Craving something sweet? Try this cacao, banana and avocado smoothie. It’s the ultimate sweet fix. The combination of banana, cacao, dates, avocado, almond milk and almond butter is too incredible as each glass is just so deliciously smooth, rich, creamy and chocolatey. Yet still so wonderfully light and, even better, so speedy to make – literally three minutes from cupboard to cup. It’s like a new and improved take on chocolate milk, just a million times healthier! The over-ripe banana, dates and drop of agave really make this so unbelievably sweet, it’s almost hard to believe that it is natural. Trust me, everyone will love this. It was such a hit in the flat last night that we ended up licking the blender clean! It’s just that good. So sweet, so natural, so easy. Recipes like this really make not eating processed sugar, chocolate and candy too easy. I never would have thought I’d say it, but Haribo, Ben & Jerrys or Cadburys, could never taste more delicious than this.
Avocado may seem like a weird addition to the ingredient list here, but it is the magic ingredient as it makes the smoothie so irresistibly creamy. It really works to replace yoghurt, which would normally be used in smoothies. Not only does the avocado make the texture a trillion times better, but it also really vamps up the health properties of this drink as it is such a super food. One of the most awesome things a bout avocados is that they’ve been shown to really increase the absorption of all the vitamins and minerals of the foods eaten with them, meaning you’ll get even more goodness from all the other ingredients. They’re also great sources of vitamins E, K and B, all of which help to keep your body strong by regulating your metabolism, keeping your bones strong and keeping your skin glowing. As well as having serious anti-inflammatory properties, promoting blood sugar regulation and containing a great portion of fibre. So much goodness in one vegetable!
Peel the banana and avocado, discarding their skins and pit the dates.
Then, simply place all of the ingredients into the blender, blend for 2 minutes until smooth.
Pour, sip and love.
A dica de hoje foi dada por Adriana Fonseca no blog Papo de Empreendedor.
Sabe quando você precisa caprichar naquela apresentação de slides ou em um material promocional da sua empresa e não tem imagens bacanas para usar? Seus problemas acabaram.
Segue uma lista de 10 sites com imagens bacanas:
Veer é um site que oferece fotos gratuitas e pagas. Toda semana eles selecionam algumas imagens e colocam na galeria “de graça”.
Public-Domain-Photos oferece mais de 5 mil fotos gratuitas e mais de 8 mil ilustrações. Todas são de domínio público e você pode usá-las com qualquer propósito, inclusive comercial. Fique atento, no entanto, às imagens que contêm logotipos e produtos.
Pixel Perfect Digital oferece fotos tiradas por fotógrafos amadores ou semi-profissionais com looks naturais – nada de modelos posando para fotos.
Image After tem fotos gratuitas separadas por temas – arquitetura, indústria, natureza, etc. Mas seja cuidadoso, pois há um monte de anúncios no site incentivando o usuário a pagar por sites de fotos.
Design Packs oferece pacotes de fotos gratuitos prontos para download, como o de flores e o de dinheiro.
Free Range Stock é uma comunidade de fotógrafos sustentada por anúncios – os fotógrafos são pagos quando os internautas clicam nos anúncios que aparecem na tela.
Cepolina é um site com mais de 16 mil imagens de viagens e natureza. Além de organizadas por categorias, as fotos também são selecionadas por cores, o que ajuda a encontrar algo que combine com o fundo do seu site, por exemplo
Stock.XCHNG foi comprado pela Getty Images, mas por enquanto ainda é de graça. São mais de 350 mil imagens de qualidade de mais de 30 mil fotógrafos diferentes.
Morguefile oferece imagens de graça para uso pessoal e comercial. O site também abre espaço para que novos fotógrafos disponibilizem suas fotos ali.
Toasto é um site simples de fotos gratuitas tiradas por um único fotógrafo. Você pode escolher as imagens por categorias, entre elas paisagens, flores e conceitos e ideias.
