Kuala Lumpur marathon. As monsoon winds blew the haze northeast from Indonesia, officials on the Philippine island of Cebu grounded flights due to low visibility.
The Malaysian government has advised asthma sufferers to remain indoors and ordered temporary school closures across four states and in the capital, Kuala Lumpur. In early September, an Indonesian government ministry declared a state of emergency across six provinces. Some of the country’s pharmacies have started selling bottled oxygen.
Has this happened before?
The haze has been a periodic event since the 1970s. Yet this year, a particularly dry autumn in Indonesia, brought on by the El Nino weather event, has made the haze one of the worst on record — about as bad as in 2006, when NASA satellite images showed the smoky clouds extending all the way to South Korea.
What is this doing to the environment?
Nearly 100,000 fires have been detected in Indonesia this year, according to Guido van der Werf, an expert on wildfire emissions at VU University Amsterdam. More than half of the fires have occurred on carbon-packed peatland — land covered in dense layers of decayed organic matter, which produces thick, acrid smoke when it burns.
Together, they’ve generated an estimated 600 million tons of greenhouse gases, he wrote on the Global Fire Emissions Database — about as much as Germany emits in a year.
What are countries doing about it?
Indonesia has deployed 14 helicopters to douse flames in Sumatra and Kalimantan, and has begun encouraging plantations to adopt more environmentally friendly agricultural techniques on peatlands.
Early this month, the country’s government — after repeatedly insisting that it could take care of the fires on its own — agreed to accept offers of personnel and equipment from Singapore, Malaysia, Russia and Japan to help douse the infernos. Singapore is also doing its bit: this year, the country began allowing legislators to prosecute companies — both local and foreign — that are involved in causing the fires.
"We have done the best we can,” the head of Indonesia's disaster agency, Willem Rampangilei, told reporters in early October. "It is understandable if other countries are upset, but we Indonesians are more upset."
And yet...
However, the Indonesian government has come under fire for not doing more to put the problem to rest.
In late September, about 150 protesters from 10 student and nonprofit groups gathered in Palangka Raya, in Central Kalimantan province, to protest what they described as official inaction. “We want disaster management teams to be prepared in advance in order to safeguard people’s health,” Ali Wardana, one of the protest leaders, told the Singaporean broadcaster ChannelNewsAsia. “And we want sanctions against those who burn the land for profit.”
Source from : Los Angeles Times
Contact Reporter Asia Environmental Issues
Octerber 21, 2015 2.39PM | Reporting from BeiJing
A toxic haze has repeatedly wafted over huge swaths of Southeast Asia in the last month, causing school closures, grounded flights, canceled events and widespread concern about public health risks across the region. Here’s what you need to know about the Great Haze of 2015.
Nearly 100,000 fires are burning, setting up what looks to be the worst fire year in the region since 2006. The carbon emissions from the blazes have now surpassed those of the entire United States — the world’s second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases — on 26 out of 44 days since September, according to a report by the World Resources Institute.
That’s because about half the fires are in peatland areas — concentrated mainly in South Sumatra, South and Central Kalimantan, and Papua — that are among Earth’s biggest carbon storehouses.
Compared with ordinary fires, peat fires can emit up to 10 times more methane, a greenhouse gas whose impact on climate change is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The immediate effects on health are even more worrying.
What’s going on?
Every dry season, parts of Indonesia’s Sumatra, Kalimantan and Papua areas are reduced to smoking, burned-out landscapes, as palm oil and paper-and-pulp plantation farmers burn forests to cheaply clear agricultural land.
The upshot is a whole lot of smoke — enough to create a billowy haze which, since late September, has engulfed swaths of Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, southern Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and the Philippines.
On Monday night, in parts of Singapore, one of the world’s most fastidious cities, readings of PM2.5 — particulate matter small enough to enter the bloodstream — soared to 471, shrouding the city in a deep grey smog that called to mind industrial centers like Beijing.
How bad is it, really?
It’s bad. Aside from posing a clear public health hazard — the World Health Organization estimated last May that 7 million deaths a year were linked to air pollution — the haze has put a major damper on the daily lives of millions.
Singapore canceled the 2015 FINA Swimming World Cup, and Malaysia canceled the Kuala Lumpur marathon. As monsoon winds blew the haze northeast from Indonesia, officials on the Philippine island of Cebu grounded flights due to low visibility.
The Malaysian government has advised asthma sufferers to remain indoors and ordered temporary school closures across four states and in the capital, Kuala Lumpur. In early September, an Indonesian government ministry declared a state of emergency across six provinces. Some of the country’s pharmacies have started selling bottled oxygen.
Has this happened before?
The haze has been a periodic event since the 1970s. Yet this year, a particularly dry autumn in Indonesia, brought on by the El Nino weather event, has made the haze one of the worst on record — about as bad as in 2006, when NASA satellite images showed the smoky clouds extending all the way to South Korea.
What is this doing to the environment?
Nearly 100,000 fires have been detected in Indonesia this year, according to Guido van der Werf, an expert on wildfire emissions at VU University Amsterdam. More than half of the fires have occurred on carbon-packed peatland — land covered in dense layers of decayed organic matter, which produces thick, acrid smoke when it burns.
Together, they’ve generated an estimated 600 million tons of greenhouse gases, he wrote on the Global Fire Emissions Database — about as much as Germany emits in a year.
What are countries doing about it?
Indonesia has deployed 14 helicopters to douse flames in Sumatra and Kalimantan, and has begun encouraging plantations to adopt more environmentally friendly agricultural techniques on peatlands.
Early this month, the country’s government — after repeatedly insisting that it could take care of the fires on its own — agreed to accept offers of personnel and equipment from Singapore, Malaysia, Russia and Japan to help douse the infernos. Singapore is also doing its bit: this year, the country began allowing legislators to prosecute companies — both local and foreign — that are involved in causing the fires.
"We have done the best we can,” the head of Indonesia's disaster agency, Willem Rampangilei, told reporters in early October. "It is understandable if other countries are upset, but we Indonesians are more upset."
And yet...
However, the Indonesian government has come under fire for not doing more to put the problem to rest.
In late September, about 150 protesters from 10 student and nonprofit groups gathered in Palangka Raya, in Central Kalimantan province, to protest what they described as official inaction. “We want disaster management teams to be prepared in advance in order to safeguard people’s health,” Ali Wardana, one of the protest leaders, told the Singaporean broadcaster ChannelNewsAsia. “And we want sanctions against those who burn the land for profit.”
Source from : Los Angeles Times
Thursday, October 15, 2015
Monday, October 12, 2015
21 Tips to Release Self-Neglect and Love Yourself in Action
By Tess Marshall
“To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
The most important decision of your life, the one that will affect every other decision you make, is the commitment to love and accept yourself. It directly affects the quality of your relationships, your work, your free time, your faith, and your future.
Why then is this so difficult to do?
I grew up with nine siblings. I had two older brothers, three older sisters, three younger sisters, and a younger brother.
I never fit in. My sisters were tall and thin with beautiful, long, lush hair. By eleven years old, I was short and very curvy. My hair was fine, thin, and wild.
For the most part, my siblings did as they were told. I was outspoken, out of control, and rebellious.
I wore my sister’s hand-me-down school uniforms. I rolled up the hems on the skirts and popped buttons on the blouses. My look was unkempt.
