So Much To Learn

Reversing the Signs of Aging With Eyelid Blepharoplasty Surgery

2009-04-07T06:45:00.000-07:00

Are bagging, sagging, wrinkled or puffy eyes making you unhappy about your appearance or making you feel older than you actually are? Do you look in the mirror and wish there was a way you could reverse the physical signs of aging on your face and get you back to the youthful and energetic look you once possessed? Well don’t despair, because eyelid surgeons like Dr. Amiya Prasad have come up with new ways to safely remove excess skin around the eyes, giving you the vibrant appearance you thought you could never achieve.

Dr. Prasad, the New York-based super specialist in eye and eyelid surgery, believes that the eyes are the most important feature on the face, especially when it comes to communication. He has developed a specialized approach for creating a natural, enhanced and improved overall look for eyes that are aging, drooping, sagging, bagging, wrinkled, lined or puffy.

The SmartLift Eyelift
Dr. Prasad’s “SmartLift eyelift” differs from traditional eyelid blepharoplasty surgery, and involves minimal risk, minimal incisions and minimal anesthesia to produce maximal results.
The first step in the SmartLift eyelift approach is to properly classify a person’s eyelids in terms of gender, age, ethnic background and skin condition. This analysis allows him to select an approach that is completely personalized to the patient. The SmartLift approach in combination with Dr. Prasad’s artistic touch truly makes all the difference in the beauty of the results.

When's The Right Time for Blepharoplasty?
Since there is no such thing as the right age for blepharoplasty surgery, it is up to the patient to decide whether they feel the need to undergo the operation. Dr. Prasad has helped patients as young as 14 and as old as 100 enhance their appearance through eyelid surgery, each one with their own unique cosmetic goals. The decision to have blepharoplasty surgery, however, is a highly personal choice, and no one should ever convince you to have cosmetic surgery.

The Benefits of Blepharoplasty
The most popular reason to have blepharoplasty surgery stems from the desire to look younger and fresher without making any drastic changes to the face. Puffy eyelids, pouch-like lower lids and drooping skin over the eyes can result from smoking, sun worshipping, excessive weight gain or high stress, and become more noticeable with age. A blepharoplasty, however, can reverse this process.
Blepharoplasty is quite common in women who have difficulty applying makeup due to extra skin around the eyes. Many women over the age of 40 also complain that their upper eyelid skin has become loose and irritated as a result of the natural aging process.

Dr. Prasad’s blepharoplasty involves the removal of excess skin and fat with a stitching technique that leaves virtually no marks or scars on the upper eyelid skin, so even your hairdresser will have a hard time seeing that an incision was made.
Candidates for upper or lower eyelid blepharoplasty surgery include anyone who is looking for a vibrant, energetic, rejuvenated and youthful appearance, or anyone who feels that their droopy, puffy or sagging eyes are making them look tired or disinterested in communicating with others.

A major benefit of this type of cosmetic surgery is the way the results make you feel about yourself and the way you look. , Eyelid surgery not only makes your eyes look younger and more alert, but can provide you with an enhanced self-esteem and confidence in your appearance.

Want More information on Blepharoplasty?

The Top Five SLR Cameras

2009-04-06T07:45:00.000-07:00

If you are a professional photographer, a photography student or a photo enthusiast, or, if you are simply looking to freeze some memories in time, the first thing you need is the right camera. The SLR digital cameras available at retailers such as Cameta Camera, Best Buy and Amazon.com can start you on your journey towards capturing beautiful images with their specialized photographic equipment. Below are the top five recommended SLR cameras that can help get you started.

1. Olympus Evolt E-420

Weighing a mere 380 grams (or 13.4 ounces), the portable Olympus Evolt E-420 digital SLR camera is equipped with a 2.7-inch LCD on-screen AutoFocus, which works as seamlessly as a point-and-shoot, displaying subjects in focus the instant the shutter is pressed half way.

The E-420 also features Face Detection Technology, that targets and locks up to eight faces, ensuring they are in focus and crystal clear for amazing portraits every time.

Shadow Adjustment Technology allows the Evolt to capture detail in the bright area of the frame, and opens up detail in the shadows, where other cameras would render too dark or underexposed.

The Perfect Shot preview option lets you see just how the image will look before you even capture it, so you know that what you see is what you get.

The Olympus Zuiko 14-42mm Digital Zoom Lens is a 3x standard zoom lens, the smallest and lightest in its class, featuring a closest focusing distance of only 25cm. The Extra-low Dispersion and two aspherical lens elements correct aberrations without increasing lens dimensions, and the circular aperture diaphragm enables defocusing, one of the big advantages of this lens.

2. Canon EOS Digital Rebel XSi

The EOS Rebel XSi is one of the fastest cameras available today with 3.5 fps continuous shooting, up to 53 full-resolution JPEGs (or 6 RAW) images in a burst, instant startup times, speedy autofocus and reduced shutter lag time.

All relevant shooting information, including ISO, is displayed in the improved, high magnification viewfinder, which also provides a larger overall view with increased brightness and clarity. The viewfinder also makes it easy to change settings without moving the camera away from the eye.

The large 3.0-inch LCD monitor has 230,000 pixels with a viewing angle of 170 degrees and is perfect for Live View composition and viewing camera settings like AF, ISO, Metering, AF Point selection and flash options. The maximum brightness of the monitor is about 30% greater than its predecessor, which is beneficial when you’re using the camera in bright sunlight. The Display-Off sensor feature also automatically turns the bright TFT color LCD monitor off whenever the camera is at the photographer’s eye.

The Live View Function of the Canon EOS Rebel XSi makes it easy to grab odd-angle shots, and you can magnify any part of the scene 5x or 10x for precise manual focus. The Live View Function can also be used remotely in the studio via a computer through a USB connection so you can view what your camera is about to capture on your PC monitor.

The Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS zoom lens consists of 11 elements in 9 groups and uses an Ashperical lens element to correct aberration for excellent image quality throughout the zoom range. A circular aperture is used for exquisite rendering of out-of-focus backgrounds and optimized lens coatings minimize flare and ghosting, which are prone to occur with digital cameras. The zoom lens is compact and lightweight, with an impressive macro close-focusing ability of 9.8” (or 25cm).

3. Nikon D90

The Nikon D90 SLR Digital Camera features Nikon’s exclusive Scene Recognition System that advances precision in auto focus, auto exposure and auto white balance in diverse shooting situations, giving you stunning images with point-and-shoot simplicity.

The Live View mode provides for easy image framing, even when shooting at odd angles, allowing users to frame their images on the large 3” high-resolution color LCD. Three contrast-detect AF modes allow photographers to focus on any point in the frame, enabling a greater variety of composition, and the face priority AF mode in the Live View provides for even sharper pictures of people.

Nikon’s 12.3 megapixel DX-format CMOS imaging sensor is coupled with Nikon’s industry-leading 12-bit advanced EXPEED image processing technologies, providing for color-independent pre-conditioning prior to A/D Conversion and working in harmony with high-precision digital image processing algorithms, producing natural-looking images that benefit from faithful color and tone reproduction, along with a wide dynamic range.

In terms of speed, the D90 has a power-up time of 0.15 seconds with a mere 65-millisecond shutter lag time, and a swift continuous shooting performance at 4.5 frames per second, which is ideal for shooting sporting events and other high speed subjects.

Long Exposure Noise Reduction is available on the D90 when shooting at shutter speeds of 8 seconds or slower, and the Nikon D90 provides high sensitivity between ISO 200-3200 to maximize available light and achieve optimal exposure. Sensitivity can be expanded to a low ISO of 100 with the Lo-1 mode or up to ISO 6400 using the Hi-1 mode.

The Nikon AF-S DX Nikkor 18-105mm lens is a high performance and efficient optic, useful in many scenarios, with key features including a wide-ratio 5.8x zoom, Nikon Vibration Reduction image stabilization, an Extra-low Dispersion glass element and an Aspherical lens element that virtually eliminates coma and other types of lens aberration, further improving image integrity.

4. Nikon 10.2MP Digital SLR Camera

The Nikon 10.2-megapixel digital camera captures high-resolution images up to 3872 x 2592 pixels, and offers exceptional tonal range and clarity. With 230K pixels and a brightness adjustment feature, the 2.5” TFT-LCD monitor that comes standard on the Nikon has an optical single-lens reflex viewfinder for easy use.

The Nikon 10.2MP features a burst mode that lets you shoot continuously up to 3 fps, allowing photo enthusiasts to capture crisp, fast-action shots such as sporting events or children playing. The EXPEED 12-bit image processing system also allows for fast and accurate image processing and recording.

Nikon’s digital SLR camera has an ISO of up to 3200 to capture crystal-clear color photos, even in low-light conditions. The optical image stabilization option reduces camera shakes as well as vibration distortion for an enhanced image quality.

