Hola from Mazatlan, Mexico! Due to the seriously slow internet speeds here & prohibitive cost of using the internet, this may be the only post this week but I will continue writing so as soon as I can get on the internet again I can post to you what we’ve been up to in enjoying a healthful (w/exception to the abdundance of margaritas) & fun vacation!

The above pic was taken on sunrise of our 1st day in Mazatlan, this is Deer Island, where all the fun excursions go out to – all of which- include not only active things to do like snorkeling & beach sports, but make sure that you balance out those cals burned with high-quality booze cruise cals coming back in. There’s really no escaping alcohol around here, but for working so hard during the rest of the year, we will enjoy the booze cruising that is included in the activities & sports we want to partake in. 

But booze aside for a moment, let me tell you about what we’ve been up to so far in the world of healthy eating!! *I have some great video to upload as soon as we get home so look out for that! It includes how to turn last night’s dinner into 3 meals the next day!! And not just be reheating the leftovers but actually turning it into a whole new meal…Gluten Free of course!

Drew, my man, making us eggs on morning 1. Check out the 1950’s stove…two burners…only 3 heat levels…no spatula, plate, utensil or cooking oil anywhere in our condo. We purchased eggs, olive oil (in this pic behind Drew’s hand), avocado, forks, & styrofoam plates & using leftovers from the night before, made Mexican Eggs!…seasoned eggs, sautéed green onion & cactus, & melted mexican cheese (we couldn’t figure out what kind it was). Check out the finished product! Nutritious, full of protein, a few vitamins from veggies, and lean on fat! A real winner! Go Drew!

The other big adventure in food was our trip to El Supermercado today! A random rain storm came on shore this morning & stuck around until early this afternoon. It rained so hard that the streets flooded out completely & while we were in the market the power went on & off throughout our shopping experience. No one else seemed to notice or care, so maybe intermittent power is a normal thing in a rainstorm around here? Anyways, we videoed that & I’ll have those uploaded for you when I get home but in the interim, check out what we bought & what I cooked for lunch today…chicken & steak fajitas w/ yellow & red peppers sautéed in seasoning brought from the US & mashed avocado.

*It’s of note to mention that we are aware of the dangers of eating local food that has pesticides & may have Revenge of Montezuma germs on them. We will not be eating any raw veg while here and fruits eaten will only consist of those which have a hard rind to keep out any germs or potential sickness. We are also washing everything in purified water & taking probiotics (as usual) to ensure we stay on top of any potential vacation ruining germs.* Ok, now take a look at what I made! If we can make this happen in MX, you can certainly swing by the local Super Target back home & whip up something like this that is fresh & awesome for your body!

Sautéed chicken breast & red meat, peppers & cilantro, seasoned w/ chili powder brought from home. I know it’s not beautiful- I mean, it’s a plastic fork & styrofoam plate for goodness sake – but when you care more about how healthy your body stays, looks don’t matter, just as long as it’s healthy, full of goodness & easy on the wallet. Here we have high protein, and again, you’re getting good vitamins from the peppers & this meal only cost us $4.00 for two of us to eat! So eating healthy CAN actually be cheaper! I feel great about the margarita I drank while writing this post after eating this meal!! Right now, Drew is also eating a bag of tuna that we brought from the US mixed w/ salsa & cilantro & some GF crackers.

Let me tell you: We ate out lunch, dinner on Day 1, lunch, dinner on Day 2 & both days I felt really weighed down afterwards. As if the meal stayed with me all day. So far today, eating every meal from home, I feel light on my feet, energized, like I actually ate something good for me! It’s really worth it to plan your vacations to be aligned w/ your health expectations…doing anything less only sets you up to feel like garbage on the inside, to feel guilty about undoing all your hard work prior to the trip, and to make you regret spending your money on such expensive food.

We also paid $10.00 to workout in the facility here yesterday simply because we hadn’t yet found somewhere to hook up the TRX bands. We’ll be doing the TRX workout Wed & sending you pics from that! I’m telling you gang, if I can figure out how to do it down here, I know for sure that you can figure it out wherever you are. You just need to care enough to make it happen. And I know that you care deeply about your fitness & health goals!! Don’t let me down and miss out on the chance to live your most optimal life this week! I’ll be thinking of you all as I eat my healthy food & go for my workouts this week. I hope you’ll think of me, navigating the less-than-optimal-fitness world of a vacation as you make the choice for healthy behaviors instead of garbage behaviors this week!

Last thing for today…it’s time to get cleaned up for Monday Night Football…we’ll be holding a Mon Night Football Fajita party in our room complete w/ fajitas, margaritas, & w/ a little help from the swim-up bar downstairs, some chips & guac. We’re on vacay, but c’mon, it’s going to be a good game tonight! At this time two years ago, Drew & I were sitting in a tropical bar rooting on the Bears in either a Sun or Mon night game & it’s going to be fun to re-live the experience!- even if it’s not the Bears we’re rooting for this year.

Here’s one more upload from our trip – Drew buried my legs in the sand & then made me try & get out. Umbrella drinks or not, it’s hard to get out of 3 feet of sand! I also jumped off the top of the pool at our resort…life is about doing things you’ve never done before, the small fear that comes with doing something new can be what drives you or what holds you back. Neither Drew nor I would ever intentionally put ourselves into danger, but we appreciate the life God has given us & the situations we have worked with Him to get to i.e. vacation! & we’re not going to step away from a chance to expand on what we can do with this body & mind of ours, whether on vacation or in the working world, we have opportunities to do what we’ve never done before, and we’re going to do those things that we’ve never done to go where we’ve never gone. until we talk again… eat healthy! workout! think positively! Your health & fitness goals are SO worth it!