I was teased and bullied at home and at school. Yet I didn’t go quietly into the night. I fought for my place in my family. To protect myself, I developed a good punch and grew a sharp tongue.
I was twenty-seven years old and married with four children when I became desperate enough to seek out my first therapist. I felt alone, stuck, and unlovable. I was determined to change.
After six months of working through my childhood issues, old thoughts, beliefs, and events, I felt alive again. It was like stripping off several layers of paint from an antique piece of furniture. I found myself restored to my original beauty.
We’re taught by society that our worth is found in the idols of our culture—technology, status, youth, sex, power, money, attractiveness, and romantic relationships.
If you base your self worth on the external world, you’ll never be capable of self-love.
Your inner critic will flood you with thoughts of, “I’m not enough, I don’t have enough, and I don’t do enough.”
Feelings of lack are never-ending. Every time a goal is reached or you possess the next big thing, your ego will move the line.
Feeling worthy requires you to see yourself with fresh eyes of self-awareness and love. Acceptance and love must come from within.
You don’t have to be different to be worthy. Your worth is in your true nature, a core of love and inner goodness. You are a beautiful light. You are love. We can bury our magnificence, but it’s impossible to destroy.
Loving ourselves isn’t a one time event. It’s an endless, ongoing process.
It begins with you, enfolding yourself in your own affection and appreciation.
Read on for steps to discover your worth and enfold yourself in affection and appreciation.
1. Begin your day with love (not technology). Remind yourself of your worthiness before getting out of bed. Breathe in love and breathe out love. Enfold yourself in light. Saturate your being in love.
2. Take time to meditate and journal. Spend time focusing inward daily. Begin with five minutes of meditation and five minutes of journaling each morning. Gradually increase this time.
3. Talk yourself happy. Use affirmations to train your mind to become more positive. Put a wrist band on your right wrist. When you’re participating in self-abuse of any form, move the band to your left wrist.
4. Get emotionally honest. Let go of numbing your feelings. Shopping, eating, and drinking are examples of avoiding discomfort, sadness, and pain. Mindfully breathe your way through your feelings and emotions.
5. Expand your interests. Try something new. Learn a language. Go places you’ve never been. Do things you haven’t done before. You have a right to an awesome life.
6. Enjoy life enhancing activities. Find exercise you like. Discover healthy foods that are good for you. Turn off technology for a day and spend time doing things that make you feel alive.
7. Become willing to surrender. Breathe, relax, and let go. You can never see the whole picture. You don’t know what anything is for. Stop fighting against yourself by thinking and desiring people and events in your life should be different. Your plan may be different from your soul’s intentions.
8. Work on personal and spiritual development. Be willing to surrender and grow. Life is a journey. We are here to learn and love on a deeper level. Take penguin steps and life becomes difficult. One step at a time is enough to proceed forward.
9. Own your potential. Love yourself enough to believe in the limitless opportunities available to you. Take action and create a beautiful life for yourself.
10. Be patient with yourself. Let go of urgency and fear. Relax and transform striving into thriving. Trust in yourself, do good work, and the Universe will reward you.
11. Live in appreciation. Train your mind to be grateful. Appreciate your talents, beauty, and brilliance. Love your imperfectly perfect self.
12. Be guided by your intuition. All answers come from within. Look for signs and pay attention to your gut feelings. You’ll hear two inner voices when you need to make a decision. The quiet voice is your higher self; the loud voice is your ego. Always go with the quieter voice.
13. Do what honors and respects you. Don’t participate in activities that bring you down. Don’t allow toxic people in your life. Love everyone, but be discerning on who you allow into your life.
14. Accept uncertainty. Suffering comes from living in the pain of the past or the fear of the future. Put your attention on the present moment and be at peace.
15. Forgive yourself. Learn from your mistakes and go forward. Use this affirmation, “I forgive myself for judging myself for __________ (fill in the blank i.e.: for getting sick, for acting out, for not doing your best.)
16. Discover the power of fun. Self-love requires time to relax, play, and create face-to-face interaction with others. Our fast-paced world creates a goal setting, competitive craziness that doesn’t leave room for play. Dr. Stuart Brow says, “The opposite of play isn’t work, it is depression.”
17. Be real. Speak up and speak out. Allow yourself to be seen, known, and heard. Get comfortable with intimacy (in-to-me-see).
18. Focus on the positive. Go to your heart and dwell on and praise yourself for what you get right in all areas.
19. Become aware of self neglect and rejection. Become conscious of your choices. Ask yourself several times throughout the day, “Does this choice honor me?”
20. Imagine what your life would look like if you believed in your worth. Dedicate your life to loving you. Make it your main event.
21. Seek professional help. Self-rejection and neglect is painful. You deserve to be happy. You have a right to be accepted and loved. If necessary, seek help from a support group, counselor, or coach. It’s the best investment you can make.
Because we are all interconnected, when I love me, I also love you. Together through our love, we can heal ourselves, each other, and the world. Love is our purpose, our true calling. It begins with and within each of us.
Source from: tinybuddha
“To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
The most important decision of your life, the one that will affect every other decision you make, is the commitment to love and accept yourself. It directly affects the quality of your relationships, your work, your free time, your faith, and your future.
Why then is this so difficult to do?
Your Family of Origin
I grew up with nine siblings. I had two older brothers, three older sisters, three younger sisters, and a younger brother.
I never fit in. My sisters were tall and thin with beautiful, long, lush hair. By eleven years old, I was short and very curvy. My hair was fine, thin, and wild.
For the most part, my siblings did as they were told. I was outspoken, out of control, and rebellious.
I wore my sister’s hand-me-down school uniforms. I rolled up the hems on the skirts and popped buttons on the blouses. My look was unkempt.
I was teased and bullied at home and at school. Yet I didn’t go quietly into the night. I fought for my place in my family. To protect myself, I developed a good punch and grew a sharp tongue.
I was twenty-seven years old and married with four children when I became desperate enough to seek out my first therapist. I felt alone, stuck, and unlovable. I was determined to change.
After six months of working through my childhood issues, old thoughts, beliefs, and events, I felt alive again. It was like stripping off several layers of paint from an antique piece of furniture. I found myself restored to my original beauty.
Cultural Influences
We’re taught by society that our worth is found in the idols of our culture—technology, status, youth, sex, power, money, attractiveness, and romantic relationships.
If you base your self worth on the external world, you’ll never be capable of self-love.
Your inner critic will flood you with thoughts of, “I’m not enough, I don’t have enough, and I don’t do enough.”
Feelings of lack are never-ending. Every time a goal is reached or you possess the next big thing, your ego will move the line.
Shift Your Self-Perception
Feeling worthy requires you to see yourself with fresh eyes of self-awareness and love. Acceptance and love must come from within.
You don’t have to be different to be worthy. Your worth is in your true nature, a core of love and inner goodness. You are a beautiful light. You are love. We can bury our magnificence, but it’s impossible to destroy.
Loving ourselves isn’t a one time event. It’s an endless, ongoing process.
It begins with you, enfolding yourself in your own affection and appreciation.
Read on for steps to discover your worth and enfold yourself in affection and appreciation.
1. Begin your day with love (not technology). Remind yourself of your worthiness before getting out of bed. Breathe in love and breathe out love. Enfold yourself in light. Saturate your being in love.
2. Take time to meditate and journal. Spend time focusing inward daily. Begin with five minutes of meditation and five minutes of journaling each morning. Gradually increase this time.