Eight white balance modes and a fine-tuning option provide for natural tones under different lighting conditions and eight scene modes are available to users, including auto, auto flash-off, close-up, child, sports, night, portrait and landscape. Color modes for the Nikon 10.2MP include normal, vivid, more vivid, softer and black and white with six special effects filters including green, red, blue intensifiers, cross screen (star), skylight and warm. Movie mode, which offers a stop-motion movie recording function, is also available on the SLR camera.

Upon purchasing the Nikon 10.2MP digital SLR camera, customers will receive an 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor VR lens, a rechargeable Li-ion battery and charger, a USB cable, camera strap, body cap, eyepiece cap, rubber eyecup and accessory shoe cap with an owner’s manual.

5. Nikon D40 Digital SLR Camera

The Nikon D40 is Nikon’s smallest digital SLR ever designed, weighing just over 16 ounces, making high-performance digital SLR photography easier and more convenient than ever before. The D40 is easy to use, and the point-and-shoot functionality makes it simple for even first-time SLR users to capture beautiful pictures.

The fast startup of the Nikon D40, combined with the super-fast shutter response and rapid-action shooting (at up to 2.5 frames per second), makes it easy to capture photos instantly. The D40 can shoot continuously, with the ability of capturing high-quality action sequences of children playing soccer, baseball and other sporting activities.

The larger and brighter 2.5-inch color LCD monitor, with three color display options, makes it easy to view playback images and function menus. The LCD monitor also enables image preview at up to 19 times magnification, with large type fonts and easy-to-view menus, as well as three all-new display options – classic, wallpaper and graphic.

The in-camera image editing devices available with the Nikon D40 provide for greater creative freedom without the need for a computer, featuring a number of highly versatile options including Nikon D-lighting, image trimming, red-eye correction, image overlay, monochrome black and white, sepia and cyanotype along with skylight, custom color filter effects and warm tone.

The large and accurate viewfinder on the Nikon D40 makes composition easier and makes focusing in low-light photography possible. The bright and sharp viewfinder ensures precise composition, with 0.8x magnification.

The built-in Speedlight with i-TTL automatic flash control brings beautiful exposures to darkened conditions and adds a flash to outdoor situations for enhanced twilight shots, as well as an added impact to daylight images.

The automatic exposure option also delivers eight digital Vari-Program modes including auto, auto (flash-off), landscape, portrait, sports, child, close-up or night portrait, each one adjusting automatically for optimal results under varied conditions.

Designed exclusively for use with Nikon DX-format digital SLRs, the D40 includes 3x AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G ED II lens offers sharpness and versatility in a wide variety of shooting situations.

6 Ways Money Does Grow on Trees

2009-02-20T08:42:00.000-08:00

A shady, fragrant spot to rest on a hot afternoon. A peaceful place to hang a hammock. A living jungle gym for children to climb. We all know the priceless benefits trees provide year after year, season after season. But there is more to these natural jewels than just their size and beauty. In these tough economic times, perhaps one of the least expensive long-term investments you can make to your home is to plant a tree. As the tree grows, so does both its aesthetic and practical value. Below are just a few examples of how a landscape complemented by healthy and mature trees is not only beautiful, it's financially smart.

Increases property value- Trees boost more than just curb appeal, they can also significantly boost your property value. According to the USDA Forest Service, mature and healthy trees can add an average of 10 percent to the value of a property. In fact, the Council of Tree and Landscape Appraisers estimates the value of a mature tree to be between $1,000 and $10,000.

Increases salability - In today's buyer's market, trees can make all the difference in the salability of your home. A survey conducted by American Forests and Arbor National Mortgage, shows that "83% of Realtors believe that mature trees have a 'strong or moderate impact' on the salability of homes listed for under $ 150,000; on homes over $ 250,000, this percentage increases to 98%."

Reduces air conditioning costs- A property planted shade tree can help you combat fast-rising energy costs. Studies have shown that shade trees planted on the west or south side of your home can cut air conditioning costs by up to 15%.

Reduces heating costs – A deciduous tree that cuts cooling costs in the summer can also reduce your cold weather heating bills. The tree will lose its leaves in the fall, allowing the sun to reach and warm your home while also acting as an excellent windbreak.

Cost-effective privacy and sound buffering – Trees are a cost-effective, low-care alternative to expensive, high maintenance fencing. Providing beautiful natural privacy and sound buffering, certain tree varieties can create a "living wall" that requires no painting, and adds color, form, texture and seasonal variation.

Produces fruit and nuts – Fruit and nut producing trees can create an abundant and attractive edible landscape. You'll save money at the supermarket, while also creating a welcoming habitat for birds, butterflies and other wildlife. With a little loving care, fresh, sun-ripened apples, peaches, figs, cherries, almonds and other natural delights can be picked at your pleasure.

Take care of your trees today and you could be planting some more money in your pocket tomorrow. To learn more about protecting and preserving your valuable property investment, visit www.SavATree.com

The Government Made Me Do It!

2009-02-02T09:01:00.000-08:00

(Or- How I won the battle and got myself a beautiful new DTV)

February 17th is the D-Day of the television industry! That's the day that the digital television transition is complete, analog TV turns black and is replaced by a big, beautiful, technically advanced digital signal. And who came up with this brilliant scheme to "force my hand"(LOL) and just about MAKE me buy a new TV? The U.S. Government, that's who!(Thank you!!) The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 requires that all full-power television stations turn off their analog channels and begin broadcasting in an all digital format by February 17th 2009!

The easiest way to insure that I didn't miss a minute of my favorite shows was to make sure ALL my TV's accepted this new signal, right? Bye bye rabbit ears, hello 32" HDTV….! Oh sure I could have gotten a converter box, but why do that? Besides four TVs, four boxes? Where do I get them? I had convinced myself that at least one new TV was in order, (twist my arm why don't ya!).

I created a fool-proof argument convincing my significant other that we absolutely, positively needed to buy a new TV….I posed it as a civic duty, a way to do my part in fully supporting the digital television transition forced into motion by the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005.

Taking the leap from purchasing a simple 17" digital TV to a flatscreen, plasma, 32" HDTV with all the bells and whistles was practically like taking candy from a baby! The fact that we wouldn't have been left black in the first place (cable TV isn't affected by the digital television transition) didn't even factor into the equation. The truth is, I'd been gunning for a bigger, better TV for over a year already. So, here I sit with my big beautiful new TV, thanks to the help and great deal I received from TheHighDefinitionStore.com.

Eventually I will replace my other three sets, probably once the Government sets in place another law that doesn't really affect me, but "forces" me once again to comply. I can hardly wait!

The World for $1

2009-01-29T10:13:00.000-08:00

in January, you will have 15 minutes a day, between Monday and Friday ( not weekends) for 2 weeks to buy any one hotel out of 15,000 for $1 a night.
the catch is you don't know which 15 minutes of the day your window of opportunity will be open. There is a World for a $1.00 video which is filled with clues upon when that window is open.

You get a hotel room, for as many as seven nights, for only $1 a night. Its a sick deal. Spend a week in Europe, Canada, i would spend my time in Japan, (I love the japanese culture). Where would you stay?

there are some rules

1 reservation for 1 room per person during the campaign
Maximum booking of 7 consecutive nights
The booking must be made online through www.LastMinuteTravel.com
The booking must be completed within the 15 minute time frame

Send Me To Japan For a Buck

2009-01-28T11:48:00.000-08:00

I always wanted to go to japan, but with air fare and the current economic situation I see it less likely to happen. Wait I spoke to soon! I found away I can get to japan in away that it only costs me a buck a night. Last Minute has is this deal... its all over the internet now I don't need to explain it to you Im sure you heard of it.

Lets talk business. We all know theres a short window of opportunity everyday and the only way to find that window is to figure out the clues in the video. When all the stars are aligned we will have the right time and i will go to japan and you can go where ever you want to the world. Im having a hard time figure this out. Lets beat the system together. c'mon well watch the video together, if we have any ideas about what the clues are, well comment them here. If we work together we can crack Da Vinci's code, and travel the world. Whose with me?

Watch Janice & Kevin's World for $1 Adventures - All 5 Episodes in Webisodes | View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

day 1: the timers starts at 01:17
day 2: number on his shirt is 201
timers starts saying 14:11
day 3 timers says 147
day 4 # of monks 11
day 5 timer 1152 clock times602
timers says 1449

not sure if those are clues but 1's 4's and 7's are repetitive

Largest Dinosaur Fossil Site in the World

2008-12-30T07:34:00.001-08:00

Scientists in China say they have discovered the world's largest dinosaur fossil site in the eastern province of Shandong. Scientists had recovered some 7,600 fossils from a 300 meter (980 ft) long pit near Zhucheng city over the past seven months.

read more | digg story

Puppets from Jim Henson's Creature Shop

2008-12-18T13:19:00.000-08:00

Dittydoodle Works is an award winning show on pbs with award winning music preformed by twins Sheira and Leora Brayer, composed by Marvin Hamlisch. Ditty Doodle airs Saturdays at 8:30 with the intent to entertain and educate preschoolers and children with autism. Parents even enjoy Ditty Doodle.