Impian petani dan pendukung kaum tani di dalam melepaskan diri dari jeratan teknologi kapitalis tampak akan terpenuhi dengan mulai maraknya praktik pertanian dengan input produksi organik.

Di tengah optimisme dan semangat mewujudkan impian tersebut, kekhawatran muncul bahwa mimpi tersebut akan tetap menjadi mimpi ketika terlalu besar harapan, yang kemudian memunculkan mitos.

Tanpa perhatian yang penuh, mitos ini akan menisbikan program bantuan pemerintah kepada petani, khususnya ketika pasar tidak melihat upaya ini sesuatu yang pantas mendapat premi.

Departemen Pertanian Amerika Serikat pada 1977 mendefinisikan pertanian organik sebagai sebuah sistem manajemen produksi berbasis agroekologi yang memacu dan mendorong keanekaragaman hayati, siklus biologi, dan aktivitas biologi tanah.

Praktiknya adalah penggunaan input luar-lahan minimal dan upaya memperkaya, mempertahankan, serta meningkatkan keharmonisan ekologi. Menurut Organisasi Pangan Dunia (FAO), tujuan utamanya adalah mengoptimalkan kesehatan dan produktivitas dari komunitas yang saling berketergantungan antara kehidupan dalam tanah, hewan, dan manusia.

Klaim atau doktrin yang banyak dianut oleh pelaku paham pertanian organik adalah bahwa organik lebih sehat daripada input kimia seolah ingin memanfaatkan momentum prevalensi pasar yang menuntut bahan makanan yang tidak mengandung unsur-unsur pemicu penyakit serius.

Dalam beberapa tahun terakhir pikiran konsumen secara sukarela dibawa oleh doktrin tersebut walaupun ada banyak kejanggalan dalam logika berpikir para penganut aliran pertanian organik.

Bukti sukses

Sebuah penelitian jangka panjang di Universitas Cornell memberikan gambaran menakjubkan tentang hasil pengamatan selama 22 tahun. Dibuktikan bahwa secara keseluruhan produksi jagung dan kedelai dari perlakuan pertanian organik relatif sama dengan pertanian konvensional yang menggunakan pupuk kimia buatan.

Keuntungannya adalah bahwa pertanian organik menghemat konsumsi energi (bahan bakar minyak) sebesar 30 persen, menahan air lebih lama di musim kering dan tidak memerlukan pestisida. Namun, hasil yang diperoleh pada empat tahun pertama produksinya 33 persen lebih rendah daripada perlakuan konvensional.

Setelah bahan organik terkumpul di dalam tanah, sejak tahun kelima produksinya mulai sama atau lebih tinggi daripada konvensional, terutama karena lebih tahan selama musim kering.

Dilaporkan pula bahwa pertanian organik mampu menyerap dan menahan karbon ( C ) sehingga sangat bermanfaat dalam mitigasi pemanasan global. Kandungan bahan organik tanah naik 15-28 persen yang setara dengan 1.500 kilogram CO2 dari udara.

Walaupun biaya produksi pada sistem pertanian organik 15 persen lebih tinggi daripada konvensional, dengan harga yang cukup baik pada tanaman sereal kenaikan ini tidak terlalu menjadi masalah. Sebaliknya, sistem pertanian organik tidak mampu memberikan keuntungan untuk tanaman anggur, apel, ceri, dan umbi-umbian.

Beberapa keberhasilan sejenis juga dilaporkan di Afrika, India, dan China. Namun, hasil-hasil tersebut masih menimbulkan pro dan kontra, terutama dari para ahli ilmu tanah yang tidak bisa menerima alasan bahwa hal tersebut semata-mata akibat organik versus kimia.

Mitos pertanian organik

Keberhasilan input organik dengan menggeser peran input kimia sebagai sebuah monumen inovasi dari Revolusi Hijau 60 tahun yang lalu semula dipandang sebelah mata oleh para ilmuwan ilmu tanah yang memahami dengan baik hubungan tanah dengan tanaman.

Namun, ketika gejala yang berkembang, khususnya di Amerika Serikat, makin mengkhawatirkan, beberaa pendapat mulai bermunculan. Salah satunya adalah yang diuraikan oleh Throckmorton (2007), seorang dekan dari Kansas Sate College.

Keberatannya terhadap doktrin pertanian organik adalah bahwa tidak mungkin peran pupuk kimia digantikan sepenuhnya oleh pupuk organik. Pertama, jika hal itu mungkin, dunia akan kekurangan biomassa untuk produksi pupuk organik karena dosisnya luar biasa besar.

Kedua, tanaman tidak hanya ditentukan oleh humus saja, tetapi oleh faktor-faktor lain seperti bahan organik aktif, nutrisi mineral tersedia, aktivitas mikroba tanah, aktivitas kimia dalam larutan tanah, dan kondisi fisik tanah.

Bahan organik tanah memang sering disebut sebagai “nyawa dari tanah” sebagai ekspresi dari perannya mendukung aktivitas mikroba tanah. Peran lain dari bahan ini memang diakui penting, tetapi bukan satu-satunya dalam pelarutan hara, pembenah tanah, dan kapasitas menahan air.

Fakta lain adalah bahwa bahan organik mengandung nutrisi tanaman sangat kecil. Klaim bahwa nutrisi asal bahan organik (kompos, pupuk organik) lebih “alami” dibandingkan asal pupuk kimia sangat tidak masuk akal, apalagi dihubungkan dengan kesehatan manusia.

Bukti empiris menunjukkan bahwa pada tanah organik (kadar bahan organik sangat tinggi) percobaan gandum, kentang, dan kubis di Amerika Serikat pada yang dipupuk kimia buatan mencapai 5 – 54 kali lebih besar daripada yang tidak dipupuk kimia. Satu bukti lain bahwa organik bukan satu-satunya unsur utama dalam produksi tanaman adalah sistem hidroponik.