3. Talk yourself happy. Use affirmations to train your mind to become more positive. Put a wrist band on your right wrist. When you’re participating in self-abuse of any form, move the band to your left wrist.
4. Get emotionally honest. Let go of numbing your feelings. Shopping, eating, and drinking are examples of avoiding discomfort, sadness, and pain. Mindfully breathe your way through your feelings and emotions.
5. Expand your interests. Try something new. Learn a language. Go places you’ve never been. Do things you haven’t done before. You have a right to an awesome life.
6. Enjoy life enhancing activities. Find exercise you like. Discover healthy foods that are good for you. Turn off technology for a day and spend time doing things that make you feel alive.
7. Become willing to surrender. Breathe, relax, and let go. You can never see the whole picture. You don’t know what anything is for. Stop fighting against yourself by thinking and desiring people and events in your life should be different. Your plan may be different from your soul’s intentions.
8. Work on personal and spiritual development. Be willing to surrender and grow. Life is a journey. We are here to learn and love on a deeper level. Take penguin steps and life becomes difficult. One step at a time is enough to proceed forward.
9. Own your potential. Love yourself enough to believe in the limitless opportunities available to you. Take action and create a beautiful life for yourself.
10. Be patient with yourself. Let go of urgency and fear. Relax and transform striving into thriving. Trust in yourself, do good work, and the Universe will reward you.
11. Live in appreciation. Train your mind to be grateful. Appreciate your talents, beauty, and brilliance. Love your imperfectly perfect self.
12. Be guided by your intuition. All answers come from within. Look for signs and pay attention to your gut feelings. You’ll hear two inner voices when you need to make a decision. The quiet voice is your higher self; the loud voice is your ego. Always go with the quieter voice.
13. Do what honors and respects you. Don’t participate in activities that bring you down. Don’t allow toxic people in your life. Love everyone, but be discerning on who you allow into your life.
14. Accept uncertainty. Suffering comes from living in the pain of the past or the fear of the future. Put your attention on the present moment and be at peace.
15. Forgive yourself. Learn from your mistakes and go forward. Use this affirmation, “I forgive myself for judging myself for __________ (fill in the blank i.e.: for getting sick, for acting out, for not doing your best.)
16. Discover the power of fun. Self-love requires time to relax, play, and create face-to-face interaction with others. Our fast-paced world creates a goal setting, competitive craziness that doesn’t leave room for play. Dr. Stuart Brow says, “The opposite of play isn’t work, it is depression.”
17. Be real. Speak up and speak out. Allow yourself to be seen, known, and heard. Get comfortable with intimacy (in-to-me-see).
18. Focus on the positive. Go to your heart and dwell on and praise yourself for what you get right in all areas.
19. Become aware of self neglect and rejection. Become conscious of your choices. Ask yourself several times throughout the day, “Does this choice honor me?”
20. Imagine what your life would look like if you believed in your worth. Dedicate your life to loving you. Make it your main event.
21. Seek professional help. Self-rejection and neglect is painful. You deserve to be happy. You have a right to be accepted and loved. If necessary, seek help from a support group, counselor, or coach. It’s the best investment you can make.
Because we are all interconnected, when I love me, I also love you. Together through our love, we can heal ourselves, each other, and the world. Love is our purpose, our true calling. It begins with and within each of us.
Source from: tinybuddha
Thursday, October 8, 2015
如何自我寬恕
如何自我寬恕
原諒自己遠比原諒別人要困難得多。當你擔負著過去之事的內疚感，這種束縛往往會嚴重消極淹沒你自己，導致永不停息、無處不在的痛苦感覺。原諒自己是讓生活繼續的重要行為，同時讓你釋放過去。這也是保護你健康和幸福的方式。這裡有些關於如何原諒你自己的建議。
步驟
1. 練習接受自我。做你自己並不需要寬恕。寬恕自己要定位出讓你難受的事情，而跟你這個人無關。作為寬恕的一個方法，自我接受讓你認識到自己是一個好人，只是做錯了事。這不意味這你可以忽視錯誤，或者不再提高自己，而意味著儘管有那些因素，你還是該重視自己，停止讓你的錯誤絆住你前進的步伐。
2. 理解寬恕的重要性。生活在無法原諒自己之下需要很多的力量。你會常常被你脆弱的恐懼吞噬，帶著痛苦的來源被憤怒焚燒，並且經常性生活在悲傷、痛苦和愧疚中。這樣的力量應該要更好地被使用，這樣你的創造力和能力才能得以施展，而不是展現消極的那一面。寬恕同樣讓你活在現在，而不是活在過去，意思是你可以懷抱新的目標，把焦點放在改變、提高和豐富經驗上，走向未來，而不是因過去的痛苦躊躇不前。