Sheira and Leora's puppet versions of themselves as well as a cast of other puppets, or shall we say a new generation of muppets where all created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. Jim Henson my be long gone but im more then happy to see that Jim Henson's work today, years later is still being reinvented to entertain and teach children , hopefully for years to come.

Political Jib Jabs

2008-10-24T13:57:00.000-07:00

Back in the day you would see countless political cartoons making fun of political figures and the elections that may follow. Recently I have found a few jib jabs mocking different political figures. From George Bush to Barack Obama even John Kerry there is a jib jab for everyone in politics. Here are my favorite political jib jabs.

Great Pretender

Barack VS PALIN (mac v.s. pc spoof)

This Land

Time for Some Campaignin

Second Term

Theres a Sweek Heart in Alaska

Bush Jib Jab Election

Hot topics in Cosmetic Surgery

2008-10-16T06:36:00.001-07:00

insight on the newest topics and techniques used during cosmetic procedures

read more | digg story

Hot topics in Cosmetic Surgery

2008-10-16T06:33:00.003-07:00

insight on the newest topics and techniques used during cosmetic procedures

read more | digg story

Hot topics in Cosmetic Surgery

2008-10-16T06:33:00.001-07:00

insight on the newest topics and techniques used during cosmetic procedures

read more | digg story

Serving Up Good Nurition to Kids

2008-09-23T06:42:00.001-07:00

Real Savvy Moms is giving a Webinar, Serving Up Good Nutrition to Kids on October 8th. Serving Up Good Nutrition to Kids teaches us parents how to give proper nutrition to our children while eleminating the stressful hassles over unliked foods..

read more | digg story

Serving Up Good Nurition to Kids

2008-09-23T06:41:00.001-07:00

The Best and Worst Musical Performances on Sesame Street

2008-09-17T08:45:00.001-07:00

A list of the 10 best Sesame Street musical performances I could dig up on YouTube, as well as the three worst and one really weird one.

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The Best and Worst Musical Performances on Sesame Street

2008-09-17T08:15:00.001-07:00

A list of the 10 best Sesame Street musical performances I could dig up on YouTube, as well as the three worst and one really weird one.

read more | digg story

The Best and Worst Musical Performances on Sesame Street

2008-09-17T08:14:00.001-07:00

A list of the 10 best Sesame Street musical performances I could dig up on YouTube, as well as the three worst and one really weird one.

read more | digg story

Makeup Products

2008-08-26T09:02:00.000-07:00

For people like me, who do not know much about the make up industry, but wish to purchase makeup products, there is a new site to help us, MakeupProducts.com.

The Makeup Product Reviews section is perfect. The makeup product review section is a huge list of make up products that explains what each product does, how it works and other facts we should know before purchasing the product. Even if we are unfamiliar with the products brand there is a brand page filled with reviews of the brand. This is great for learning for gift giving. The best part of the site is they allow users to submit tricks and comments. This way we know what we can do to make our selves look better then good with the product. It gets better, its all free, you don't even need to buy, just absorb and share knowledge of make products.

MakeupProducts.com helped me find the a gift for my mothers birthday. My mother loved her Lauren Hutton Face Disc, prior I never heard of anyone using Lauren Huttons face disc. My mother liked the face disc so much she stopped using her other make up products and now only uses Lauren Huttons. It was great getting my mother stuck on something new

Is Eyelid Surgery Right for me?

2008-08-13T08:07:00.001-07:00

Eyelid SurgeryIs Eyelid Surgery Right for me?Over the years, our clients have talked to us about why they decided on having Eyelid Surgery. We gathered together their reasons and created a survey for our potential clients: * I always look tired or sleepy in pictures. * People always ask me if I I'm tired, even when I get plenty of sleep. * I feel young but my eyes look tired and puffy. * Although I'm pretty young, the bags under my eyes make me look older. * I work in a business which is very image conscious and I need to project a lot of energy. * Applying makeup is very difficult because my eyelids are puffy. * I have used different creams and gels to improve the way my eyes look but they are not effective. * I recently had a significant change in my life and want to start meeting people again. Looking my best would help me feel better about myself. * I exercise and eat right but my eyes don't look as good as I feel. * I have some important social engagements coming up and I would like to look as happy as I feel.

read more | digg story

Move Your Photos From Camera to Coffee Table

2008-08-06T12:58:00.001-07:00

OLDENBURG, Germany, July 15 /PRNewswire/ -- CeWe Color -- (CWC: FRA), the world leader in photofinishing, today launches its U.S. presence by introducing SmileBooks and the Smiles of Summer Contest. SmileBooks are the latest way to create and share life's moments in a beautiful, personalized photo album. For generations, millions of Europeans have trusted CeWe to transform their memories into print - now Americans can do the same."We are so excited about our launch and know that Americans will have fun seeing their photos come to life in their SmileBooks," said Dominic Brezinski, General Manager, CeWe Color. "We make it so easy to build a SmileBook that we think digital photos will spend less time in the hard drive and more time in a coffee table book for all to see."In conjunction with the launch, CeWe invites Americans to submit their best smile to the "Smiles of Summer" contest. Set to run through August 29, photo fans can submit their favorite picture for judging. Winners will be announced on September 8. For contest rules, see www.smilebooks.com . * The top photo submission will win a $1500 travel gift certificate, a new digital camera, plus a $100 SmileBook gift certificate. * Ten second place winners will receive a new digital camera and $100 SmileBook gift certificate. * Twenty third place winners will receive a $100 SmileBook gift certificate. * Additionally, one hundred runners-up will have the opportunity to create a SmileBook of their own, valued at $50."It's always exciting to see an established vendor such as CeWe expand to new markets," said Alan Bullock, Associate Director of InfoTrends. "SmileBooks, with its European expertise and success, will offer U.S. consumers attractive new options for sharing and preserving their digital image collections beyond basic prints."After downloading the free software, users can easily make a SmileBook in three easy steps. * As photo fans download the software, they can work on their SmileBooks anywhere, without the hassle of maintaining a Web connection or waiting a long time to upload photos. * You can create a SmileBook in just a few minutes. Give it a go! The SmileBooks Assistant helps you create your photo book with just a few clicks. Select your images and then just hit the "Create a SmileBook" button. * By simply clicking and dragging an image folder into the photo album window, the SmileBooks software automatically arranges chosen photos by date to produce a sample photo book. It can be used as is, or changed in any way to create the perfect photo book, something a pro would be proud of. * Personalize backgrounds from our collection or, if you prefer, use any one of your own photos as a background on one page or as a customized two page spread. Choose a special photo for the cover, too. * Add text anywhere. Write poems, insert titles, quotes or other text on any page even personalize the binding- the possibilities are endless! * With the click of the mouse, users can easily correct red eye, change the color of any picture (sepia, black & white, etc.), resize, create 3-D style images, crop and/or enhance any digital photo. * Select from a variety of covers - in fact, put your own mug on the front of your SmileBook.SmileBooks start as low as $9.95 for the 5"x5.5" pocket version to $68.95 for the Deluxe SmileBooks at 12"x12." These wonderful keepsakes can be in your hands in a matter of days.About CeWeFounded in 1961, CeWe Color is the leader in photofinishing and an innovator in digital imaging technology, producing over 1 million photo books and almost 3 billion color prints each year. Its printing facility houses the largest number of digital presses in Europe. To meet the demands of today's consumers, the company employs a workforce of over 2,900 employees in 15 different facilities worldwide. CeWe Color is headquartered in Oldenburg, Germany with a U.S. office in Farmingdale, NY.

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About-Face

2008-08-05T13:57:00.000-07:00

By Jonathan Van Meter

A woman I have known for many years did something to her face not all that long ago, and for a few weeks afterward, I was not able to put my finger on it. Did she get her eyes done? Restylane injections? Botox? Then I thought, Oh dear God, she got a face-lift. No one whom I consider a friend and a contemporary had yet gone that far. But there was no denying she had done something major, and frankly I was worried. Had she ruined her pretty face? As the curtain of hair slowly parted a little each week, I could see that her lips were bigger. Nowhere near overcooked-hot-dog-turning-inside-out bigger like Meg Ryan’s, and not even duck-bill bigger like Courteney Cox’s—but big enough to make me feel uncomfortable looking at her mouth when she talked. Don’t look at her lips!

Then one day, about a month later, I ran into her at a party and she looked stunning. The puffiness had settled, the fire under the skin had gone out. Even her lips looked like they belonged on her face. They were shaped just like her old lips, but … juicier. Her whole face looked as if it had been pushed out and plumped up—not unlike a slightly tired but still very stylish down-filled sofa that looks almost new if you keep those cushions fluffed. I cannot say that she looked exactly like her old self—but so close! A fantastic approximation! An uncanny resemblance! She looks like a very impressive artist’s rendering of her.