Para melhorar ainda mais suas apresentações, recomendo o post: Características de uma boa apresentação no Power Point.
With the rapid progression of technology each year, it's easy to accumulate a pile of obsolete gadgets that you just can't bear to get rid of. So don't! Here are our top 10 ways you can take the retired gadgets you've already got and turn them into something that has a solid place in the future.
We've seen how easy it is to turn an iPod touch into an iPhone using a few tricks and some sort of VOIP service, and it's just as easy with an old phone—so long as you have a constant Wi-Fi connection. It can be nice to have a home phone or two you can use to answer calls when your cellphone isn't handy, you don't have great reception, and you don't want to leave the VOIP app unattended. So grab a mobile copy of Skype, Fring, Line2, or whatever, and leave it open and ready on your old mobile device. It'll wait for someone to call it, or you can just pick it up and, say, order a pizza without the fear of yet another dropped call.
Radios and routers aren't exactly technology of the future—more of the past and present, really—but when you combine them with the internet you've suddenly got a pretty awesome device for streaming music. The process isn't even that complicated. All you really need is a particular wireless router (the Asus WL-520GU is recommended in this case) and a USB sound card. Pretty neat.
When you buy a new laptop, or even a monitor monitor, these days you're almost guaranteed a built-in webcam. That's great, but what do you do with your old bulky, USB-cabled micro-camera? You use it as a security monitor for your home. You can even make it motion-sensing. Better to have it catching criminals than collecting dust, right?
Maybe wind power is the future and maybe it's not, but we're headed towards something sustainable so you might as well get started now. If you'd like a means of recharging your batteries without relying on an outlet, create this wind turbine out of an old PC fan. This project involves a little hacking and tinkering, but it's worth it just to have power anywhere the wind blows.
Most kids born in the last decade don't know whiteout from Britney Spears, so someday you're going to hear the question "did you really used to read books on paper?" Perhaps it's time to accept the inevitable and realize that the medium we know as print is a bit more ephemeral than we may like. But losing our books isn't an option, so the only thing we can really do is take an old projector and turn it into a book scanner, of course! If you've got the time, patience, or lower-level employee you can torture, this little project will finally help you evolve those dead tree tomes into their next state of being.
Netbooks had their moment, but their sales are dwindling thanks to the popularity of the tablet. If you wish your netbook actually was a tablet, you're not really out of luck. Just turn it into one. (That linked post even includes software we made to provide it with a heads up display to make it feel even more touch-friendly.) It's not going to be as magical as an iPad, but it's a fun upgrade for a computer you may not use so much anymore. Alternatively, you can do the same with an old MacBook if you've got one of those lying around instead.
4. Build a Cellphone-Powered Robot
Even your old cellphone, smart or not, has enough power to create a personal robot. The video to the left is proof of how an old mobile can create a "cardboard truckbot." The additional parts you'll need will only cost you $30, and Cellbots provides instructions on how to put it all together. You've likely got an old feature phone you've been planning to recycle for the past five years. Rather than wait for that day to never come, provide that gadget of the past with new life as talking, robotic truck.
XBMC is our favorite media center software. It's free and it's better than it's paid alternatives thanks to a slick, customizable interface that plays all sorts of media from the majority of networked and local destinations. It can pull content from the web, tell you the weather, double as a retro video game console, and much more. What's really great is that it can run on a super cheap, underpowered nettop. That may also mean your old computer is entirely adequate for the job. Either way, you'll be up and running a home theater system that's ahead of its time before you know it.
2. Automate Your Home with an Old Router
The homes of the future will be automated, but you can have that now with the help of an old router. Said router needs to be OpenWRT compatible and this project will require a few other things, but if you're up to the challenge you'll be controlling your home from your smartphone on the cheap.