3. 想一想不原諒自己所造成的挑戰。你不僅讓自己一直停留在過去，而且還讓你的情緒和健康付出巨大代價。無法原諒來源於憤怒和怨恨，這兩種情緒可以肆虐你的健康。大量的研究表明，停留在不斷憤怒中的人，比那些學會原諒自己和他人的人更容易引發疾病。
4. 接受自己的情緒。掙扎的一部分常常是因為無法接受你正體會著諸如憤怒、害怕、怨恨和脆弱這樣的情緒。不要試圖逃避這些消極情緒，要接受它們，當成你所缺乏的自我原諒的燃料。出現了問題，也就已經準備好解決問題。
5. 反思你為什麼給自己比其他人更高的標準。完美主義可以使你為自己的行為保持過高的標準，一個你不會要求別人的標準。如果你的完美主義導致你對自己太苛刻，那麼，自我寬恕對你來說是很難做到的，因為這看起來就像是接受不符合標準的自己。使用瑪莎•貝克稱為「歡迎缺陷」的方法，不要讓自己陷入這種惡性循環思維。貝克聲稱「歡迎缺陷是完成完美主義承諾的，但永遠無法實現的事情的方法。」它讓你接受這個事實：所有人都是不完美的，你是人，所以並不完美。
6. 放下其他人對你的期望。如果你被困在一個螺旋式的自我厭惡中，因為那些對你說過的話，所以從來感覺自己不夠好，那麼，自我寬恕是必不可少的。你無法控制別人做什麼、說什麼，而很多事情都是在無意識中說出來和做出來的，動機通常是出於其他人自己的缺點。生活在自我厭惡里，因為你感覺辜負了別人的期望，這都是基於你太重視別人混淆的感受。原諒那個試圖按照別人的期望生活的自己，並開始根據自己的目標做必要的變化。
7. 不要再懲罰自己。這是一種常見的誤解，認為寬恕等於遺忘或縱容。這種誤解可能會導致一個人覺得原諒自己是不正確的，因為在這樣做的過程中，它類似於遺忘或縱容過去的錯誤行為。如果這是阻止你原諒自己的因素，要牢記，寬恕是一個過程，在這個過程中你仍然記得發生了什麼事，你不會立刻縱容將「錯誤」的東西變成「正確」的。
8. 想一想如果你能釋放自己、使之開花結果，那麼你的生活會如何得到改善。作為自我寬恕的一部分，簡單下決心原諒自己是遠遠不夠的。做一些事情來肯定你寬恕的過程，會幫助你意識到你的自我寬恕，同時給你一種新的目標感。一些你可能想要考慮的事情包括：
9. 將寬恕當成一個旅程，而不是目的。如果你以為自己無法「達到」自我寬恕，你可能就會破壞你開始寬恕之旅的機會。寬恕是一個持續的過程，這個意識會對你有幫助，你會遇到好或不好的日子，得到生活中大部分的感受和經驗。你可能會覺得你已經達到了一個寬恕的點，事情發生使你覺得那都是無用功，你又回來了原點，憤怒和煩惱包圍著你。最好的辦法是容許錯誤發生，將它們當作小小的挫折，在其他方面更應原諒自己。此外，要意識到寬恕沒有時間表，相反，你可以儘力為這個過程做準備的，並且開始這個過程：
小提示
警告
原諒自己遠比原諒別人要困難得多。當你擔負著過去之事的內疚感，這種束縛往往會嚴重消極淹沒你自己，導致永不停息、無處不在的痛苦感覺。原諒自己是讓生活繼續的重要行為，同時讓你釋放過去。這也是保護你健康和幸福的方式。這裡有些關於如何原諒你自己的建議。
步驟
1. 練習接受自我。做你自己並不需要寬恕。寬恕自己要定位出讓你難受的事情，而跟你這個人無關。作為寬恕的一個方法，自我接受讓你認識到自己是一個好人，只是做錯了事。這不意味這你可以忽視錯誤，或者不再提高自己，而意味著儘管有那些因素，你還是該重視自己，停止讓你的錯誤絆住你前進的步伐。
- 愛自己，允許自己癒合傷口。
- 多笑一些，這給你更多自信，讓你不再把事情想得太嚴重。
2. 理解寬恕的重要性。生活在無法原諒自己之下需要很多的力量。你會常常被你脆弱的恐懼吞噬，帶著痛苦的來源被憤怒焚燒，並且經常性生活在悲傷、痛苦和愧疚中。這樣的力量應該要更好地被使用，這樣你的創造力和能力才能得以施展，而不是展現消極的那一面。寬恕同樣讓你活在現在，而不是活在過去，意思是你可以懷抱新的目標，把焦點放在改變、提高和豐富經驗上，走向未來，而不是因過去的痛苦躊躇不前。
- 有些人害怕原諒自己，因為他們害怕失去建立在憤怒、怨恨和弱點之上的自我意識。在這種情況下，問問自己，這種憤怒是否容易傷害到你渴望向世界展現那一個你，使之陷入被動。這種思考模式帶來的安全感，真的值得你所付出的努力和傷害嗎？最好留點時間感受不安全的感覺，讓你再次找到自己前進的方式，而不是繼續在憤怒中度過一生。
- 用樂觀的心態看待原諒。如果你擔心原諒意味著你不應該體會強烈的感受，如後悔和憤怒，那麼你可以試著將這個看成體會強烈積極感受的機會，比如喜悅、慷慨和信念。思考你會得到的，而不是你會失去的，這樣會讓你保持樂觀，同時使消極的情緒最小化。
3. 想一想不原諒自己所造成的挑戰。你不僅讓自己一直停留在過去，而且還讓你的情緒和健康付出巨大代價。無法原諒來源於憤怒和怨恨，這兩種情緒可以肆虐你的健康。大量的研究表明，停留在不斷憤怒中的人，比那些學會原諒自己和他人的人更容易引發疾病。
- 一定要記住，原諒並不等於忘記。你有權通過經驗和由經驗引導去學習。這裡強調的是放下伴隨記憶的憤恨和自找的嚴責。
4. 接受自己的情緒。掙扎的一部分常常是因為無法接受你正體會著諸如憤怒、害怕、怨恨和脆弱這樣的情緒。不要試圖逃避這些消極情緒，要接受它們，當成你所缺乏的自我原諒的燃料。出現了問題，也就已經準備好解決問題。
5. 反思你為什麼給自己比其他人更高的標準。完美主義可以使你為自己的行為保持過高的標準，一個你不會要求別人的標準。如果你的完美主義導致你對自己太苛刻，那麼，自我寬恕對你來說是很難做到的，因為這看起來就像是接受不符合標準的自己。使用瑪莎•貝克稱為「歡迎缺陷」的方法，不要讓自己陷入這種惡性循環思維。貝克聲稱「歡迎缺陷是完成完美主義承諾的，但永遠無法實現的事情的方法。」它讓你接受這個事實：所有人都是不完美的，你是人，所以並不完美。
- 如果你已經在完美主義中掙扎，可以考慮諮詢或用治療法減少其對你生活的影響。閱讀有關如何控制完美主義的文章，以找到更多提示。
6. 放下其他人對你的期望。如果你被困在一個螺旋式的自我厭惡中，因為那些對你說過的話，所以從來感覺自己不夠好，那麼，自我寬恕是必不可少的。你無法控制別人做什麼、說什麼，而很多事情都是在無意識中說出來和做出來的，動機通常是出於其他人自己的缺點。生活在自我厭惡里，因為你感覺辜負了別人的期望，這都是基於你太重視別人混淆的感受。原諒那個試圖按照別人的期望生活的自己，並開始根據自己的目標做必要的變化。
- 對於那些為難你的人，記住也有人在為難他們。通過善待自己打破這個鏈條，不要試圖按他人的期望生活。
- 不管別人如何不公平指著你，要意識到，如果他們做了錯事或者無法滿足自己完美主義的想法，他們其實也是在極大為難自己。在這一刻記住你經歷過的，以及你為什麼不願意再過那樣的生活。
7. 不要再懲罰自己。這是一種常見的誤解，認為寬恕等於遺忘或縱容。這種誤解可能會導致一個人覺得原諒自己是不正確的，因為在這樣做的過程中，它類似於遺忘或縱容過去的錯誤行為。如果這是阻止你原諒自己的因素，要牢記，寬恕是一個過程，在這個過程中你仍然記得發生了什麼事，你不會立刻縱容將「錯誤」的東西變成「正確」的。
- 「我並不驕傲於我所做的事（或者我如何貶低自己），但為了我的健康、幸福和其他身邊的人，我要繼續前進。」說出這句話是可以的。肯定這一點是有益的，讓你打破那已經陷入的自我傷害的循環，因為你能公然承認錯誤的事情，並且意圖從現在開始糾正錯誤。
8. 想一想如果你能釋放自己、使之開花結果，那麼你的生活會如何得到改善。作為自我寬恕的一部分，簡單下決心原諒自己是遠遠不夠的。做一些事情來肯定你寬恕的過程，會幫助你意識到你的自我寬恕，同時給你一種新的目標感。一些你可能想要考慮的事情包括：
- 沉思。沉思是找到內心平靜、靈魂、自覺和身體上放鬆的理想方式。這讓你花時間出走，聆聽和感受那一刻，並且觸碰自己的內心世界。定期這樣做，會讓你更快樂，並且增強自我意識。
- 肯定你的自我價值。定期提醒自己，你是有價值、美好之人，每當消極的想法出現，可簡單說：「我寬恕自己」或者「我不會再讓憤怒吞噬我」。
- 寫日記。寫下你原諒自己的過程。有寫作的空間來分享你的感受，沒有人會讀到，這是自我解放和啟發的方式，去衝破你生活中消極的方法。
- 尋求治療。如果你試過努力克服憤怒、怨恨和其它恐懼和超出控制的情緒，但你還在掙扎，可以聯繫一位能引導你到一個更好狀態的治療師。如果治療幫不了你，至少找能幫助你肯定自我價值的朋友交談。
- 如果你有信仰，用這些教條來支撐自己。
9. 將寬恕當成一個旅程，而不是目的。如果你以為自己無法「達到」自我寬恕，你可能就會破壞你開始寬恕之旅的機會。寬恕是一個持續的過程，這個意識會對你有幫助，你會遇到好或不好的日子，得到生活中大部分的感受和經驗。你可能會覺得你已經達到了一個寬恕的點，事情發生使你覺得那都是無用功，你又回來了原點，憤怒和煩惱包圍著你。最好的辦法是容許錯誤發生，將它們當作小小的挫折，在其他方面更應原諒自己。此外，要意識到寬恕沒有時間表，相反，你可以儘力為這個過程做準備的，並且開始這個過程：
- 自我寬恕的漸進階段。從重視自己開始，下定決心不再因從前而繼續纏繞現在的你，也不再讓從前引導你現在的生活。
- 從你的過去中吸取教訓，但同時也要重視自己（閱讀以上練習自我接受的步驟）。
- 經常去享受積極的經歷，不要設法貶低這些經歷。
- 感恩你擁有的——好的感情、房子、家庭、教育、能力、興趣、愛好、寵物、健康等等。尋找你生活中好的一面。
- 自我同情。每當出現消極的責備，將你的想法轉移到更充實、更有關注價值的事情上。
- 如果牽涉其他人，而你還沒有跟人道歉的，或者你沒有真誠道歉的，那麼就去道歉吧。只有在你改變你消極的觀點，而且不會傷害別人時才這樣做。
小提示
- 原諒自己和別人並不意味著過去就被遺忘了。這只是寬恕的意思，但是，記憶仍舊存在。悲傷的循環也是一樣的。
- 想想你過去是如何原諒他人的。從這些經歷中學習，將它們用於你自己的情況下。這方面的益處在於讓你知道你有寬恕的能力，你只是需要將這種寬恕用於正確的方向。
- 你內心壓力越大，你對自己造成的傷害就更大。有時壓力可以引發你的憤怒，傷害自己和周圍的人，但如果你能原諒自己，這些憤怒將會消失，壞的東西也將消失。結果是你能更集中於積極的一面，而不是消極的。