Kebijakan pemerintah, seperti Go Organic 2010, penerbitan SNI Sistem Pangan organik (01-6729-2002), dan subsidi pupuk organik merupakan langkah-langkah kongkret yang perlu diawasi implementasinya. Di samping itu, pertimbangan yang mendalam perlu dilakukan dengan memerhatikan dampak krisis keuangan 2008.

Daya beli masyarakat menurun, seperti yang dilaporkan di Inggeris, berdampak stagnasi pada pertumbuhan produk pertanian organik pada tingkat 2 persen. Konsumen yang mengutamakan rupa daripada rasa juga tidak mudah berubah ke produk organik.

Di sisi lain, kemampuan produksi input organik untuk menopang produktivitas pangan yang dibutuhkan jauh dari memadai akibat keterbatasan dan terpencarnya bahan baku. Untuk itu, mitos-mitos yang terkait dengan produk organik harus dihapus dan diberikan pemahaman yang benar kepada petani.

Kombinasi optimal antara input anorganik dan organik akan mampu memenuhi persyaratanberbagai pihak, baik teknis, ekonomi, lingkungan, maupun kesehatan konsumen.

Sumber  :

Mitos Organik dalam Era Pertanian Modern, Didiek Hadjar Goenadi | Anggota Bidang Agribisnis – Komite Penanaman Modal, BKPM, dan Ketua Umum Asosiasi Inventor Indonesia
Kompas, 18.09.2009

Iseng-iseng jalan-jalan ke salah satu forum terbesar di Indonesia, kaskus.us, dapet bacaan kesehatan yang sangat menarik buat saya (mungkin juga buat Anda). Saat ini saya sudah mulai menjadi seorang pelupa, baik sengaja atau tidak . Lupa adalah manusiawi tapi ada kalanya sifat manusiawi tersebut tidak boleh muncul, beberapa diantaranya adalah ketika Anda duduk di kursi sebagai controller aktif, pilot yang sedang mengendalikan pesawat (kalo lagi yang lain gak dibahas disini ya ), dokter yang sedang menjalankan tugasnya, dan lain sebagainya. Misalkan sebagai controller yang sedang bertugas, Anda harus memerintahakan pilot untuk belok atau naik atau turun pada waktu yang sudah ditentukan (menggunakan rumus at or before, at or after, dsb. ) trus lupa, what will happen? You know the answer. Atau ketika pilot hendak mendaratkan bawaannya (pesawat maksudnya), trus lupa menurunkan landing gear, apa yang terjadi? Ya, headline koran besok adalah pesawat mendarat tanpa roda. Atau ketika dokter melakukan operasi (misalkan organ dalam perut) lupa mengeluarkan salah satu alatnya. Akibatnya pasti Anda tahu. Ya, yang sedang marak diberitakan belakangan ini, Malpraktik. Terkadang lupa yang manusiawi tersebut tidak lagi bisa dikatakan manusiawi. Untuk itu, Anda harus selalu optimalkan otak Anda. Caranya? Simak tulisan berikut.

Apakah Anda sering lupa nomor PIN atau password komputer? Hal itu mungkin disebabkan karena perubahan usia dan biasanya hal tersebut dialami oleh seseorang yang sedang memasuki usia 30 tahun. Untuk menghindari kejadian tersebut dan membuat otak tetap bisa bekerja secara optimal meskipun usia bertambah ada beberapa cara sederhana yang bisa Anda lakukan.

1. Olahraga

Lakukanlah olahraga secara teratur karena bisa mencegah penurunan fungsi otak. Tim peneliti dari Beckman Institute dari University of Illinois, Amerika Serikat mereview beberapa penelitian tentang hubungan olahraga dengan fungsi otak. Mereka menemukan bahwa aerobik bisa meningkatkan kerja otak dan menambah volume jaringan pada otak. Selain aerobik, berjalan juga cukup efektif mengoptimalkan kerja otak.

Tips : Berjalanlah minimal 3 kali dalam satu minggu selama 50 menit. Tidak hanya membuat badan menjadi sehat, kerja otak Anda semakin maksimal.

2. Sikat gigi
Menurut tim dari “British psychiatrists and dentists”, kesehatan gigi dan mulut berhubungan langsung dengan kesehatan otak. Hal itu diketahui setelah tim melakukan survei pada orang berusia 20 hingga 59 tahun. Peneliti menemukan gingivitis dan penyakit gigi lain berefek buruk pada fungsi kognitif otak seseorang di kemudian hari.

Tips: Sikat gigi setiap Anda selesai makan. Jangan biarkan sisa makanan menempel di gigi karena bisa memicu lubang pada gigi.

3. Bermain puzzle
Anda bisa menemani anak Anda bermain puzzle atau bermain puzzle sendiri. Dengan menyusun puzzle Anda merangsang kemampuan kognitif otak. Percobaan yang dilakukan oleh tim peneliti dari University of Alabama yang melibatkan 3.000 lansia pria dan wanita, menunjukkan bahwa setelah bermain puzzle selama 60 hingga 75 menit otak bekerja lebih optimal.

Tips : Saat waktu senggang, bermainlah puzzle atau mengisi teka-teki silang. Kegiatan tersebut bisa memberikan tantangan pada otak Anda. Agar suasana seru, ajaklah pasangan, teman atau anak Anda.