The future of home entertainment ought to be as elegant and wonderful as the systems we can put together ourselves today. Old computers are perfect machines for creating a fully-featured content downloader. You can simply set up automated BitTorrent and Usenet downloads, or go so far as to turn that old machine into a NAS and install Usenet tools like SABnzbd and Sickbeard as well. This will make an old machine, seemingly destined for obsolescence, into an incredibly powerful server that will provide you with virtually any entertainment you want. It's unfortunate there isn't a comparable product and service available for purchase right now, but that's part of what makes doing it yourself seem so amazing when you're through.
The ESCAPE home looks like a cabin but is actually rated as an RV (Photo: Canoe Bay)
Perhaps due to the fact that the challenge of designing viable tiny homes pushes architects to come up with creative space-saving solutions, the tiny house movement is bursting with great ideas. The latest such dwelling to come to our attention, dubbed ESCAPE, is a 37 sq m (400 sq ft) home that boasts a handsome design, lots of customizable options (including operating completely off-grid), and legal status as an RV.
ESCAPE is envisioned as a vacation cabin, first home, or rental property, and is pretty well-stocked for small living. The interior contains a main living area, bathroom and separate toilet, bedroom, and a small kitchen area. Each of the rooms can also be customized with a range of options, which include a steam shower, air conditioning, and dishwasher. The porch can also be converted into a semi-outdoor multi-function space.
Owing to its legal status as an RV – or Park Model RV to be precise – ESCAPE is mounted on an RV chassis and wheels, so doesn't need proper foundations, nor is it subject to the same taxes and planning laws as a permanent structure. Just to be clear though, it's not a motorized RV and contains no engine, so you're not going to be driving this thing down the road. It also requires a moving truck to be transported, like a mobile home, and can't simply be towed with a decent-sized car like the OTIS.
There's not a lot of additional space to play with given its size, but judging from the photos, ESCAPE doesn't fall into the familiar trap of resembling an oversized shed. Indeed, the design owes more than a little to Frank Lloyd Wright (who the designers cite as an influence), and the pleasingly rural appearance is achieved thanks to finishing touches like wooden window frames, hardwood floors, cedar wood siding, and large overhangs.
The home is said to be very efficient to heat, and sports a tight (though not totally air-tight) envelope. Though there are no efficiency figures available, the ESCAPE company website states that its sealed combustion gas fireplace is adequate to handle the worst of Wisconsin's winter weather. On the all-important storage front, there's a large closet and built-in armoire, bedroom drawers, and cabinets in the kitchen and bathroom.
ESCAPE is available for purchase now, and comes already built. It will set you back a minimum of US$79,000, depending on options. A company rep informed Gizmag that potential buyers are encouraged to view the house in person – more details via the source link below.
Source: Canoe Bay Escape via Treehugger
A beginner's guide to the BICEP2 discovery of primordial gravitational waves
Credit: Nature magazine
Astronomers have announced the detection of the imprint of primordial 'gravitational waves' that originated in the Big Bang that created our Universe 13.8 billion years ago. The discovery has been hailed as a milestone in science, but the concepts involved will be unfamiliar to many people. Help is at hand. Here are some FAQs on gravitational waves and their answers.
What is the significance of the BICEP2 announcement?
Scientists will be unravelling the consequences of this discovery for years. But some major implications are already clear:
What are gravitational waves?
Gravity, according to Einstein's general theory of relativity, is how mass deforms the shape of space: near any massive body, the fabric of space becomes curved. But this curving does not always stay near the massive body. In particular, Einstein realized that the deformation can propagate throughout the Universe, just as seismic waves propagate in Earth's crust. Unlike seismic waves, however, gravitational waves can travel in empty space — and they do so at the speed of light.
If you could watch a gravitational wave head-on as it moves toward you, you would see it alternately stretching and compressing space, in the up–down and left–right directions (see video).
Is inflation the only thing that can produce gravitational waves?
No. Anything that's massive and is undergoing violent acceleration is supposed to produce them. In practice, the only gravitational waves that we might be able to directly measure would be those from cataclysmic events such as two black holes colliding and fusing into one. Several observatories around the world are trying to pick up the distant noise of such black-hole mergers.