- 每當你感到內疚，可以念一遍萊斯•布朗的話，「原諒自己的不足，原諒自己犯下的錯，重新出發吧。」這會在你做了錯事時幫到你。
- 生活在繼續，原諒和遺忘吧。
- 你的錯誤不能定義你這個人。要相信你是個很棒的人。想一想那些普通人/好人所犯的驚人錯誤，並且從中學習。你的錯誤甚至都沒有那麼嚴重！
- 買一個壓力玩具。當你感覺內疚時，玩一玩這個玩具。
- 你過去的錯誤很大程度上決定了現在的你。因此，不要將它們當作是錯誤，而是當成指導。
- 我們生活中發生的好事和壞事決定了我們是怎樣的人，我們所做的好事和壞事也一樣。我們應對負面事件的方式與應對喜事是同樣重要的。一個人總是鑽牛角尖、喜歡將負面事件放大的人，比一個將壞事看成孤立事件、不影響整體人格的人更容易感覺憤怒、怨恨、覺得未來沒有希望。
警告
- 不要強迫自己跟那些讓你想起過去不好事情的人一起。那些刺激你、貶低你或者輕視你的人，那些不考慮你弱點之人最好就遠離你的生活。
- 寬恕是最難形成的才能，但也是至關重要的。了解你自身寬恕的能力——寬恕自己和別人，對你的個人成長是很好的，這也是你為寬恕所付出的努力應得的回報。
- 遠離那些可能破壞你自我完善的人。大多數時候，這些人主要關注於拯救自己的不安全感，看到別人在生活中努力克服消極壓力而倍感威脅。要接受這個事實：原諒自己有時會讓你失去一定的關係，你的消極是這些關係中的這些人對你行使權利的來源。問問自己，你是否寧願繼續不愉快的關係，還是要向前邁進，再次與健康之人連接起來。
- 不要談論你的過錯以及你在別人身邊是怎樣差勁的人。你會同樣在他們心中留下一樣的意識的。讓治療來幫助你消除這些負面想法，並且將這些想法趕回潘多拉的盒子中。
Source from: wikiHow
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Sunday, October 4, 2015
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Basal Body Temperature (BBT)
Basal body temperature (BBT) is the lowest body temperature attained during rest (usually during sleep). It is usually estimated by a temperature measurement immediately after awakening and before any physical activity has been undertaken. This will lead to a somewhat higher value than the true BBT (see Fig. 1). For more accurate results, it is determined by using internally worn temperature loggers.[2] In women, ovulation causes an increase of one-half to one degree Fahrenheit (one-quarter to one-half degree Celsius) in BBT; monitoring of BBTs is one way of estimating the day of ovulation. The tendency of a woman to have lower temperatures before ovulation, and higher temperatures afterwards, is known as a biphasic pattern. Charting of this pattern may be used as a component of fertility awareness. The BBT of men is comparable to the BBT of women in their follicular phase.[3]
Hormonal causes of biphasic patterns
The higher levels of estrogen present during the pre-ovulatory (follicular) phase of the menstrual cycle lower BBTs. The higher levels of progesterone released by the corpus luteum after ovulation raise BBTs. The rise in temperatures can most commonly be seen the day after ovulation, but this varies and BBTs can only be used to estimate ovulation within a three-day range.[4]
If pregnancy does not occur, the disintegration of the corpus luteum causes a drop in BBTs that roughly coincides with the onset of the next menstruation. If pregnancy does occur, the corpus luteum continues to function (and maintain high BBTs) for the first trimester of the pregnancy. After the first trimester, the woman's body temperature drops to her pre-ovulatory normal as the placenta takes over functions previously performed by the corpus luteum.
Very rarely, the corpus luteum may form a cyst. A corpus luteum cyst will cause BBTs to stay elevated and prevent menstruation from occurring until it resolves, which could take weeks or months.
While trying to conceive
Regular menstrual cycles are often taken as evidence that a woman is ovulating normally, and irregular cycles is evidence she is not. However, many women with irregular cycles do ovulate normally, and some with regular cycles are actually anovulatory or have a luteal phase defect. Records of basal body temperature can be used to accurately determine if a woman is ovulating, and if the length of the post-ovulatory (luteal) phase of her menstrual cycle is sufficient to sustain a pregnancy. Some fertility computers and software, such as Lady-Comp, can help a woman to determine these factors. The rise in basal temperature occurs 2–3 days after ovulation. Once it rises, an egg has been released.[5]
Pregnancy tests are not accurate until 2–3 weeks after ovulation. Knowing an estimated date of ovulation can prevent a woman from getting false negative results due to testing too early. Also, 18 consecutive days of elevated temperatures means a woman is almost certainly pregnant.[6]
Tracking basal body temperatures is a more accurate method of estimating gestational age than tracking menstrual periods.[7]
While avoiding pregnancy
Charting of basal body temperatures is used in some methods of fertility awareness, and may be used to determine the onset of post-ovulatory infertility. However, BBTs only show when ovulation has occurred; they do not predict ovulation. Normal sperm life is up to seven to ten days,[8] making prediction of ovulation several days in advance necessary for avoiding pregnancy.