4. Meditasi
Tidak hanya mengurangi stres dan tekanan pada pikiran, meditasi juga meningkatkan kerja lapisan korteks pada otak. Hal itu diketahui dari penelitian yang dilakukan tim dari Massachusetts General Hospital. Penelitian menunjukan seseorang yang sering bermeditasi kerja korteks lebih maksimal dibandingkan yang tidak bermeditasi.
Tips : Meditasi baiknya dilakukan 40 menit setiap hari, tetapi Anda bisa memulainya dengan bermeditasi selama 15 menit sebelum berangkat kerja. Duduk dengan posisi bersila, pejamkan mata, ambil nafas dalam-dalam dan buang secara perlahan.

5. Musik/Seni
Leonardo da Vinci berpikir dengan cara menyeimbangkan otak kiri (seni–>musik dll) dan otak kanan (pelajaran)… cara ini lebih memaksimal kan kinerja kedua otak sehingga semua menjadi seimbang dan tetap fokus.

6. Pola Makan Yang Baik
Berilah otakmu makanan yang mengandung anti oksidan dan omega 3 untuk memaksimalkan daya kerja saraf… sehingga otak mampu meningkatkan kinerjanya sampai kebatas maksimal.

7. Menggali Ingatan
Lihatlah kembali album foto lama atau buku tahunan sekolah anda. Otak anda adalah sebuah mesin ingatan, jadi biarkanlah ia bekerja supaya tidak berkarat. Ketika mendapat informasi yang baru, usahakan untuk membuat kaitan dengan informasi yang lama… Jadikanlah sesuatu yang telah kamu hafal sebagai tempat bergantung dan terus diulang tanpa harus melupakannya. Caranya adalah dengan mengingat informasi secara terus menerus sehingga kita membangun bank memori di otak kita…

8. Kreativitas
Kemampuan kreatif seringkali membuat kita dapat mengolah dan mengadaptasi solusi dari satu bidang ke bidang lainnya, dan dari satu pengalaman ke pengalaman yang lainnya… sehingga otak akan terus ter-asah kemampuannya, Mempelajari dan mengulang atau melatih pelajaran dan keahlian yang baru dapat mengubah sistem organisasi di dalam otak… Latihan berkesinambungan membuat daya kerja otak meningkat dibandingkan dengan mereka yang tidak pernah melatih otaknya…

As we grow older, one thing we get really good at is telling “our story.” Our story is made up of everything that got us to where we are now. What our story was not meant  to be, though, was a crutch- or explanation-  for why we are (or are not) one thing or another.

A new day dawns on your story...where will you take it today?

I get the pleasure of being a part of many peoples’ lives as they venture into the realm of fitness education via the many fitness consultations I do each week. At this meeting, we sit down & they get to tell me about why they are the way they are, how they got to where they are today, and where they want to get to (which is where I come in!). And time and again, while I appreciate hearing them tell their story & empathizing with each individual, I’m stunned by how one thing kept them from optimal fitness or wellness, which led to another thing, and 3o years later, it’s snowballed into joints that do not move, 50 extra pounds, posture that is painful & crumbling, or diseases that are now requiring big-time dollars to be spent on prescriptions & doctor visits.

We all need to pay attention to whether our “story” is remaining as a descriptive narrative of where we came from and what we did to get there or if it is starting to mold who we become in the future. Something that happened to us in the past does not have to be what determines who you become in the future – however all too often people fall into that very slump. If we allow what we used to be, or what we used to do or not do, determine who we are becoming 30 years later – we are relegating our lives to be only that which we can see already, rather than that which we cannot yet see on the horizon.

What you used to do is not a reliable indicator of what you’re going to do now – unless you fulfill your own prophecy.

What happened to you in the past is not a Magic 8 Ball predictor of what’s going to happen to you in the future – unless you want it to be.

What you’ve never done before is the worst predictor of what you will or won’t do in the future.

But all too often, this is exactly what happens. Many people, without even realizing it, are using things that were part of their story 10 years ago to explain things that are a part of who they are now or will be moving forward. And this should not be the case at all. In fact, if we stop and think of it, many of us, would wish nothing less than to be labeled by how we were in our youth, or our reckless 20’s, or in our self-serving-career 30’s- or whatever your “less than your best” part of your story was.

Each person has the choice every day to re-invent themselves as someone who learned from the mistakes of yesterday, to grow from the choices of last week & to decide that today is just as good as any day to totally re-define life as they know it. We must simply choose to recognize that we are not victims of our circumstance, in fact, we create our circumstance! And one thing that happens today, should in no way determine the ultimate fate of all that you are.

This is so vitally important with health & fitness because we are never sitting still on the road to or from health. We are either moving toward more optimal health or further away from it. Our body is continuously sending signals out that tell body parts to either keep growing, renewing parts for younger, more vital organs OR to break down & decay without growing any new, youthful parts to replace them. So regardless of if you worked out every day for 10 years but quit when you got married, or if you never exercised because ‘that’s just not what people your age did,’ there is no time like the present to get yourself on the path to being the most optimally health, fit & well you.

Your story may have said one thing about you in the past, but with the awareness to revise your story regularly, you’ll write a whole new chapter in no time & may just be pleasantly surprised at the chapters that come along after that!

The angst of decision making can, at times, be overwhelming. Where should I study? What should my major be? What kind of career do I want and what track am I on? Should I marry, and if so, who? Pop Tarts or Toaster Strudel? Recently, the multimedia online magazine, FLYP, highlighted a piece on decision making and the human brain entitled, “Make Up Your Mind.” The basic premise of the piece is based on a study by the University of Rochester asserting that the brain is hardwired to make the best decision possible and that decisions made at the subconscious or “gut” level are often more reliable than decisions made with significant deliberation. You can check it out by following or copy/pasting this link:

http://www.flypmedia.com/issues/35/#4/1

Participants in the study were asked to observe complicated phenomena, then with little time to evaluate their observations, make a decision and give a conclusion. The studies suggested that more optimal decisions were made with the information at hand with less deliberation. The article then extrapolates that larger decisions such as which house or car to buy, or who you should marry would better be made with less deliberation and more at a gut level…

Really?