Why couldn't gravitational waves be measured directly, but only detected via a radiotelescope?
The gravitational waves that originated during inflation are still resonating throughout the Universe. But they are probably now too feeble to measure directly. Instead, scientists look for the imprint the waves have left in the broth of elementary particles that pervaded the Universe around 380,000 years after the Big Bang, which we see via the 'cosmic microwave background'. Observations of the microwave background radiation are made using telescopes that detect radio waves, and so the 'ripples' in the background caused by gravitational waves could only be detected by a radiotelescope.
Why was the discovery made at the South Pole?
The Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station, which hosts BICEP2, sits on the Antarctic ice sheet at more than 2,800 meters above sea level, so the atmosphere is thin. The air is also very dry, which is helpful as water vapor blocks microwaves. And Antarctica is also virtually uninhabited, so there is no interference from mobile phones, television broadcasts, and the rest of our electronic paraphernalia.
This article is reproduced with permission from the magazine Nature. The article was first published on March 17, 2014.
By John Cheese February 24, 2011
My body feels like electrified concrete. My mind isn't working. I've eaten about half a pound of Jelly Belly's already. Even the licorice flavored ones.
What's it like to quit smoking, you ask? Remember the worst flu you've ever had -- body aches, lethargy, stomach cramps, nausea, headaches, sore throat, coughing that makes your lungs feel like they're on fire. Then imagine the angriest you've ever been, and try to picture being in that state for a solid week. When people try to cheer you up, it only makes it worse. Everything makes it worse.
Concentrate on physically clenching every muscle in your body all at once and hold it for as long as you can. Just when you think you can't take it anymore, hold it for another week. Now, combine all of those into one cohesive army that's constantly attacking your body and mind, and the whole time, you know that smoking a single cigarette will take all of that away in less than five seconds.
I've smoked one to two packs of cigarettes a day for 24 years, and just this week I decided that enough is enough. So I loaded up on junk food, attempted to seal myself off from society and quit cold turkey. Here are a number of observations I made about the world while in the throes of nicotine addiction.
WARNING: GRAPHIC LANGUAGE
MTV is Not Targeted Toward Adults Suffering Nicotine Withdrawal
To catch you up a bit, I had a series of habits that had me scheduled to die before age 50. I managed to quit drinking over a year ago and wrote about the terrible recovery process. My doctor says for my liver this was the equivalent of diving from a car one second before it flies off a cliff and explodes into a ball of fire below. So step two in my goal to live to see my children some day graduate from college was to stop smoking those 30 or 40 cigarettes a day.
Luckily there are many saliva-augmenting alternatives
Anyway, I had been planning a completely unrelated column where I would come back to MTV after having not watched it since I was 16, trying to see teen culture through adult eyes. I thought this would be interesting, considering that it kind of annoyed me even when I was perfectly within the target audience. Having grown up when MTV was in the Pauly Shore era, I was eager to see how they the channel's on-air personalities had evolved the science of being incredibly fucking annoying now that they were in their Jersey Shore phase. Somehow my editors wound up scheduling my MTV marathon on the same day as my first day smoke-free. In my state of mind, this was like somehow getting into a boxing match while laying on an operating table getting open brain surgery.
I reached out to Cracked's own Dan O'Brien for help:
I can't say much more on that subject because my "all-day" MTV marathon lasted two hours. Let me just put it this way and move on: If you can't be like Elvis and shoot your TV with a revolver when it pisses you off, then cramming your dick into the screen really is the only thing that relieves the hate. Yes, tell me how you "didn't come here to make friends," MTV reality show star. Say it into my balls.
Brown Jelly Bellys are Like Shit Landmines
As any ex-smoker or attempted ex-smoker will tell you, the "hand-to-mouth" part of the habit is every bit as hard to break as the chemical nicotine addiction. When I smoked my last cigarette and tossed the rest, the time that elapsed before I subconsciously reached for the pack was three minutes.