Source from: Wikipedia
Fig. 1 Diurnal variation in body temperature, ranging from about 37.5 °C from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and falling to about 36.4 °C from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m.
Fig. 2 Example of a basal body temperature chart. Menstruation begins on day 1. The rise in temperature between days 14 and 18 are the indication of ovulation. Temperature was taken orally with a regular fever thermometer. Temperature reading is very sensitive to breaks in the regular sleep-rhythm (e.g. "sleeping in" on day 25 )
Hormonal causes of biphasic patterns
The higher levels of estrogen present during the pre-ovulatory (follicular) phase of the menstrual cycle lower BBTs. The higher levels of progesterone released by the corpus luteum after ovulation raise BBTs. The rise in temperatures can most commonly be seen the day after ovulation, but this varies and BBTs can only be used to estimate ovulation within a three-day range.[4]
If pregnancy does not occur, the disintegration of the corpus luteum causes a drop in BBTs that roughly coincides with the onset of the next menstruation. If pregnancy does occur, the corpus luteum continues to function (and maintain high BBTs) for the first trimester of the pregnancy. After the first trimester, the woman's body temperature drops to her pre-ovulatory normal as the placenta takes over functions previously performed by the corpus luteum.
Very rarely, the corpus luteum may form a cyst. A corpus luteum cyst will cause BBTs to stay elevated and prevent menstruation from occurring until it resolves, which could take weeks or months.
While trying to conceive
Regular menstrual cycles are often taken as evidence that a woman is ovulating normally, and irregular cycles is evidence she is not. However, many women with irregular cycles do ovulate normally, and some with regular cycles are actually anovulatory or have a luteal phase defect. Records of basal body temperature can be used to accurately determine if a woman is ovulating, and if the length of the post-ovulatory (luteal) phase of her menstrual cycle is sufficient to sustain a pregnancy. Some fertility computers and software, such as Lady-Comp, can help a woman to determine these factors. The rise in basal temperature occurs 2–3 days after ovulation. Once it rises, an egg has been released.[5]
Pregnancy tests are not accurate until 2–3 weeks after ovulation. Knowing an estimated date of ovulation can prevent a woman from getting false negative results due to testing too early. Also, 18 consecutive days of elevated temperatures means a woman is almost certainly pregnant.[6]
Tracking basal body temperatures is a more accurate method of estimating gestational age than tracking menstrual periods.[7]
While avoiding pregnancy
Charting of basal body temperatures is used in some methods of fertility awareness, and may be used to determine the onset of post-ovulatory infertility. However, BBTs only show when ovulation has occurred; they do not predict ovulation. Normal sperm life is up to seven to ten days,[8] making prediction of ovulation several days in advance necessary for avoiding pregnancy.
Fig. 3 Menstrual cycle
Source from: Wikipedia
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
Ringgit Leads Asia Losses as 1MDB Woes Weigh on Nation's Assets
By Y-Sing Liau
September 28, 2015 — 4:47 PM MYT Updated on September 28, 2015 — 5:21 PM MYT
The ringgit fell for a fifth day as new allegations against a Malaysian state investment company damped demand for the nation’s assets, just as capital is flowing out of emerging markets ahead of a potential U.S. interest-rate increase.
The currency weakened 0.9 percent to 4.4242 a dollar in Kuala Lumpur, after earlier declining to 4.4250, the lowest level since January 1998, according to prices from local banks compiled by Bloomberg. It’s depreciated 15 percent since June 30, headed for the worst quarterly loss since 1997.
1Malaysia Development Bhd. is being probed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation over money laundering, while the U.S. Justice Department is looking into property purchases associated with Prime Minister Najib Razak’s stepson, according to reports this month from the Wall Street Journal and New York Times. The articles added to woes for Najib after an investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission found funds that appeared in his bank accounts were from political donations and not related to 1MDB.
“We have domestic issues that have yet to be resolved so that will continue to put pressure on the ringgit,” said Choong Yin Pheng, senior manager for bonds and economic research at Hong Leong Bank Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur. “There are concerns on the economic and political levels,” while data on Friday showing the U.S. economy expanded more than previously forecast boosted demand for the dollar, she said.
The central bank doesn’t target a specific level for the ringgit and the monetary authority wants to see the currency stabilize, Governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz told reporters in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.
Malaysia’s benchmark stock index retreated 0.4 percent and government bonds fell. The 10-year yield climbed eight basis points to 4.44 percent, according to prices from Bursa Malaysia.
MIDF Amanah Investment Bank Bhd. said in a report on Monday that global funds sold a net 1.3 billion ringgit ($294 million) of Malaysian shares last week. That took outflows in 2015 to 17.7 billion ringgit, surpassing the 6.9 billion ringgit for all of last year, the report said.
Source from : Bloomberg
September 28, 2015 — 4:47 PM MYT Updated on September 28, 2015 — 5:21 PM MYT
- Currency headed for biggest quarterly decline since 1997
- Global funds sold net 1.3 billion ringgit of shares last week
The ringgit fell for a fifth day as new allegations against a Malaysian state investment company damped demand for the nation’s assets, just as capital is flowing out of emerging markets ahead of a potential U.S. interest-rate increase.
The currency weakened 0.9 percent to 4.4242 a dollar in Kuala Lumpur, after earlier declining to 4.4250, the lowest level since January 1998, according to prices from local banks compiled by Bloomberg. It’s depreciated 15 percent since June 30, headed for the worst quarterly loss since 1997.
1Malaysia Development Bhd. is being probed by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation over money laundering, while the U.S. Justice Department is looking into property purchases associated with Prime Minister Najib Razak’s stepson, according to reports this month from the Wall Street Journal and New York Times. The articles added to woes for Najib after an investigation by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission found funds that appeared in his bank accounts were from political donations and not related to 1MDB.
“We have domestic issues that have yet to be resolved so that will continue to put pressure on the ringgit,” said Choong Yin Pheng, senior manager for bonds and economic research at Hong Leong Bank Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur. “There are concerns on the economic and political levels,” while data on Friday showing the U.S. economy expanded more than previously forecast boosted demand for the dollar, she said.
The central bank doesn’t target a specific level for the ringgit and the monetary authority wants to see the currency stabilize, Governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz told reporters in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.
Malaysia’s benchmark stock index retreated 0.4 percent and government bonds fell. The 10-year yield climbed eight basis points to 4.44 percent, according to prices from Bursa Malaysia.
MIDF Amanah Investment Bank Bhd. said in a report on Monday that global funds sold a net 1.3 billion ringgit ($294 million) of Malaysian shares last week. That took outflows in 2015 to 17.7 billion ringgit, surpassing the 6.9 billion ringgit for all of last year, the report said.