But there was also a faint likeness to someone else. She looked a little like … Madonna? Strange, I know, since Madonna and my friend have little in common, at least physically. But when I saw the Big Ciccone on the cover of Vanity Fair a couple of months later, I couldn’t help but notice the similarities: the Mount Rushmore cheekbones, the angular jawline, the smoothed forehead, the plumped skin, the heartlike shape of the face. Their faces didn’t seem pulled tight in that typical face-lift way; they seemed pushed out. Looking at Madonna, I kept thinking of the British expression for reconditioning a saddle: having it “restuffed.” Perhaps that’s where she got the idea to have some work done. After the hunt, Madge dismounted her trusty steed and thought, My saddle needs restuffing. And, by George, so does my face!

Women have been availing themselves of new faces since the dawn of plastic surgery, but suddenly it seemed that there was a better new face to be had. There is a New New Face, very different from the old one, and both my friend and Madonna now have it. Once I starting thinking of it in these terms—the face as the new handbag, say—I started seeing New New Faces everywhere: Demi Moore, Michelle Pfeiffer, Liz Hurley, Naomi Campbell, Stephanie Seymour. They all have it! Even the Olsen twins seem to have a starter version of the New New Face, with their big crazy doll eyes and plush lips. Just to be clear, I don’t presume to know exactly what any of these women have done to their faces, if anything at all. It’s possible (though in some cases before-and-after pictures would seem to suggest otherwise) that this face is occurring entirely naturally—after all, these are women who are famous for being beautiful. The point is that there is a noticeable aesthetic shift happening in the face, and that it’s dovetailing with quantum leaps in plastic surgery and dermatology.

Through some unholy marriage of extreme fitness and calorie restriction (and maybe a little lipo), women have figured out how to tame their aging bodies for longer than ever. You see them everywhere in New York City: forty- and fiftysomethings who look better than a 25-year-old in a fitted little dress or a tight pair of jeans. But this level of fitness has created a new problem to which the New New Face is the solution—gauntness. Past a certain age, to paraphrase Catherine Deneuve, it’s either your fanny or your face. In other words, if your body is fierce (from yoga, Pilates, and the treadmill), your face will have no fat on it either and it will be … unfierce. It was only a matter of time before a certain segment of the female population would figure out how to have it both ways, even if it means working out two hours a day and then paying someone to volumize their faces, as they say in the dermatology business. As a friend of mine recently pointed out, there is now a whole new class of women walking around with wiry little bodies and “big ol’ baby faces.” And they look, well, if not exactly young, then attractive in a different way. A yoga body plus the New New Face may not be a fountain of youth, but it’s a fountain of indeterminate age.

Big Pappas Thoughts

"Face lifts are becoming more and more important. Due to the media putting such an emphasize on looks, we all feel insecure and wish we looked like our favorite celebrity. The idea behind cosmetic surgery is it makes us feel young and beautiful again. Feeling old and ugly, is just a state of mind but when you look into the mirror and see something you dont like how can you not get insecure. The idea of getting eye lifts to remove those puffy eyes, using face creams to remove those wrinkles, younger attractive people out and about, alone will make someone feel more insecure. But the idea of having those features surgerical removed or enhanced gives us a piece of mind especially if you find a trust worthy surgeon."

Cruelty-Free Label Does Not Necessarily Mean Cruelty Free

2008-08-05T07:01:00.001-07:00

Buyer Beware: A "Cruelty-Free" Label Does Not Necessarily Mean a Cruelty Free Business"Cruelty-free" labels on cosmetic products are certainly a reasonably dependable indication that the product was not tested on a laboratory animal. However, it does not mean that other products released by that same company are also cruelty free. Most companies will not directly lie to consumers about their animal testing policies because if discovered, their credibility and profit gain will likely plummet. But many of them do count on the consumer assumption that a policy on one product will hold truth on all, thus successfully deceiving consumers without legal liability.But there is some good news for our defenders of the defenseless. A new standard for animal cruelty-free companies was established by a coalition of nine animal protection organizations to guarantee that products are truly not tested on animals. Robyn Wesley, the cruelty-free product campaign coordinator for PETA says the organizations have banded together to develop their own beauty product labeling system. The Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics was developed with a standardized method for labeling cruelty-free beauty products. This includes being tested by either the product manufacturer or any associated contract testing labs. Companies who comply with this standard are required to receive, from all of their suppliers and intermediary agents, written certification that no ingredient, formulation or product supplied has been tested on animals. If approved they will be issued a cruelty-free standard by the coalition and will be allowed to place a cruelty-free label on product packaging.Still, even though one product contains a cruelty-free label, other items from the same maker could have still been experimented on animals. Even the new stricter standard does not specify that a cosmetic be free of animal byproducts before being given the cruelty-free label. For example, Clairol does not test their Herbal Essences range on animals, but the rest of their cosmetic line still uses animal experimentation. A reliable source to refer to when searching for animal cruelty-free companies is compiled by PETA, which updates a list every two to four months on companies that do not test animals.So remember, if you think that you’re in the clear just because you have purchased a cruelty-free product from a company in the past, do your research; you may not be. Your new desired cosmetic may not be as animal-friendly as you would hope.- Samantha Manning

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22 Reasons Why You Need Cosmetic Surgery

2008-08-04T13:44:00.001-07:00

* My high school reunion is coming up. I feel great, but my eyes make me look older and tired. * I spent a lot of time in the sun and now have "crows feet" lines around my eyes. * I am young but because I have bags under my eyes, my co-workers think I�m not getting enough sleep or I�m always tired. * I have always had puffy upper eyelids, even when I was a child. When I wear eye shadow, it gets smudged and doesn�t stay on. * I do presentations at work where my audience and colleagues are in their 20s and 30s. I feel self conscious with bags under my eyes. * I exercise and keep myself fit. My body is in good shape but my eyes make me look tired. * To make my eyes look better, I have tried all the creams and "miracle" lotions with no results. * Puffy eyes run in my family and my eyes have been puffy since I was young. I am tired of always looking tired. * I�m Asian and I want my eyes to look more open. * My eyes have always been my best feature. As I�ve gotten older, they are sagging and looking awful. * The skin under my eyes are dark and wrinkled. * I just had a major operation and am happy to be alive. I want to live my life to the fullest. * I am recently divorced and am back on the "dating scene". * For a long time, I have done everything for everybody. Now I am doing something for myself. * I�ve had my children a little older than a lot of people. When I pick up my child from school, people think I am the grandparent and not the parent. * I�m an actor and when I audition, I can�t wear make-up. I noticed my eyes were not looking good in my last film even with make-up. * I�m about to get married and I want my wedding pictures to look great. * Ever since I was young, people called me "sleepy eyes". * When I pick up my upper eyelids, I actually see better. * I have used Retin-A and other anti-wrinkle creams. They initially made my skin look good but they have leveled off in their effectiveness. * My son is getting married and I want to look good for the wedding. * I just had laser vision correction. Now I see better but I just realized how my glasses used to hide the bags under my eyes.

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Will Stem Cells Transform Plastic Surgery

2008-07-25T09:21:00.001-07:00

Silicone breast implants and Botox could one day be things of the past thanks to promising new techniques that would allow doctors to work plastic-surgery miracles using only a patient's own stem cells.Traditionally, plastic and reconstructive surgery has relied heavily on fillers. Bags full of saline or silicone are used to plump up breasts. Chunks of fat are taken from one area of the body and grafted into another.These techniques, which like other body enhancement procedures have soared in popularity in recent years, can work successfully but they also have drawbacks.Dr. J. Peter Rubin, assistant professor of plastic and reconstructive surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, said using fillers requires invasive surgery and the results may not look ideally natural.Related In the case of fat grafts, they also might not last as long as a patient would like, as fat transferred whole to a new part of the body has a tendency to break down as time goes on.Replacing these fillers with stem cells could solve the problems.Stem cell magicStem cells are cells that have the ability to make more of themselves and to differentiate into special types of cells, like skin or other tissue types.Some stem cells, called pluripotent or multipotent, are capable of turning into many different kinds of cells and growing wide varieties of tissues, ranging from bone to neurons to organs and muscle.While embryonic stem cells are the most well-known type (and the type that raises controversy), not all pluri- and multi-potent cells come from embryos.Certain so-called adult stem cells, which we make in our bodies, also have these abilities and would most likely be the cells used in plastic surgery."If we can capitalize on stem-cell biology, we can use those cells to reconstruct lost tissue or construct new tissue in a less invasive way," Rubin said.In order to do this, he said, researchers would separate out multi- or pluripotent adult stem cells and grow them in a petri dish.Depending on how they're grown and what materials they're grown in, the stem cells can be coaxed into taking on different specialties, such as fat or cartilage.Those cells would then be injected into the patient, where they would continue to grow and divide, creating a small amount of natural tissue. No surgery required.According to Rubin and colleagues, these techniques could one day be used to fill out wrinkles on an aging face, replace breast tissue lost to cancer treatment, or even grow a natural breast implant.Fat chanceWhile these applications are still a ways out, plastic surgeons in Europe and Asia are already using stem cells to get better results for their patients. To do this, they're harvesting stem cells from an unlikely place — human fat.It turns out that fat is an ample source of multi- and pluripotent stem cells. Science has known for decades that fat tissue is home to a large population of immature cells that have the ability to grow into new fat cells.Rubin said that around 2000 and 2001, researchers began to realize that these "pre-fat cells" were actually stem cells that could become not just fat, but cartilage, bone and even neurons and heart muscle.Unlike other tissues rich in stem cells, such as bone marrow, fat tissue is easy to extract. All you need is liposuction.Today, as part of ongoing clinical trials and regular practice, doctors outside the United States are taking stem cells from liposuctioned fat and using them to make traditional fat grafts more effective.Tom Baker, director of investor relations for Cytori, a San Diego-based company that makes machines for processing fat stem cells in the operating room, described how it works.First, a doctor liposuctions fat from a patient. Half that fat gets set aside, while the other half is processed to pull out a mixture of cells rich in stem cells.That mixture is then injected back into the reserved fat, which is grafted into place inside the patient.The result is a fat graft supercharged with stem cells.Healthier cellsA Japanese study and a Cytori-funded study presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in December 2007 have shown that the supercharged grafts, unlike normal fat grafts, maintain a more natural shape and don't wither away.The difference is extremely important to patients. The Japanese study, for instance, was conducted on women who'd lost part of a breast to cancer and wanted the reconstructive surgery to look as normal as possible.Supercharged fat grafts work because stem cells do more than just grow new cells, said Rubin's colleague Dr. Keith March, a professor of medicine, cellular and integrative physiology and biomedical engineering at the Indiana University School of Medicine. They also support cells and tissues, making them healthier."It's just like the trunk of a tree," March said. "It gives rise to branches and roots, but it's also involved in providing the nutrient supply. Stem cells are involved in maintaining and repairing the tissues around them."Copyright © 2008 Imaginova Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Discover Chicago