So you have to do something that lets you replace that hand-to-mouth action until you can de-program it. For me, it was candy. Goddamned piece of shit candy.
Let me tell you why this Jelly Belly jellybean situation is fucking bullshit. There are four flavors of Jelly Belly that are brown: Cappuccino, Root Beer, Might As Fucking Well Be Root Beer and Spiritual Abortion. I could buy a full pound of just the cappuccino ones and eat them for all three meals. But I cannot express enough what kind of mind-fucking, soul-crushing, trust-obliterating sense violation it is to bite down on what you expect to be cappuccino and ends up being any of the other three. And it happens every fucking time.
75 percent chance of eating a human shit flavored Jelly Belly.
Because they not only made them all brown, they made them almost the same exact shade of brown. True Jelly Belly fans will point out that the cappuccino ones are speckled whereas the others are not, in which case I point out that I'm quitting smoking and will fucking car bomb you if you don't stop being such an enormous goddamn embarrassment.
"Cyjackers"
I cannot use this as an excuse to smoke. This is the trap the addiction sets; I've fallen into it before. "Wow, nicotine withdrawal makes me act like a raging asshole! I'd better smoke again just for the unselfish benefit of those around me!" Uh huh. Nice try, cigarettes. This won't last forever. I have to remind myself of that. But if I smoke, then I have to go through all of this again. No fucking way. Even if everything is making me want to punch the world. Like cyjackers.
"Cyjackers," you say? "Why, that word doesn't even goddamned exist, John. What the fuck are you talking about?"
Although it might make a great series of young adult novels
Good question. The term came from my local news, who tried their precious little hearts out to do a story on technology, but ended up just looking like a bunch of drooling rock fuckers, desperately trying to scare old people and connect with teens. It was a story on identity theft, which began with the words:
"They call them 'cyjackers,' and they can steal your ..."
No. No, no, no, no, no they fucking don't. Nobody in the history of humanity's combined technology has ever, ever, used the word "cyjacker" in any context. Nobody in the long, festering existence of mankind's numerous languages has ever put those letters in that order to create that term with that meaning. Ever.
You made that up, you fucks. Holy shit, how long as it been since I quit? THREE HOURS?
Luckily, when I heard them say that, the closest thing I could throw at the television was a dry dishrag that bounced off with a light "fluff" sound before I unleashed a barrage of cursing that made me thankful my kids weren't here. Not because I didn't want them to hear the cursing, but because there's a good chance I would have thrown one of them at the TV as well.
While cravings can mean a number of things including psychological reasons, a strong craving usually indicates your body is low in a specific nutrient, vitamin or mineral. The craving is an indication that it wants to make sure it gets what it needs, the difficult part these days is, we have so much processed unnatural food at our disposal that we often get confused about what our bodies are actually asking for. The foods you crave may NOT contain that nutrient and often the person eats unhealthy empty calories in place of nutrient dense wholefoods.
Having some knowledge about what our cravings can mean, may help us to reduce unhealthy habits and poor food choices.
FOOD CRAVINGS
Craving this:
Reason is:.
Restore with this:...