Source from : Bloomberg
Monday, September 28, 2015
厂商公会警示‧难顶三“重压” 企业掀裁员风
2015-09-28 07:18
（吉隆坡27日讯）在面对全球经济风暴威胁下，国内又出现令吉剧跌、人民信心不足及消费放缓的恶劣情况，已引发企业界掀起裁员风。
大马厂商及雇主联合会指出，国内三大“重压”不除，裁员的情况将会更恶劣。
他们警示，这一波裁员风才刚刚开始，政府、企业界及民间应作好应对准备。
大马厂商公会甚至建议，在艰辛时刻，雇员或应考虑接受减薪与雇主共渡难关。政府也应考虑降低雇员公积金缴纳率及暂停人力资源发展基金的缴纳。
“目前的局势必须改善，不容忽视。裁员是为了自保。”
虽然国内目前裁员情况还不见显著，不过数据显示，今年1月至7月，市场遭裁员工6547人，其中30%或近2000人来自石油及天然气工业。
在这批被裁退的员工中，还不包括马航和银行界数千名参与自愿遣散计划的员工。
大马雇主联合会执行董事拿督山苏丁接受《南洋商报》专访时说，目前裁员风才刚开始，如果局势不见改善，裁员情况会更恶劣。
他说，雇主所裁员列为“下下策”，除非真的到了走投无路局面，否则是不会选择裁员求存。
山苏丁说，国内失业率低于4%，不过三分之二待业人士为30岁以下年轻人，当中包括大学生。
他说，待业的大学生，再加上有待毕业的大学生，庞大的人数令人感到忧虑。
大马厂商联合会雪兰莪分会主席拿督苏添来认为，在内忧外患处境下，货币汇率持续下滑，国内消费不乐观，关乎人民的信心，所以重建信心为当务之急。
他向《南洋商报》说，政府应该马上通过各种措施，重建人民及投资者的信心。
他说，外国投资者需时消化对我国存在的负面印象，所以当局必须尽快采取实际行动，同时通过各种步骤，刺激国内消费及出口销售。
苏添来也是马来西亚钢铁工业联合会总会长，他说，马来西亚作为贸易国，令吉汇率偏低对国家不利，厂家从外国进口原料进行生产，成本大增。
他说，令吉失去优势，也影响外劳的收入，所以一些领域如建筑、棕油及制造业的外劳决定离开我国，导致这些行业人手短缺。
裁员问题不严重
他说，令吉汇率一直滑落，商家经商成本增加，国人也减少消费，所以形成产量过剩，商家大难临头。
“减低制造成本，减少依赖外国原料，所有能够做的，都已经做了，如果还是无法支撑下去，只好考虑裁员。
“目前裁员问题还不算严重，不过如果眼前一切不利因素没有消除，所引起的骨牌效应，会相当严重。”
Source from: Nanyang
（吉隆坡27日讯）在面对全球经济风暴威胁下，国内又出现令吉剧跌、人民信心不足及消费放缓的恶劣情况，已引发企业界掀起裁员风。
大马厂商及雇主联合会指出，国内三大“重压”不除，裁员的情况将会更恶劣。
他们警示，这一波裁员风才刚刚开始，政府、企业界及民间应作好应对准备。
大马厂商公会甚至建议，在艰辛时刻，雇员或应考虑接受减薪与雇主共渡难关。政府也应考虑降低雇员公积金缴纳率及暂停人力资源发展基金的缴纳。
“目前的局势必须改善，不容忽视。裁员是为了自保。”
虽然国内目前裁员情况还不见显著，不过数据显示，今年1月至7月，市场遭裁员工6547人，其中30%或近2000人来自石油及天然气工业。
在这批被裁退的员工中，还不包括马航和银行界数千名参与自愿遣散计划的员工。
大马雇主联合会执行董事拿督山苏丁接受《南洋商报》专访时说，目前裁员风才刚开始，如果局势不见改善，裁员情况会更恶劣。
他说，雇主所裁员列为“下下策”，除非真的到了走投无路局面，否则是不会选择裁员求存。
山苏丁说，国内失业率低于4%，不过三分之二待业人士为30岁以下年轻人，当中包括大学生。
他说，待业的大学生，再加上有待毕业的大学生，庞大的人数令人感到忧虑。
大马厂商联合会雪兰莪分会主席拿督苏添来认为，在内忧外患处境下，货币汇率持续下滑，国内消费不乐观，关乎人民的信心，所以重建信心为当务之急。
他向《南洋商报》说，政府应该马上通过各种措施，重建人民及投资者的信心。
他说，外国投资者需时消化对我国存在的负面印象，所以当局必须尽快采取实际行动，同时通过各种步骤，刺激国内消费及出口销售。
苏添来也是马来西亚钢铁工业联合会总会长，他说，马来西亚作为贸易国，令吉汇率偏低对国家不利，厂家从外国进口原料进行生产，成本大增。
他说，令吉失去优势，也影响外劳的收入，所以一些领域如建筑、棕油及制造业的外劳决定离开我国，导致这些行业人手短缺。
裁员问题不严重
他说，令吉汇率一直滑落，商家经商成本增加，国人也减少消费，所以形成产量过剩，商家大难临头。
“减低制造成本，减少依赖外国原料，所有能够做的，都已经做了，如果还是无法支撑下去，只好考虑裁员。
“目前裁员问题还不算严重，不过如果眼前一切不利因素没有消除，所引起的骨牌效应，会相当严重。”
Source from: Nanyang
Friday, September 25, 2015
Life Line Association Malaysia (马来西亚生命线协会)
Contact Details:
No. 1-3, 3rd Floor, Jalan Jelatek 1,
Pusat Perniagaan Jelatek, Setiawangsa,
54200 Kuala Lumpur.
7pm-10pm Mon-Fri
2pm-5pm Saturday
Counseling Hotline: 03-4265 7995
Email: counseling@lifeline.org.my
Website: lifeline.org.my
Thursday, September 24, 2015
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
Tuesday, September 22, 2015
DIY Chinese Knot Dragonfly
I enjoy making hadicarf during my free time. These dragonflies are made using Nylon cord thread also known as Chinese knotting thread. I used 1 meter of thread for making each dragonfly. These beautiful dragonflies can be used as keychain or mobile phone decorations.
Here I also attached a video I found in YouTube on how to made the dragonfly. Anyone who is interested can try to make one.