That’s interesting because with little deliberation, my gut level response to this assertion is that it’s bunk.

To be sure, as the piece mentions, we make countless reliable subconscious decisions throughout the course of our day. They are nearly automatic functions such as opening the correct cupboard to get out the appropriate bowl for our Fruity Pebbles. But can that really be extrapolated into larger, course of life affecting decisions? (At this point all you chaos theorists can just relax about the universal significance of every action) I think the conclusions of these studies and this piece draw out a couple of questions.

First, what is the purpose of deliberation? The studies cited suggest that deliberation is the process whereby data is evaluated and acted upon. It is suggested that all relevant data is gathered subconsciously then evaluated and computed subconsciously by the brain for the optimal response. It is then implied that our deliberation only takes into account conscious observations, leaving out data that should be considered. However, within the study is the claim that our brains subconsciously make the optimal decision with “the information at hand”. So perhaps deliberation should allow for additional insights to inform our initial observations. In which case deliberation is paramount to making a decision that is not just optimal at the moment, with the information at hand, but is most beneficial for the long term.

Second, how is “optimal” evaluated? In controlled, measureable clinical studies, “optimal” must be quantifiable, and variables must be restricted. All gatherable information must be gatherable at the time of the study so that a rubric of “optimal” may be possible. But isn’t “optimal” a determination largely based on a person’s presuppositions and worldview, regardless of the accuracy of those presuppositions against reality? “Optimal” then becomes an exclusively individual evaluation that is determined and restricted by the subject’s own brain based only on the information it has gathered in its own time, place and interpretation of experiences and has little to no clinical objectivity whereby a rubric could be constructed and measure could be made.

Additionally, any clinical research inherently has a difficulty taking into consideration spiritual realities that cannot be quantified in a lab. The Apostle Paul cautions the Ephesian believers not to live the way they did before their faith in Christ, following “deceitful desires.” Another presupposition of this study is that our subconscious observations and interpretations are accurate to reality and not swayed by our own spiritual condition. When our spiritual condition is considered, not only is deliberation not obstructive to “optimal” decision making, but it is imperative. Each of us must take time to consider the veracity of our observations and interpretations thereof. I believe this is why the same Paul implores the Roman believers to renew their minds so as to test and approve – determine as “optimal” – God’s will and not simply our brain’s mechanical functions operating under the influence of deceitful desires.

So what is a Biblical response to this? I think it’s to take all of these things into account. There are ways in which we ought to put a little more stock into our initial processing of information and ability to make reliable snap decisions. However, when considering large scale decisions of life and future, prayerful deliberation in a faith community is imperative. We must be patient and willing to prayerfully mull over the information at hand, seeking spiritual wisdom to determine the actual reliability of our observation and interpretation and not disregard our ability to deceive ourselves simply to indulge desires. We must be willing to subject the information at hand to other and Biblical information in order to compile as extensive database as possible from which to decide what is truly “optimal.” We must also be willing and subject our processing to others who will participate in the process with us, showing us our blind spots and deceptions, adding wisdom and alternate perspectives. The book of Proverbs alone is replete with admonition to this end. I think the whole of ancient Hebrew wisdom literature and Apostolic instruction would defy any other understanding of wise decision making.

One of the most recurring questions that crops up in software development is ‘what size of software team is optimal?’ It’s a tricky question and consensus seems as far away as ever.

There is a school of thought which suggests that smaller teams are considerably more effective, per person, than larger ones. The theory goes that the overhead required to organise and manage a smaller team is proportionately lower than that of a larger team. As team numbers increase, in fact, this overhead appears to increase exponentially.

Why should this be? Well, there are a number of factors, including:

• Communication
  The more people need to know, the greater the time spent propagating information and ideas, and the larger the risk of those ideas being misunderstood;
• Diversity
  Generally a good thing, in an effective software team it can be difficult to ‘carry’ anyone whose skill-set and experience doesn’t closely match to the tasks in hand. Diversity is nice, but when there’s a job to do it’s better to have a few specialists than many generalists;
• Division of tasks
  Splitting larger tasks into smaller ones makes sense but it requires careful planning and resourcing, and runs an increased risk of ‘compartmentalisation’ of knowledge;
• Personality issues
  The greater the number of participants, the larger the likelihood of conflicts, fallings-out and so on. Also, more people mean that people have smaller individual stakes in the outcome of the project and may feel that their contributions are less valuable;
• Environmental issues
  It is always trickier to locate a larger team together due to space constraints so larger teams may end up having to be split into two or more physical locations. This creates difficulties with communication, co-operation and dilutes the sense of ‘belonging’ that a smaller team located in one place would have.

In fact, a smaller team can be considerably more efficient than a larger team for a majority of software projects. And this is after taking into consideration the fact that a smaller team will have fewer ‘man days’ available within a fixed period. With the right people on board, a smaller team can be twice as productive per person as in a larger team, due to the considerably lower organisational overhead.

So, who are the ‘right people’?

There is a strong body of evidence to show that the very best individuals can be five or ten times as productive as even averagely competent individuals, when given the opportunity to release that productivity. This opportunity occurs only when the structure of the team permits rather than obstructs performance.

In other words, the team is small enough so that communication is direct and timely, meetings are short and only when required and management’s role is less one of fighting the bureaucracy and ‘red tape’ and more one of enablement and facilitation. The interaction between team members, playing to individuals’ strengths, promotes a synergy that is very rare in larger teams.

A smaller team, composed of talented individuals who have sizeable responsibility, enthusiasm and whose workflow is not impeded by the overhead of larger team issues, can achieve great things.