2008-07-22T07:35:00.001-07:00

Chicago is a big and beautiful city which i have never been to but hope to get there with in the year. I have started doing research about Chicago and find that I keep getting more and more intrigued by it each day. AnswersTV.com has devoted a whole section filled with videos about Chicago. I learned a lot about Chicago so can you.

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Google Ranking Secrets

2008-07-17T06:01:00.000-07:00

behind Google ranking
via The Official Google Blog by Karen on 7/16/08

In my previous post, I introduced the philosophies behind Google ranking. As part of our effort to discuss search quality, I want to tell you more about the technologies behind our ranking. The core technology in our ranking system comes from the academic field of Information Retrieval (IR). The IR community has studied search for almost 50 years. It uses statistical signals of word salience, like word frequency, to rank pages. (See "Modern Information Retrieval: A Brief Overview" for a quick overview of IR technology.) IR gave us a solid foundation, and we have built a tremendous system on top using links, page structure, and many other such innovations.

Search in the last decade has moved from give me what I said to give me what I want. User expectations from search have rightly increased. We work hard to fulfill the expectations of each and every user, and to do that we need to better understand the pages, the queries, and our users. Over the last decade we have pushed the technologies for understanding these three components (of the search process) to completely new dimensions.

When we talk about queries at Google, we use square brackets [ ] to mark the beginning and end of queries (see "How to write queries" by Matt Cutts), a notation I will use throughout this post. (Pages and search results change frequently, so in time, some examples used here may not behave as explained.)

Understanding pages: Over years we have invested heavily in our crawl and indexing system. As a result we have a very large and very fresh index. In addition to size and freshness, we have improved our index in other ways. One of the key technologies we have developed to understand pages is associating important concepts to a page even when they are not obvious on the page. We find the official homepage for Sprovieri Gallery in London for the Italian query [galleria sprovieri londra], even though the official page does not have either London or Londra on it. In the U.S., a user searching for [cool tech pc vancouver, wa] finds the homepage www.cooltechpc.com even though the page does not mention anywhere that they are in Vancouver, WA. Other technologies we have developed include distinctions between important and less important words in the page and the freshness of the information on the page.

Understanding queries: It is critical that we understand what our users are looking for (beyond just the few words in their query). We have made several notable advances in this area including a best-in-class spelling suggestion system, an advanced synonyms system, and a very strong concept analysis system.
Most users have used our spelling suggestion system at one time or another. It knows that someone searching for [kofee annan] is really searching for Mr. Kofi Annan, and is prompted: Did you mean: kofi annan; whereas someone searching for [kofee beans] is actually looking for coffee beans. Doing this internationally with very high accuracy is hard, and we do it well.

Synonyms are the foundation of our query understanding work. This is one of the hardest problems we are solving at Google. Though sometimes obvious to humans, it is an unsolved problem in automatic language processing. As a user, I don't want to think too much about what words I should use in my queries. Often I don't even know what the right words are. This is where our synonyms system comes into action. Our synonyms system can do sophisticated query modifications, e.g., it knows that the word 'Dr' in the query [Dr Zhivago] stands for Doctor whereas in [Rodeo Dr] it means Drive. A user looking for [back bumper repair] gets results about rear bumper repair. For [Ramstein ab], we automatically look for Ramstein Air Base; for the query query [b&b ab] we search for Bed and Breakfasts in Alberta, Canada. We have developed this level of query understanding for almost one hundred different languages, which is what I am truly proud of.

Another technology we use in our ranking system is concept identification. Identifying critical concepts in the query allows us to return much more relevant results. For example, our algorithms understand that in the query [new york times square church] the user is looking for the well-known church in Times Square and not for articles from the New York Times. We don't just stop at identifying concepts; we further enhance the query with the right concepts when, for instance, someone looking for [PC and its impact on people] is in fact looking for impact of computers on society, or someone who searches for [rainforest instructional activities for vocabulary] is really looking for rain forest lesson plans. Our query analysis algorithms have many such state-of-the-art techniques built into them, and once again, we do this internationally in almost every language we serve.

Understanding users: Our work on interpreting user intent is aimed at returning results people really want, not just what they said in their query. This work starts with a world class localization system, and adds to it our advanced personalization technology, and several other great strides we have made in interpreting user intent, e.g. Universal Search.

Our clear focus on "best locally relevant results served globally" is reflected in our work on localization. The same query typed in multiple countries may deserve completely different results. A user looking for [bank] in the US should get American banks, whereas a user in the UK is either looking for the Bank Fashion line or for British financial institutions. The results for this query should return local financial institutions in other English speaking countries like Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa. The fun really starts when this query is typed in non-English-speaking countries like Egypt, Israel, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland. Likewise the query [football] refers to entirely different sports in Australia, the UK, and the US. These examples mostly show how we get the localized version of the same concept correctly (financial institution, sport, etc.). However, the same query can mean entirely different things in different countries. For example, [Côte d'Or] is a geographic region in France - but it is a large chocolate manufacturer in neighboring French-speaking Belgium; and yes, we get that right too :-).

Personalization is another strong feature in our search system which tailors search results to individual users. Users who are logged-in while searching and have signed up for Web History get results that are more relevant for them than the general Google results. For example, someone who does a lot football-related searches might get more football related results for [giants], while other users might get results related to the baseball team. Similarly, if you tend to prefer results from a particular shopping site, you will be more likely to get results from that site when you search for products. Our evaluation shows that users who get personalized results find them to be more relevant than non-personalized results.

Another case of user intent can be observed for the query [chevrolet magnum]. Magnum is actually made by Dodge and not Chevrolet. So we present the results for Dodge Magnum with the prompt See results for: dodge magnum in our result set.

Our work on Universal Search is another example of how we interpret user intent to give them what they (sometimes) really want. Someone searching for [bangalore] not only gets the important web pages, they also get a map, a video showing street life, traffic, etc. in Bangalore -- watching this video I almost feel I am there :-) -- and at the time of writing there is relevant news and relevant blogs about Bangalore.
Finally let me briefly mention the latest advance we have made in search: Cross Language Information Retrieval (CLIR). CLIR allows users to first discover information that is not in their language, and then using Google's translation technology, we make this information accessible. I call this advance: give me what I want in any language. A user looking for Tony Blair's biography in Russia who types the query in Russian [Тони Блэр биография] is prompted at the bottom of our results to search the English web with:

Similarly a user searching for Disney movie songs in Egypt with the query [أغاني أفلام ديزني] is prompted to search the English web. We are very excited about CLIR as it truly brings us closer to our mission to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful.

I could go on and on showing examples of state-of-the-art technology that we have developed to make our ranking system as good as it is, but the fact is that search is nowhere close to being a solved problem. Many queries still don't get satisfactory results from Google, and each such query is an opportunity to improve our ranking system. I am confident that with numerous techniques under development in our group, we will make large improvements to our ranking algorithms in the near future.
I hope my two posts about Google ranking have made it clear that we live and breathe search, and we are more passionate than ever about it. Our fervor for serving all our users worldwide is unprecedented. We pride ourselves in running a very good ranking system, and are working incredibly hard every day to make it even better.

Free Photo Software!

2008-07-15T06:33:00.001-07:00

SmileBooks photo book software, is an easy to use easy to install software which allows users to create beautiful photo books with of their photos.

