JULY Draft 1

THE NEWS COCKTAIL

By JK McCrea & Steve McCrea GET THAT MOTIVATION UP Simply placing participants in the same room as a highly motivated individual improved their drive and enhanced their performance. But when participants were paired with a less motivated individual, their inspiration dwindled and their performance dropped, too. (Motivation and Emotion) TIME ENOUGH People think they work more and have less free time than did previous generations. However, studies contradict that perception. Measures of how people actually spend their days show that Americans today work less than they did in the mid-60s (reported in an interview with sociologist John P. Robinson in wfs.org/futurist). WHAT WE DO WITH OUR TIME More than 100 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute. This means users upload an astonishing 144,000 hours of video every day. YouTube recently announced that the number of users visiting the video-sharing website every month has reached 1 billion, which amounts to almost one out of every two people on the Internet (ibnlive.in.com). YUCKY THINGS MAKE PEOPLE MEAN Studies have found a link between social rejection, disgust, and illness. People who believe they are at an increased risk of getting sick either because they are hypochondriacs or theyve been primed with images of germs react more negatively to foreigners and overweight people. They are also less likely to be friends with those who have physical disabilities. Just being exposed to images or information about illness leads people to become less agreeable, less sociable, and to automatically use gestures that signify avoidance (Thats Disgusting: unraveling the Mysteries of Repulsion). Umpf! Grunting during a tennis match may throw off your opponents game (ubc.ca). SUNGLASS ALERT We know that were supposed to wear our shades, even in cloudy weather, to prevent things like cataracts and other age related diseases. Look for 100 percent UV protection or UV absorption up to 400 nanometers on the label. However, you need to know that sunglasses that dont filter out UV rays are more damaging than no sunglasses at all because they make your pupils dilate (doughertylaservision.com). THE WORLD AS SEEN BY A LENS Choose the color of your sunglass lenses according to your lifestyle. Amber and green add to the contrast of objects on grass and against blue skies, helpful for tennis, gold and softball. Gray keeps colors true while reducing glare. Red knocks out more blue light, creating a tint that improves depth and perception useful for runners and cyclists (menshealth.com).

GENETICS 101 You share 50 percent of your genes with your parents, siblings and children. Grandparents, aunts, nephews and grandkids are second-degree relatives; you have 25 percent of your genes in common. First cousins are third-degree relatives and you share just 12.5 percent of genes (health.com). OUTRAGEOUS MARKUPS 4,000%: Bottled water. A two dollar bottle of water costs only about 5 cents to produce. 6,000%: Text Messages. Its not uncommon for phone users to pay 10 cents per text message. But sending it might cost the carrier only a sixth of a cent. If you applied the same markup to a short phone call, the call would cost $120. 300%: Restaurant wine. Restaurants routinely charge as much as $30 for a bottle of wine that retails online for $8 or $9. 300%: Coffee on the Go. That $2 cup made by a barista would cost only 50 cents to brew at home. No values available for the friends and service, however. 40%: Precut Produce. Grocery stores charge almost 1.5 times more for precut than for uncut produce. 200 3000% Brand name Drugs. Educate yourself on what youre paying for. A bottle of Advil may sell for $10, compared to just $2 for painkillers that are just as effective. (AOLs walletpop.com) WHAT ARE THE ODDS? Odds of dying from being struck by lightning: 1 in 79,746 Odds of dying from sun/heat exposure: 1 in 13,739 Average annual risk of being killed in a car crash: 1 in 7,700 Odds of dying in a shark attack: 1 in 3.7 million Odds of dying from drowning: 1 in 1,134 (The above are from nsc.org/lrs/statinfo/odds.htm) Lifetime odds of being killed in an assault involving a gun: 1 in 321 (oxfordjournals.org)

A group called Los Amigos playing in Vaison La Romaine, Provence

Lets Click Community: An ongoing gathering to discuss whats new on the Web or other tips is taking place at the Brew Urban Caf on occasional Friday evenings, 7 to 9 pm. Find the next date for the clicking sessions at 638 North Federal Highway by checking YourNetImpact.com. Do you miss the days of Midnight in Paris? Willie Riddles Venetian Art Society has kept the excitement going with stimulating venues year round, open to all, filled with surprises from classic to jazz, dance to sculpture. Opera star Virginia Zeani will

perform on Saturday, September 28 th from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at Cinema Paradiso, Fort Lauderdale. Metropolitan opera star Leona Mitchell will sing at the Museum of Art in a concert sponsored by Classical South Florida (CSF) 89.7 FM on Friday, October 25th starting at 7:30 p.m, mingling culture and hors doeuvres. Connect on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/VenetianArtsSociety or write Willie Riddle at willier2010@live.com and ask to be placed on his fine informative newsletter list.
JOIN US: JK and Steve McCrea are full-range media specialists in writing, websites, creative marketing, educational projects, plus founders of the cultural non-profit BuildingInternationalBridges.org. Visit RoadLovers.com and JKmccrea.net to travel and see our experiences with updated photos and stories. Contact us at NewsCocktail@gmail.com. Enjoy previous issues at TheNewsCocktail.com.