“Innovation always has been driven by a person or a small team that has the luxury of thinking of a new idea and pursuing it. There are no counter examples.”
– Eric Schmidt, Google.

The power of small teams is in achieving great things with minimal waste – and in this sense our original question ‘what size of software team is optimal’ might be answered as follows:

The optimal software team size is as small as one can get away with whilst still achieving the goals.

I know this doesn’t really commit to a particular number, and of course everything is dependent on the quality of the people in the team, the scope of the work to be carried out, the environment in which that work needs to be carried out and countless other factors, but if we had to be drawn on a number, we’d say that the very best software teams are composed of less than ten individuals in total. Generally speaking, of course…

FITUR PENCARIAN DASAR

1.
AND: Mencari informasi yang mengandung kedua kata yang dicari. Bisa menggunakan salah satu dari tiga alternatif berikut:
ukiran jepara
ukiran AND jepara
ukiran+jepara
2.
OR: Mencari informasi yang mengandung salah satu dari kedua kata. Bisa menggunakan salah satu dari dua alternatif berikut:
tahu OR tempe
tahu | tempe
3.
FRASE: Mencari informasi yang mengandung frase yang dicari dengan menggunakan tanda “”. Contoh:
“perangkat lunak”
4.
NOT: Hasil pencarian mengandung kata yang di depan, tapi tidak yang dibelakang minus (-). Contoh di bawah akan mencari informasi yang mengandung kata ikan tapi bukan bandeng.
ikan -bandeng
5.
SINONIM (~): Mencari kata beserta sinonim-sinonimnya. Contoh di bawah akan membawa hasil pencarian: kendaraan (car) dan sinonim-sinonimnya.
~car
6.
ASTERIK (*): Karakter pengganti kata. Dari contoh di bawah, hasil yang didapat bisa: ayam bakar pedas, ayam goreng pedas, ayam masak pedas, dsb
ayam * pedas
7.
TANDA TITIK (.): Karakter pengganti huruf, angka dan karakter tunggal. Dari contoh di bawah, hasil yang didapat bisa: kopi, koki, kodi, dsb
ko.i
8.
CASE INSENSITIVE: Pencarian di Google menganggap kapital dan bukan kapital sebagai sesuatu yang sama. Jadi, romi satria wahono, Romi Satria Wahono, atau RoMi SaTrIA waHoNo akan membawa hasil pencarian yang sama
9.
PENGABAIAN KATA: Google mengabaikan keyword berupa karakter tunggal dan kata-kata berikut: a, about, an, and, are, as, at, b, by, from, how, i , in, is, it, of, on, or, that, the, this, to, we, what, when, where, which, with. Apabila kita masih tetap menginginkan pencarian kata tersebut, bisa dengan menggunakan karakter + di depan kata yang dicari (contoh: Star Wars Episode +I), atau bisa juga dengan menganggapnya sebagai frase (contoh: “Star Wars Episode I”)
10.
I’M FEELING LUCKY: Akan membawa kita langsung menuju ke hasil pencarian pertama dari query kita

FITUR PENCARIAN LANJUT

1.
DEFINE: Mencari definisi dari sebuah terminologi. Dari contoh di bawah, hasil yang didapat adalah berbagai definisi tentang e-learning dari berbagai sumber
define:e-learning
2.
CACHE: Menampilkan situs web yang telah diindeks oleh Google meskipun sudah tidak aktif lagi. Contoh di bawah akan menghasilkan pencarian kata php pada situs ilmukomputer.com yang ada di indeks Google.
cache:ilmukomputer.com php
3.
LINK: Menampilkan daftar link yang mengarah ke sebuah situs. Contoh di bawah akan menampilkan daftar link yang mengarah ke situs ilmukomputer.com
link:ilmukomputer.com
4.
RELATED: Menampilkan daftar situs yang serupa, mirip atau memiliki hubungan dengan suatu situs
related:romisatriawahono.net
5.
INFO: Menampilkan informasi yang Google ketahui tentang sebuah situs
info:romisatriawahono.net
6.
SITE: Menampilkan pencarian khusus di suatu situs yang ditunjuk
java site:ilmukomputer.com
7.
FILETYPE: Menampilkan hasil pencarian berupa suatu jenis (ekstensi) file tertentu. Jenis file yang bisa dicari adalah: doc, xls, rtf, swf, ps, lwp, wri, ppt, pdf, mdb, txt, dsb. Contoh di bawah akan menampilkan hasil pencarian berupa file PDF yang mengandung keyword software engineering
software engineering filetypedf
8.
ALLINTITLE: Menampilkan seluruh kata yang dicari dalam TITLE halaman. Contoh di bawah akan menghasilkan halaman yang memiliki title java programming. allintitle ini tidak dapat digabungkan dengan operator (sintaks) lain. Gunakan intitle untuk keperluan itu.
allintitle:java programming
9.
INTITLE: Menampilkan satu kata yang dicari dalam TITLE halaman. Contoh di bawah akan menghasilkan halaman yang memiliki title java dan isi halaman yang mengandung kata enterprise
intitle:java enterprise
10.
ALLINURL: Menampilkan seluruh kata yang dicari di dalam URL. Contoh di bawah akan menghasilkan daftar URL yang mengandung kata java dan programming. allinurl ini tidak dapat digabungkan dengan operator (sintaks) lain. Gunakan inurl untuk keperluan itu.
allinurl:java programming
11.
INURL: Menampilkan satu kata yang dicari di dalam URL. Contoh di bawah akan menghasilkan daftar URL yang mengandung kata java dan isi halaman yang mengandung kata enterprise
inurl:java enterprise

Thank you DustBusterCombo for the toys, Biyan for being the model.

Lantai Papan Rasamala bekas. Dipasang melintang miring.