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Fair and Flawless Skin

2008-07-14T08:10:00.001-07:00

What is your current skin tone? What skin tone do you want? Find both on this Fitzpatrick skin care chart and then start shopping for Fair & Flawless products that will help you achieve your dream complexion color.

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Fair and Flawless

2008-07-11T08:00:00.000-07:00

Skin Tones

Human skin tone comes in a variety of colors. What skin tone are you? Does your current skin tone say everything about who you truly are?

Just because you weren’t born with the skin tone you love doesn’t mean you can’t have it. With Fair and Flawless skin lightening products, you can now choose your own skin tone. You weren’t born with clothes, but someone designed them for you. Most people don’t have naturally pearly white teeth either; someone designed them. In fact, most Caucasians aren’t born with a tan; someone designed it for them. Now it is also possible to design the skin tone YOU’RE in with Fair and Flawless.

What skin tone would you like to be? Check out our skin care chart.

With Fair and Flawless products, you can achieve the skin tone you’ve always wanted. Your results will depend on your skin type, skin condition, life style, diet and how well you follow the directions. There are six standard Fitzpatrick skin types, named for the doctor who first classified them. The more natural melanin your skin produces, the higher your skin type classification (e.g. Type 6 has roughly twice the melanin of Type 1).

Be confident. Be Proud, Use “Skin Soho” By Fair and Flawless

FITZPATRICK SCALE

What is your current skin tone? What skin tone do you want? Find both on this Fitzpatrick skin care chart and then start shopping for Fair and Flawless products that will help you achieve your dream complexion color.

Young Adults and Plastic Surgery

2008-07-07T07:14:00.001-07:00

A CBS Early Morning Show special revealing the secrets behind Young Adults and why they get plastic Surgery

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2008-07-07T06:49:00.001-07:00

Top 10 Reasons to Eat Breakfast

2008-07-07T06:14:00.001-07:00

It's often said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Find out why it's so important to get off to a good start. By Katelyn Dieffenderfer,Quality Health News When youÂ’re hitting the snooze button for the third time, breakfast is probably one of the last things on your mind. After all, you still have to shower and then race to work in time to make that presentation. But according to experts, letting a hectic schedule force you to skip breakfast could compromise your health. Breakfast Benefits The next time youÂ’re considering skipping the most important meal of the day, think about the following reasons to get back on track.

Â• Food that fuels. A healthy breakfast provides you with enough nutrients to energize your body for hours.

Â• Healthier eating habits. Studies have shown that people who eat breakfast consume more vitamins, minerals, and fiber, and less fat and cholesterol.

Â• Calorie cutting. People who donÂ’t eat breakfast are likely to eat more calories throughout the day than people who skip lunch, according to the Nemours FoundationÂ’s Center for ChildrenÂ’s Health and Media.

Â• Reduced diabetes risk. People who eat breakfast are significantly less likely to be diabetic than those who usually donÂ’t, according to the American Heart Association.

Â• Weight control. A study by the National Weight Control Registry shows that eating breakfast actually helps keep peopleÂ’s weight down.

Â• Increased focus. According to the American Dietetic Association, people who eat breakfast are better able to concentrate and be more productive throughout the morning.

Â• Enhanced memory. According to experts, eating breakfast improves memory and learning. In one study, college students who ate a morning meal scored 22 percent higher in a word-recall test than those who skipped breakfast.

Â• Better fitness. Researchers believe that people who eat breakfast have higher energy levels and may engage in more physical activity than people who donÂ’t.

Â• Improved mood. Skipping breakfast can make you feel tired, irritable, or sad. Even grabbing some fresh fruit or a bowl of cereal can help boost your mood.

Â• Stress reduction. The time you spend eating breakfast can be relaxing and help you to mentally prepare for the day. Eating breakfast also forces you to slow down, helping you to prioritize. Keep in mind, however, that all breakfasts are not created equal—a healthy morning meal should be balanced and not too heavy. So, skip the eggs, bacon, sausage, and biscuits, and go for whole-grain cereals with fruit or juice instead. Or opt for an egg-white omelet filled with vegetables.

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Liposuction Defined

2008-07-02T10:02:00.001-07:00

Smart Lipo and Liposuction by New York's Premier Plastic Surgeon - Dr. Stephen GreenbergLiposuction is the most popular cosmetic procedure in the United States, and Dr. Stephen Greenberg performs many liposuction procedures every week using only the latest technology. He strives to achieve the best in body contouring by using a combination of techniques, which are customized to each patient to ensure optimum results. Dr. Greenberg has been featured in many magazines and on CBS, ABC, and NBC news programs as a specialist in liposuction, smart lipo and body sculpture.What Is Liposuction?Liposuction (lipoplasty) is a procedure that can help contour your body by removing unwanted fat and inches from certain parts of the body, including the abdomen, hips, buttocks, thighs, arms and chin. Liposuction is not a replacement for diet or exercise, but it helps selected patients get rid of stubborn areas that do not respond to other weight loss methods. With weight loss, the fat cells in your body only shrink - they do not disappear. Liposuction surgery actually removes the fat cells from your body. * Ultrasound assisted lipoplasty * The tumescent technique * Power assisted lipoplasty * Smart lipoDr. Greenberg utilizes a unique combination of tumescent liposuction, along with external ultrasound and power assisted liposuction. When used together, these methods provide the patient with a smoother contour and a quick recovery, with minimal pain or bruising. There will be a noticeable difference in your body contour almost immediately after liposuction surgery and a small amount of swelling that will continue to subside for a few months after. Your new contour will remain permanent as long as you maintain a healthy lifestyle. If you gain weight after your liposuction surgery, the weight will distribute itself evenly throughout your body and will not settle in the same problem areas.These methods provide the patient with a smoother contour and a quick recovery, with minimal pain or brusingWhat is Smart Lipo?Smart lipo is a procedure to remove fat cells from your body. It is one of the newest technologies offered by Dr. Stephen Greenberg. Dr. Greenberg is the only cosmetic surgeon on the east coast to perform smart lipo surgery and one of the only doctors with an 18w smart lipo machine.Smart lipo is virtually painless and highly effective at removing unwanted body fat. Smart lipo uses a laser to eliminate these cells. The laser can easily differentiate between fat cells and other tissue such as nerves, blood vessels, muscles, tendons, etc. Once the smart lipo laser dissolves the fat cells, they are simply suctioned out of the body. Because of the innovative technology behind smart lipo, there is often less scarring and a quicker recovery time that with liposuction.As the only doctor to practice smart lipo on the east coast, Dr. Greenberg believes it is important that his patients fully understand the procedure and its effects. Contact Dr. Greenberg's office to set up a complimentary consultation about smart lipo, and find out if it's the best procedure for your individual needs.Liposuction or Smart Lipo ConsultationDr. Stephen Greenberg takes a great deal of time explaining liposuction options and procedures to his patients. He will examine you to determine if you are a candidate for this procedure, as well as show you pre-operative and post-operative pictures of his liposuction patients. Dr. Greenberg will evaluate the elasticity of your skin, and he will give his honest and professional opinion on how to improve your body contour. The honesty, care, and trust that you will experience is very important at your initial consultation. Dr. Greenberg will see you for your liposuction consultation in one of his two beautiful cosmetic surgery centers, in Manhattan or Woodbury, Long Island.Liposuction SurgeryDr. Greenberg will discuss your liposuction surgery with you at length. The pre-operative instructions will be explained to you and any questions you may have will be answered until you are completely comfortable with the procedure. The liposuction incisions are usually not conspicuous and are often hidden in skin creases. Your liposuction surgery will be performed in Dr. Greenberg's fully licensed ambulatory center, where his team of specialized nurses will take only the best care of you. On the day of your liposuction surgery, Dr. Greenberg will re-evaluate you and together you will decide exactly what areas will be treated. The liposuction procedure can take anywhere from one hour to three hours depending on what is being done. You will then be able to rest in our recovery room, until you are ready to go home.The liposuction procedure can take anywhere from one hour to three hours depending on what is being done.Liposuction RecoveryPost-operative instructions will be explained to you, and Dr. Greenberg will see you one to two days after your liposuction surgery. A post-operative garment is worn for two to four weeks to ensure proper healing. You may experience slight discomfort for a few days after your liposuction surgery, but you will be able to return to normal activities within a few days. In order to maximize your cosmetic result, Dr. Greenberg offers all of his patients a complimentary treatment package of Endermologie. These treatments will help reduce swelling and cellulite.Dr. Greenberg will evaluate the elasticity of your skin and he will give his honest and professional opinion on how to improve your body contour.Basic Liposuction Surgery and Recovery FactsAnesthesia General (Board Certified Anesthesiologist)Length of Procedure 1-3 hoursLength of Stay OutpatientWhere performed In Dr. Greenberg's office ambulatory Surgery Center.Discomfort Mild to moderate discomfort for about 1-3 daysReturn to work 3-4 days, depending on your jobSwelling Most swelling subsides within 3 weeksBruising Minimal to moderateStitches Dr. Greenberg will remove all stitches within 5-7 daysExercise 3-4 weeks to resume exerciseResults Dr. Greenberg strives to obtain a natural look. You will notice a result after about 3 weeks, but liposuction results will continue to improve for up to four months after the procedure.Find out more about liposuction procedures provided by Dr. Greenberg. View before and after liposuction pictures or contact Dr. Greenberg's Manhattan or Long Island cosmetic plastic surgery office for your complimentary liposuction or smart lipo consultation. All of us look forward to helping you.