Thursday, September 17, 2015
成本增亏损大‧遣散350人关厂 令吉贬值“逼死”台资
2015-09-17 07:43
独家报道：马规财
峇甲亚兰工业区的奂鑫电线制造厂经不起马币贬值的打击， 宣布关闭！
（双溪大年16日讯）在马币贬值的冲击下，许多制造厂商面对巨大的成本压力，经营25年的双溪大年台资电线制造厂奂鑫有限公司为了避免亏损扩大，无奈宣布关厂，遣散350多名员工。
在双溪大年有另外两家关系企业的奂鑫，日前宣布关闭位于峇甲亚兰工业区的奂鑫工厂。
据了解，总部设在新加坡的奂鑫是由于这几个月马币大幅贬值，造成业务严重亏损，不得已之下决定关厂。
著名OEM及ODM制造商
该公司董事徐明宏在受询时证实，已依照法律程序处理遣散员工事宜，但表示不便发言，未来如何必须等待总公司指示。
奂鑫（Huan Hsin）成立于1980年，创立初期以生产各式种类的电线为主要业务。经过多年来不断的努力与革新，已成为著名的OEM及ODM制造商，并且在新加坡上市。
该公司目前的主要产品为笔记本电脑外壳模块、电子书、卫星导航外壳、打印机、墨盒、笔记本电脑扩充座、LED灯等。
奂鑫公司在马来西亚及中国上海、苏州、常熟、山东、重庆等共拥有十家工厂，员工人数达到18000人。
除了关闭马来西亚其中一家员工350多人的工厂，也计划关闭其它无利可图的工厂。
陈俊男：马币贬值所累 吉打48台商苦撑
吉打州台湾商会会长陈俊男表示，其实不止奂鑫承受马币贬值的压力，吉打州48家台湾厂商都被马币贬值及政局不明朗所累，很多厂商可以说是在苦撑，等待“柳暗花明又一村”。
希望锁定汇率
不过，由于有些台商是从日本进口原料，日元贬值的幅度与马币不相上下，因此打击没有这么大。
据陈俊男透露，目前在马投资的台商约有1750家，多从台湾购置机器设备、原物料及关键零组件，制成成品回销台湾或欧美，造成“投资带动贸易效果”，对我国的经济贡献良多。
但他说，大马政策朝令夕改，行政效率有待改进及治安恶化，造成台商的经营成本增加，如今再面对马币贬值及美元高涨的问题，结束营业实在是不得已的选择。
他希望我国政府可以考虑1998年敦马哈迪医生时代的“固定汇率”
措施，把马币兑美元定在一个合理的价位，让商家减少马币汇率的冲击，方便厂商计算成本，才能持续地经营下去。
飞兆也关工厂
较早前，另一家外资厂商飞兆（Fairchild）也关闭位于槟城州峇六拜的工厂，遣散1000名员工。
据消息来源透露，若经营环境没有改善，分布在吉隆坡、雪兰莪、槟城、森美兰、柔佛、马六甲、霹雳、吉打及沙巴的外资厂商，很可能也相继面对“关厂”的命运！
Source from: 南洋网
Tuesday, September 15, 2015
Minerals, Metals Elements, Noble Gases / 礦物質, 金屬元素, 稀有气体
巨量礦物質 / Macro Minerals
元素
|
Elements
|
符號
/ Symbol
|
鈣
(gài)
|
calcium
|
Ca
|
氯
(lǜ)
|
chlorine
|
Cl
|
鎂
(mĕi)
|
magnesium
|
Mg
|
磷
(lín)
|
phosphorus
|
P
|
鉀
(jiă)
|
potassium
|
K
|
鈉
(nà)
|
sodium
|
Na
|
硫
(liú)
|
sulfur
|
S
|
微量礦物質 / Trace Minerals
元素
|
Elements
|
符號
/ Symbol
|
鉻 (gè)
|
chromium
|
Cr
|
鈷 (gŭ)
|
cobalt
|
Co
|
銅 (tóng)
|
copper
|
Cu
|
氟 (fú)
|
fluorine
|
F
|
碘 (diăn)
|
iodine
|
I
|
鐵 (tiĕ)
|
iron
|
Fe
|
錳 (mĕng)
|
manganese
|
Mn
|
鉬 (mù)
|
molybdenum
|
Mo
|
硒 (xī)
|
selenium
|
Se
|
鋅 (xīn)
|
zinc
|
Zn
|
其他礦物質 / Other Minerals
元素
|
Elements
|
符號
/ Symbol
|
鉍 (bì)
|
bismuth
|
Bi
|
硼 (péng)
|
boron
|
B
|
鎳 (niè)
|
nickel
|
Ni
|
銣 (rú)
|
rubidium
|
Rb
|
硅
(guī)
/ 矽
|
silicon
|
Si
|
鍶 (sī)
|
strontium
|
Sr
|
碲 (dì)
|
tellurium
|
Te
|
鈦 (tài)
|
titanium
|
Ti
|
鎢 (wū)
|
tungsten
|
W
|
釩 (fán)
|
vanadium
|
V
|
非金属元素和稀有气体/ Non-Metal Elements and Noble gases
元素
|
Elements
|
符號
/ Symbol
|
氢
(qīng)
|
hydrogen
|
H
|
硼
(péng)
|
boron
|
B
|
碳 (tàn)
|
carbon
|
C
|
氮 (dàn)
|
nitrogen
|
N
|
氧 (yăng)
|
oxygen
|
O
|
氟
(fú)
|
flourine
|
F
|
硅 (guī)
/ 矽
|
silicon
|
Si
|
磷
(lín)
|
phosphorus
|
P
|
硫 (liú)
|
sulfur
|
S
|
氯 (lǜ)
|
chlorine
|
Cl
|
砷
(shēn)
|
arsenium
|
As
|
硒 (xī)
|
selenium
|
Se
|
溴
(xiù)
|
bromine
|
Br
|
碲 (dì)
|
tellurium
|
Te
|
碘 (diăn)
|
iodine
|
I
|
砹 (ài)
|
astatine
|
At
|
氦 (hài)
|
helium
|
He
|
氖 (năi)
|
neon
|
Ne
|
氩 (yà)
|
argon
|
Ar
|
氪 (kè)
|
krypton
|
Kr
|
氙
(xiān)
|
xenon
|
Xe
|
氡 (dōng)
|
radon
|
Rn
|
金屬元素 / Metal Elements
元素
|
Elements
|
符號
/ Symbol
|
金
(jīn)
|
gold
|
Au
|
銀
(yín)
|
silver
|
Ag
|
銅
(tóng)
|
copper
|
Cu
|
鐵
(tiĕ)
|
iron
|
Fe
|
鋁
(lǚ)
|
aluminium
|
Al
|
鋅
(xīn)
|
zinc
|
Zn
|
銻
(tī)
|
antimony
|
Sb
|
錫
(xī)
|
tin
|
Sn
|
鉛
(qiān)
|
lead
|
Pb
|
汞
(gŏng)
|
mercury
|
Hg
|
鉻
(gè)
|
chromium
|
Cr
|
鈰
(shì)
|
cerium
|
Ce
|
鉍
(bì)
|
bismult
|
Bi
|
鈳
(kē)
/ 鈮
(ní)
|
niobium
|
Nb
|
鎳
(niè)
|
nickel
|
Ni
|
鉑
(bó)
|
platinum
|
Pt
|
鈀
(bă)
|
palladium
|
Pd
|
鉬
(mù)
|
molybdenum
|
Mo
|
銠
(lăo)
|
rhodium
|
Rh
|
鉈
(tā)
|
thallium
|
Tl
|
銥
(yī)
|
tridium
|
Tr
|
鈾
(yóu)
|
uranium
|
U
|
鎢
(wū)
|
tungsten
|
W
|
鉭
(tăn)
|
tantalum
|
Ta
|
鈦
(tài)
|
titanium
|
Ti
|
碲
(dì)
|
tellurium
|
Te
|
釷
(tŭ)
|
thorium
|
Th
|
釩
(fán)
|
vandanium
|
V
|
鋇
(bèi)
|
barium
|
Ba
|
錳
(mĕng)
|
manganese
|
Mn
|
釔
(yĭ)
|
yttrium
|
Y
|
銦
(yīn)
|
indium
|
In
|
鎘
(gé)
|
cadmium
|
Cd
|
鍺
(zhĕ)
|
germanium
|
Ge
|
鈷
(gŭ)
|
cobalt
|
Co
|
浩
(hào)
|
zirconium
|
Zr
|
硒
(xī)
|
selenium
|
Se
|
銫
(sè)
|
cesium
|
Cs
|
鈣
(gài)
|
calcium
|
Ca
|
硅
(guī)
/ 矽
|
silicon
|
Si
|
鈉
(nà)
|
sodium
|
Na
|
鈹
(pí)
|
beryllium
|
Be
|
鎂
(mĕi)
|
magnesium
|
Mg
|
鋰
(lĭ)
|
lithium
|
Li
|
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