Tangga ke Mezzanine tidur..

First off, if you need my help to submit your CVs, donate to the blog, and I’ll review your CV to see if it is worthy of my (and my associates’) expectations. If you can’t figure out how to donate, you are definitely Cylon fodder.

• Optimal (tagline Optimise your Career Potential) is looking for a Reliability Engineer. Hmmm, do you Kertehians want to apply? Visit their website, or apply here.
• Our favourite Saudi recruiter, SABIC, is at it again, looking for Project Managers and Senior Project Engineers. You can apply via email here.

No makan-makan comments this week, I’m afraid. Cheap and cheerful, Subang Square Business Center place are (channeling Yoda this week).

…and they were doing a hundred mph at the time.

slow down for health news!

Day after day another study is published, another article comes out, another expert is teaching us about just how dangerous fast food, soda, genetically modified food, pesticides on produce, hormones in meat & dairy, processed/refined foods are & yet, there are many humans who blow past those warnings like Thelma & Louise running from the law, as if slowing down might actually cause those warnings to sink in to the deeper layers of the cerebellum & make an impact.

I mean for goodness sake – we’ve known FOR-EV-ER that cigarettes WILL shorten & decrease the quality of your life, WILL decrease your immune system & decrease your cardio capacity & recently, WILL smoke you out of house & home with how much they cost - & yet, buckets of people smoke every single day.

When the warning is to us about something we are doing to hurt ourselves, we seem to rarely pick our heads up out of the McD’s long enough to listen. Yet, something that is unique though – when it comes to heeding a warning about something you’re doing that is going to negatively impact a child, a majority of the population not only listens, but heeds the warning. For example, when we were educated about how harmful nicotine & alcohol are to unborn fetuses, women listened & quit their harmful habits, no matter how difficult. (There are some who did not & will not, but they are the tiny minority & we’re not talking about there). Why is it any different when we are taking care of ourselves? 

Yet another awesome article came out yesterday on Yahoo! news about the serious implications drinking pop will have on your health- even if it is diet, even if it’s “only” (there’s that ‘only’ again! see post: Let’s make a pact this holiday…) 1 a day. And today a great article reflecting more research showing that a high-fat, highly processed diet is linked to increased depressive states in those consuming that food. ( Some of us know this stuff already, but for the majority of humans, it seems to require constant review.) Links to articles are at the bottom…

I know that people have the right to choose how they want to live their life, but what does it take for someone to realize that just because McD’s invented another way to deliver fat, salt & sugar into your body it does not mean that it fits into your nutritional profile in any way, shape or form.

Take a moment, slow down, and realize that you actually should be making some cerebellum contact with the decision-making process of ‘is this the right thing for me?’ or ‘is this a less than optimal choice for me?’ The truth is that you are the driver of your body, and the goal is not to take away all of the fun of driving around a topless convertible. You are the driver, and the goal is to have as much fun as possible & enjoy as much of God’s great earth as we can – that means all the things that were here originally- blueberries, fish, bison if you’re into red meat – your taste buds were originally hardwired for that, and it is only us, the drivers, who have overridden that.

If you let the latest fad diet or workout rule your body, it’s like relying entirely on Garmin to get you around the world. You’ll probably never actually know how to get anywhere & when it’s time for you to make a decision (like when the Garmin says go right, and you just have this feeling you should be going left) you may be left standing at the literal fork in the road.

http://health.yahoo.com/experts/drmao/20270/what-soft-drinks-are-doing-to-your-body/

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20091102/hl_afp/lifestylebritainhealthresearch

I hear a collective groan from you all in regard to me posting about “THE HOLIDAYS” already. But I had a thought

be welcoming of all that the next 60 days will bring

 today. Yes, just one. But it was a good one in my opinion. Here it is:

People tend to get a little cranky about how early Walmart puts up their holiday displays & how often Martha Stewarts’ Holiday specials start running on cable (you’ll never be as good a crafter as her, so don’t waste time worrying about it). In my grocery shopping today, I saw that from Friday to today, gone was the Halloween candy & thanks to some under-the-cover-of-night-holiday elves, the shelves were now stocked with holiday cookie dough, different flavored chocolate chips for holiday baking & extra rows of whipped cream with cans of pumpkin stacked neatly below.

It’s “only” the first week of Nov, but folks, it’s the first week of Nov. This type of thinking is the same thing that gets us into trouble with our fitness & nutrition goals as well….”but it’s ‘only’ 1 cookie…’only’ 1 week of skipped workouts…’only’ one breakfast a week that I pick up from Dunkin Donuts.” When we justify a situation by saying it’s “only 1 time”, we’re really only giving ourselves an ‘out’ for when we don’t meet our goals.

You don’t have to be ‘holiday-perfect’ all the time. And I wouldn’t want you to be. It took me a long time to learn that lesson- being an only child, I was pretty sure I was perfect- but I’m so grateful that now I know perfection is a myth.

So why would we be annoyed by the fact that the holidays are being brought upon us earlier & earlier? So you can begin thinking about your loved ones & what you’d like to prepare for them as a gift of love & gratitude this year? So you can bubble up from a deep hiding place the joys you remember as a child of holiday songs, gifts, traditions, memories…admit it…at least once in the holiday season something hits you that makes get all warm & fuzzy & remember why you loved-loved-loved the holidays as a kid.