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Liposuction Forums

2008-07-02T07:55:00.000-07:00

I haven't had that much time to play around in forums, but here is something that i posted in EHealthForum. I was asking questions regarding peoples thoughts about liposuction and Dr Greenberg. I want Dr Greenberg to perform his liposuction magic on my father but do not know much about the cons of liposuction. What is your experience with lipsuction? Is liposuction worth getting?

10 Jobs That Lead to Depression

2008-06-26T07:36:00.001-07:00

THE 10 MOST DEPRESSING JOBS
See if yours made the list.Quality Health NewsAre you a daycare worker, caregiver, or full-time waitress? If so, you may be at a higher risk of becoming depressed. A national survey recently examined 21 major occupational categories and found that people who change diapers, tend to the elderly, and wait tables have the highest rates of depression, while the lowest rates occur among engineers, architects, and surveyors. Where does your job fall on the scale?10 Most Depressing JobsAccording to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, workers in the following occupational categories are most at risk for depression.

1. Personal Care and Service
2. Food Preparation/Serving
3. Community and Social Services
4. Health-care Practitioners and Related Technical Positions
5. Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media
6. Education, Training, and Library
7. Office and Administrative Support
8. Building, Grounds Cleaning, and Maintenance
9. Financial
10. Sales and Related Positions

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Eat More Weight Less

2008-06-24T09:41:00.001-07:00

Eat more food, feel full all day long, and lose weight. It sounds too good to be true, like one of those fad diets that promises to help you shed 10 pounds while you watch TV. But this one is real. It's not that you can eat more Snickers, more pizza, or more sour-cream-and-onion potato chips. However, if you eat more foods that are considered low-density, such as fruits, vegetables, and soups, you can lose weight.In fact, one study by Penn State University researchers found that obese women were able to lose more weight by eating 25 percent more food on a low-fat, low-density diet than fellow dieters who ate less on a low-fat diet only. Over a year, the women on the low-density plan were able to lose an average of nearly 18 pounds, compared with those on the low-fat plan who lost 14 pounds on average. The plan worked so well because participants felt full but reduced their caloric intake.Ready to try it? Here are six suggestions on how to eat more and weigh less.

1. Eat more ... colorful foods. Make a bright, bold statement by eating vibrant fruits and vegetables. They should make up about half of your meal, according to the American Dietetic Association (ADA). Remember veggies aren't just boring greens: Add some juicy red tomatoes, bright purple eggplant, or orange sweet potatoes to your dinner plate. For breakfast and lunch, try to incorporate a banana, a handful of berries, or a slice of melon. Such a colorful palette of foods will not only allow you to eat larger portions and fill up on fewer calories; it's also a great way to get important vitamins and minerals, reports the ADA.

2. Eat more ... fiber. Fiber is the perfect diet food because it allows you to feel full for a long time and takes a while to digest, but doesn't contain a lot of calories or fat. Vegetables like peas, green beans, broccoli, and spinach are excellent sources of fiber. You can also get fiber from eating lentils, beans, and whole grains. It's easy to add more to your diet by mixing black beans into your favorite casserole, putting spinach and chick peas in your salads, or serving pasta tossed with lots of broccoli, zucchini, yellow squash, and other vegetables.

3. Eat more ... lean protein. Eating more low-density foods doesn't mean you should cut out sources of protein from your diet. You can still enjoy lower-fat meats like pork and beef tenderloin, sirloin tip, and flank steak. Be careful to trim visible fat and to eat only one portion, which is about the size of a deck of cards, according to the National Institutes of Health. Other sources of healthy protein include nuts, fish, avocados, and beans.

4. Eat more ... soup. In addition to being a tasty low-density food, soup can also help you reduce the amount of food you eat during meals. A study by University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas, found that people ate 20 percent less during their meal when they ordered soup as an appetizer. The researchers speculated that the soup made the people studied feel fuller and slowed down gastric emptying.

5. Eat more ... for breakfast. Research consistently shows that skipping breakfast will make you hungrier and more likely to overeat later in the day. Surprising, it's not just that people who eat breakfast are less hungry at lunchtime; they're also less likely to eat late at night, according to the ADA. The best breakfast foods to eat are oatmeal, fruits, whole-wheat toast, whole-grain cereals, and yogurt. You're better off staying away from doughnuts, bacon, and Danishes whenever possible.

6. Eat more ... often. Rather than eating a few large meals, try to eat smaller meals and snacks throughout the day. Nibbling or grazing helps to jump-start your metabolism, allowing your body to process the calories more efficiently, according to a study published in the British Medical Journal. The best thing about this plan is that eating so often means you never feel hungry.

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Lauren Hutton - Review of Lauren Hutton Face Disc

2008-06-23T10:28:00.001-07:00

A great concept especially for using minimal makeup, but if you don't have great skin then you may not like it. If you are expecting it to conceal you lines and wrinkles, your expectations are too high.

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Whats Going On With Samsung Blu-Ray Players

2008-06-20T08:12:00.001-07:00

Samsung confirmed it has dropped a planned midtier Blu-ray Disc player from its forthcoming next-generation line, simplifying its assortment to the BD-P1400 and BD-UP5000 players.Samsung has decided to focus on the BD-P1400 ($499 suggested retail) and the BD-UP5000 ($999) to make its next-generation offerings more efficient. As a result, the BD-P2400 was removed from the 2007 holiday lineup."The BD-UP5000 Duo HD player is the company's first dual-format high-definition disc player. It will play both Blu-ray Discs and HD DVDs, in addition to standard DVDs and audio CDs.Samsung said the Duo HD player is now scheduled to ship from Samsung factories at the end of October 2007 and will be available to consumers at retail by mid to late December 2007.Samsung said the Duo HD player will be BD Profile 1.1 ready, meaning it will include the necessary hardware to play BD Profile 1.1 discs.A firmware update will be available at the end of January 2008 to allow playback of BD Profile 1.1 discs.The Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) has mandated all hardware launched after Oct. 31 must support BD Profile 1.1 discs including BD-Java (BD-J)-enabled picture-in-picture video playback and 256MB of persistent memory. Players with Internet connections, which the Duo will have, are to include 1GB of persistent memory."Profile 1.1 discs are currently not available and compatibility must be fully tested before we can assure complete compliance to BD Profile 1.1 requirements," Samsung said. The BD-P1400 is currently available.

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10 Strangest Baby Names Ever

2008-06-19T08:40:00.001-07:00

What's in a name? Some experts believe that everything from social acceptance to financial success is determined, in part, by the names we're given at birth. And many of today's parents are rejecting popular baby names in favor of more unusual monikers. What will the future hold for newborns named after shoes (Reebok), cars (Camry), and office equipment (Xerox)? Read on as we reveal the 10 strangest baby names of all time.The Name GameSome are silly, others are shocking, and not surprisingly, a few belong to the children of rock stars and celebrities.

1. Unique. Every child is special, but do their names need to convey their individually so literally? If you're considering "Unique" for your newborn, also bear in mind that it might not be as distinctive as you think. According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, 938 newborns were named "Unique" in 2005.

2. Timberland. If naming your child after a pair of shoes seems strange, you'll be shocked to hear that "Timberland" is on the rise. While the Social Security Administration recorded it only five times in 2003, there now are hundreds of "Timberland" toddlers. What's more, in England, the names "Nike," "Adidas," and "Reebok" all appeared on birth certificates in 2006.

3. Camry. The Toyota Camry has been America's best-selling car for years, and now some parents are naming their kids after it. But believe it or not, U.S. Census data suggests that vehicle-inspired monikers aren't that unusual; there were 55 boys named "Chevy," 22 girls named "Infiniti," 11 children named "Bentley," and five girls named "Celica" in the year 2000.

4. Apple. When actress Gwenyth Paltrow and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin named their firstborn daughter "Apple," most critics were appalled. Even so, some experts believe that the couple may have started a trend. It remains to be seen how many newborns will be named after fruit by the end of this decade, but in the year 2000, there were actually seven American boys named "Del Monte."

5. Prince/Princess. As it turns out, "Prince" and "Princess" are America's 790th and 829th most popular names for boys and girls. And according to the Social Security Administration, they're not the only stately monikers parents love: "King" and "Messiah" are in the top 1,000, while the most outlandish example goes to Jermajesty Jackson (son of Jermaine).

6. God'iss. It may not be sweeping the nation yet, but when R&B singer Lil' Mo named her daughters "God'iss Love Stone" and "Heaven," it was sure to spark some divine inspiration among expectant parents. Other names along these lines include "Venus," "Jupiter," and "Moon Unit" (the last was famously created in the 1960s by Frank Zappa).

7. Chanel. This haute-couture brand is currently the 879th most popular baby name in the United States. And it's not the only fashion label today's style-conscious parents are relying on. According to Social Security records, there were a whopping 273 boys and 298 girls named "Armani" in the year 2000.

8. Londyn. This name, which currently ranks 841st for U.S. girls, combines two growing trends: place-inspired naming and intentional misspelling. Some increasingly popular location-names include Canada, Paris, Houston, and Dallas, while spellings for a common name like "Britney" might include Britany, Brittany, Brittni, or Britnie.

9. Canon. According to Social Security records, there were 49 babies named "Canon" (after the Japanese photocopier manufacturer) in 2000; even stranger, there was actually one kid named "Xerox." Other techie-themed celebrity names include "Audio Science," son of actress Shannyn Sossamon and Dallas Clayton, and Pilot Inspektor, son of actor Jason Lee and Beth Riesgraf.

10. Tu Morrow. Some parents, like TV star Rob Morrow and actress Debbon Ayre, might think it's cute to combine first and last names in this way, but chances are, their kids won't think it's so adorable when they grow up. According to Michael Sherrod and Matthew Rayback's book Bad Baby Names, some of the most regrettable combo-names in history include Fever Bender, Bread White, and Monday Monday.

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What do You Know About Sex

2008-06-18T09:41:00.001-07:00

Sex is a lot of fun but seriously what do you know about sex! I found this Quiz and hey test your knowledge see what you know or learn something new its fun!

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15 WAYS TO FIGHT BREAST CANCER

2008-06-17T08:50:00.001-07:00

15 WAYS TO FIGHT BREAST CANCER
There is no guaranteed protection against breast cancer, but there are things you can do reduce your risk.Quality Health NewsAn estimated one in eight women will be afflicted with breast cancer in her lifetime. Although there is no guaranteed protection against the disease, there are things you can do lower your risk. Follow these tips to prevent breast cancer and to support finding a cure:

• Maintain a healthy weight. There is a strong link between obesity and breast cancer, particularly if extra weight is added after menopause.

• Schedule an annual mammogram. This is vital after age 40, as mammograms may help detect early signs of breast cancer, sometimes up to several years before a lump can be felt.

• Eat foods high in fiber. Try to consume 20 to 30 grams of fiber daily. Among its many health benefits, fiber may help reduce the amount of circulating estrogen in the body. Foods high in fiber include whole grains and beans.

• Avoid long-term hormone therapy. The link between postmenopausal hormone therapy and breast cancer has been a subject of debate for years, and research results have been mixed. For women approaching menopause and having frequent symptoms, experts believe it's probably safe to take hormones for as long as four to five years—any longer increases breast cancer risk, without conferring any clear benefits.

• Enjoy soy. Isoflavones in soy foods are weak estrogen-like compounds that block the action of estrogen, which may contribute to breast cancer. Use soy flour in recipes, add tofu to soups or main dishes, eat green soybeans, or drink soy milk.

• Limit alcohol consumption. Drinking alcoholic beverages is linked to breast cancer, and the type of alcohol doesn’t seem to matter. Consume less than one alcoholic beverage per day, or better yet, avoid it entirely.

• Stay physically active. Aim for a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise on most days. Try to include weight-bearing exercises, such as walking, jogging, or dancing, which have the added benefit of keeping bones strong.

• Eat good fats. Certain types of fats seem to increase estrogen levels, which, in turn, raise breast cancer risk. Opt for monounsaturated oils like olive and canola and omega-3 fatty acids, found in salmon, sardines, and herring. Avoid trans fats, found in stick margarine, packaged baked goods, and snack foods, and the polyunsaturated fats featured in corn, sunflower, and safflower oils.

• Consider aspirin therapy. Taking an aspirin just once a week may help protect against breast cancer, but be sure to consult a doctor before starting an aspirin regimen. When used for long periods of time, aspirin can cause stomach irritation, bleeding, and ulcers.

• Avoid additives. When possible, buy hormone-free organic meats, poultry, and dairy foods. Be sure to wash fresh produce and remove peels to get rid of pesticide residue.

• Try vitamin E. In a small study at State University of New York at Buffalo, participants with a family history of breast cancer had an 80 percent lower risk for developing breast cancer if their diets contained 10 or more IU per day of vitamin E.

• Eat more fruits and vegetables. In particular, get enough cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, cabbage, and cauliflower, which can boost cancer-fighting enzymes.

• Perform monthly breast self-exams. Women can detect lumps or changes in their breasts by performing exams every month. The best time to do a self-exam is a week after the start of your period, when breasts are less likely to be tender or swollen.

• Breastfeed if possible. Some studies have shown that breastfeeding may decrease the risk of breast cancer later in life.• Participate in the fight against breast cancer. There are numerous ways to get involved in raising awareness and money for breast cancer research, so do your research and get started today.

Copyright © 2007. Marketing Technology Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.

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9 EASY WAYS TO GET MORE Z'S

2008-06-16T09:56:00.001-07:00

9 EASY WAYS TO GET MORE Z'SCan't get a good night's sleep? Follow these easy guidelines.Quality Health NewsIf you can’t seem to get a good night's sleep, you're not alone—more than 70 million Americans suffer from sleep problems, according to the National Institutes of Health. The good news is, many of these issues can be solved by simply changing your daily routine and creating a better sleep environment. Follow these guidelines to improve your sleep habits.

• Dedicate the bedroom to sleeping. A sleeping area shouldn't be a place for work, paying bills, or watching TV. Bedrooms should be for sex and sleep only.

• Make the bed more comfortable. Whether this means buying new sheets or purchasing a body pillow, your bed should be a place of comfort. Take the time to make it a peaceful, relaxing place by investing in a new mattress, updating the sheets, or replacing that 10-year-old pillow.

• Create a nighttime ritual. For many people, this means starting to wind down about an hour before bedtime, either having a warm cup of decaffeinated tea, putting on lotion, or slipping into comfortable clothes.

• Take a relaxing bath. Warm baths have been shown to lower blood pressure. What's more, this activity can serve as a bridge between the movement, activity, or thought processes of the day and letting it all go at night.

• Go to bed at the same time each night. This will send a signal to your brain and your body that it's time for sleep. In addition, try to get up at the same time each morning, even on weekends. Trying to "catch up" on sleep doesn't work and may cause grogginess.

• Avoid caffeine or other stimulants after lunch. Diet soda, coffee, tea, and even chocolate can stay in the body for more than eight hours, preventing a peaceful night's sleep.

• Give up naps. Daytime naps can interfere with the body’s natural rhythm. Most experts recommend powering through the day without a nap, even if it means going to bed at 7 or 8 p.m.

• Avoid exercise late in the day. Exercising too close to bedtime can rev up the body when it should be relaxing.• Stay away from alcohol. Although having a glass of wine may seem to aid sleep, alcohol actually interferes with deep sleep, so the effect is only temporary.

Copyright © 2007 MTS Corp. All rights reserved.

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DISPELLING THE TOP 10 MENINGITIS MYTHS

2008-06-16T09:37:00.001-07:00

Meningitis has made big headlines, but do you know the whole story behind this contagious disease? Here, we debunk the condition's 10 most common myths.

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Dr. Stephen T. Greenberg

2008-06-16T07:15:00.001-07:00

"As a Cosmetic plastic surgeon, I work both on the inside and the outside of a patient's skin every day. As a plastic surgeon I understand what needs to be attended, and what will be the best method for achieving superior anti-aging results. Over the years I have enjoyed treating thousands of patients, all of who..."

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The Fire

2008-06-16T06:55:00.001-07:00

I Think I am Paranoid

2008-06-13T12:48:00.001-07:00

I’m a pretty big scaredy-cat. Maybe it’s my overactive imagination—great for short story writing, not so good for maintaining sanity. The problem is that I build things up in my mind and turn unlikely disasters and traumas into surefire occurrences. They might not have happened yet, but I’m positive that in time they will. And the fear can at times take over, not in a crippling, paralyzing way like a true phobia, but enough to make me wonder if I’m crazy.Fire is the worst. I am terrified of fires. The more appliances that we have running in the apartment, the more positive I am that the whole place is about to burst into a ball of flames. It’s hot in Baltimore, now that summer has arrived, and our apartment becomes a sickening heat bath without fans and our two window air conditioners running. But I can’t stand to have them all going at once. I’m convinced that the fans and air conditioners are fighting for the same energy supply, a back and forth struggle of superior cooling that will only end in a split wire, a spark somewhere deep in the ceiling where I can’t notice it until it is too late and the living room will become engulfed in flames, burning me alive, as I sit on the couch watching The Office.

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Lucille Roberts Commercials

2008-06-13T10:30:00.001-07:00

A great Lucille Roberts commercial...

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Fair and Flawless Skin

2008-06-13T10:29:00.001-07:00

if you want fair and flawless skin, then here is a nudge in the right direction towards flawless skin like mine.

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