So here’s my thought: Let’s make a pact this holiday season, that you use that Positive Mental Attitude you’ve been working on all year to welcome the holiday season (no matter your faith or denomination), welcome what the holiday season brings with it…cheerful carols, the chance to be with friends & family more times in the next 60 days than many people get in the whole year, reminders around every corner that special people in your life deserve special things (material or intangible), opportunities to join up with friends and loved ones to create new memories & traditions (baking cookies, festively decorating the house, serving in a local shelter for the less fortunate, watching “A Christmas Carol” or “A Charlie Brown Christmas” for the 1,000th time)…because really, you have two ways to look at the next 60 days…

…as a welcome friend that brings with it happy memories, moments of remembrance of loved ones’ no longer in this place celebrating with you, chances to smile at something so tiny-the red Starbucks cups- you know it’s holiday season when the red cups show up! All this great stuff that gives you an added to spark to your already Positive Mental Attitude!

…or, as an annoying, stressful, bah humbug time that you wish would just go away. Well, hate to break it to you, but just as I coach you on taking a positive action on your fitness goals, it would be wise to do the same as we enter this holiday season because just like that fitness goal you have yet to achieve, it doesn’t just go away on its own & it will be much more tolerable to work with if you try to have a little fun with it!

So here’s our pact: We, the people, are excited for the upcoming holidays & all that they will bring. We will be calm rather than stressed when thinking of all that comes with this season. We will go at the cookie-baking, dinner-making, gift-making/buying/creating with excitement for the people we’re creating it for & in anticipation of the joy that will come from our delivery of said cookies/dinners/gifts. We’ll remember that for many, this holiday season is a reminder of their faith & return to our own faith or explore a new one to progress our spiritual well-being. And when someone complains about yet another too-early holiday display, we’ll remind them that really, it is lucky for us all that it comes early because it gives us plenty of time to enjoy the whole experience.

I’m serious. Try to enjoy yourself this holiday season, it does your fitness goals no good to pile on another stressor in your life.

pregnancy cures

The Center for Disease Ascendancy CDC abashed America with its acknowledgment that the assay of brainy affliction in this canton is actual common. The CNN account declaring antidepressants achievement the best accepted assay advance throughout the world. This accomplishment can construe to about one out of every ten bodies adversity with depressive illness. What does that beggarly for women diagnosed with depressive affliction or those with cogent ancestors histories who are in their bearing years

In my assessment as a a board-certified psychiatrist women who plan their pregnancies accept bigger outcomes. My analytic acquaintance in alleviative this citizenry was the base for my accolade acceptable book The Abundance Decision Handbook for Women with Depression. A accepted allegory prevails that abundance cures all medical problems abnormally affection disorders. Unfortunately. changeable hormones are not necessarily careful adjoin brainy illness. In actuality abounding illnesses can potentially aggravate and abode females at accident during pregnancy.

How do you plan for abundance if you accept problems with depression First you accept to anxiously assay the after-effects of your illness. Anxiously detail your affection of abasement back they are at their worst. This exercise will force you to accede the appulse of abundance in either direction with advance or deepening of your baseline symptoms. Depressive behaviors such as beddy-bye disturbance appetence changes absorption problems activity drains abrupt and cocky annihilative accomplishments should be acclaimed and you cannot accept they will disappear. Now that you accept abundant your symptoms. it is time to outline a plan of action.

Many females with affection problems accept an added accident of oops babies. In added words adventitious pregnancies action best generally back affection alternation is present. Babies conceived in the bosom of cogent depressive affliction are at accident for added acknowledgment to medication. The Abundance Decision Handbook for Women with Depression highlights assay considerations and options. It appears that a anxious application of abundance requires both accepting of the assay and accepting of the severity of illness. Mild severity is advised to accept few affection and does not absolute the adeptness to action daily. Moderate severity is advised to accept a few affection which can accomplish circadian alive an accessible struggle. Severe affliction is the assay for those individuals who ache with about all the archetypal arbiter affection of abasement and those affection impede their adeptness to function. They may additionally generally crave assay because of cocky annihilative impulsivity or claimed neglect.

Once you accept decided forth with your brainy bloom professional the assay which will abode you at your affecting best abutting is the application of your baby. All treatments of illnesses accept altered accident profiles. Medication options in particular charge to be adjourned from a accident against account assay agnate to that of all medical treatments. Diseases of the heart pancreas and lungs are not acknowledging to wishes for a cure. The brain achievement addition basic organ will added than acceptable additionally not acknowledge to a ambition for a cure. Severe affection of abasement will crave alive treatment. If medication is the assay selected the ambition is the mother’s stability which will in about-face accommodate the best aftereffect for the baby. Mothers who are decidedly depressed are added acceptable to smoke cigarettes corruption booze and drugs and be ample during their pregnancies. The requirements of cocky and prenatal affliction can be cutting back one is depressed. The affection of low activity and poor concentration generally accomplished in depression can lilmit the adeptness of an alert mom to be adjustable with the prenatal requirements.

Many accept feared assay of abasement because the continued appellation furnishings are unknown. Unfortunately accepting no assay has its own risks. We apperceive that women with alive depressive affliction are at college accident for preterm delivery. It is accepted than an access in accent hormones accomplished in abasement can abnormally affect the placental arteries. Others agenda that the behaviors associated with alive depressive affliction can activate preterm commitment and poor outcome. Overall the science of abasement suggests that alive affliction is not a acceptable indicator for a advantageous baby.

In summary it is my assessment that women with abasement charge to be proactive with their illness. If you admit affection of abasement and accept a ancestors history of depression get diagnosed by a brainy bloom professional. Once diagnosed aspire to access assay which will acquiesce you to accomplish your optimal akin of evidence control. Create a abutment aggregation as discussed in my book to advice you accomplish your goals. Abasement is an illlness in which you can get absent with abrogating thoughts and behaviors. So plan for your babyish and chase your recommended assay plan developed with your brainy bloom professional. Achievement at your affecting best with your articular arrangement of support you will access the likelihood of accomplishing the ambition of a advantageous baby.

The iceberg effect in research: how theorems can be lost