COMMON FOOD
Cheese
Essential Fatty Acids deficiency
Omega 3's (EPA and DHA)- Flax oil, ground flaxseeds, chia seeds, walnuts
Calcium deficiency
Sesame seeds/ tahini, broccoli, kale, legumes, mustard and turnip greens
Pasta, white bread, pastries
Chromium deficiency
Onion, romaine lettuce, tomato, cinnamon, grapes, apples, sweet potato
Bread and toast
Nitrogen deficiency
Foods containing proteins, i.e.. Green leafy veges, nuts, seeds, legumes, grains
Red meat
Iron deficiency
beans, legumes, unsulphured prunes, figs+ other dried fruit, seaweed, spinach, cherries, Vitamin C for iron absorption
Popcorn
Stress hormone fluctuations
Meditation, breathing exercises, exercise, leafy greens, vitamin B and C
Crisps
Chloride deficiency
celery, olives, tomato, kelp, Himalayan sea salt
Essential Fatty Acids deficiency
Omega 3's (EPA and DHA)- Flax oil, ground flaxseeds, chia seeds, walnuts
FLAVOUR
Burned Food
Carbon deficiency
Fresh fruits
Acid foods
Magnesium deficiency
raw cacao nibs/beans/powder, Whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, greens, fruit
Salty Foods
Chloride deficiency
celery, olives, tomato, kelp, Himalayan sea salt
Stress hormone fluctuations
Meditation, breathing exercises, exercise, leafy greens, vitamin B and C
SWEETS
Chocolate
Magnesium deficiency
raw cacao nibs/beans/powder, Whole grains, beans, nuts, seeds, greens, fruit
Soda, fizzy drinks
Calcium deficiency
Sesame seeds/ tahini, broccoli, kale, legumes, mustard and turnip greens
General sweets
Hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar)
fruit, high fibre foods (beans, legumes), complex carbs (grains), chromium (cinnamon)
Tryptophan deficiency
spirulina, pumpkin/sesame/sunflower seeds, raw cacao, oatmeal, sweet potato, spinach, raisins
Chromium deficiency
Onion, romaine lettuce, tomato, cinnamon, grapes, apples, sweet potato
Sulphur deficiency
cruciferous vege (kale, cabbage, etc), cranberries, horseradish, asparagus, carob powder, garlic, onion
Phosphorus deficiency
whole grains, pinto beans, pumpkin seeds, brazil nuts, lentils
STIMULANTS
Coffee or black tea
Sulphur deficiency
cruciferous vege (kale, cabbage, etc), cranberries, horseradish, asparagus, carob powder, garlic, onion
Iron deficiency
beans, legumes, unsulphured prunes, figs+ other dried fruit, seaweed, spinach, cherries, Vitamin C for iron absorption
NaCl (salt) deficiency
Himalayan sea salt, Apple Cider vinegar, kombucha
Phosphorous deficiency
whole grains, pinto beans, pumpkin seeds, brazil nuts, lentils
Alcohol, recreational drugs
Calcium deficiency
Sesame seeds/ tahini, broccoli, kale, legumes, mustard and turnip greens
Glutamine deficiency
Cabbage, beetroot, beans, spinach, parsley, vegetable juice
Protein deficiency
Green leafy vegetable, nuts, seeds, legumes, grains, beans
Potassium deficiency
citrus fruits, bitter green leafy veges, banana, tomato, pineapple, black olives, seaweeds
Avenin deficiency
Oatmeal, granola
Tobacco
Silicon deficiency
horsetail herb, nuts, seeds, oats, millet, barley, onions, whole wheat, beetroot. Avoid refines starches
Tyrosine deficiency
Fruits (esp. Avocado and banana), whole grains, oats, legumes, beans, nuts, seeds, Vitamin C, veges
EATING HABITS
Lack of appetite
Chloride deficiency
celery, olives, tomato, kelp, Himalayan sea salt
Thiamine (Vitamin B1) deficiency
whole grains, peanuts, seeds, beans, green and yellow vegetables
Niacin (Vitamin B3) deficiency
Peanuts, sunflower seeds, wheat bran and wheat germ
Manganese deficiency
walnuts, almonds, pecans, whole grains, green leafy veges, pineapple, blueberries
Often overeating
Tryptophan deficiency
spirulina, pumpkin/sesame/sunflower seeds, raw cacao, oatmeal, sweet potato, spinach, raisins
Tyrosine deficiency
Fruits (esp. Avocado and banana), whole grains, oats, legumes, beans, nuts, seeds, Vitamin C, veges
Silicon deficiency
horsetail herb, nuts, seeds, oats, millet, barley, onions, whole wheat, beetroot. Avoid refines starches
Often snacky
No balanced diet, missing nutrients
Consider a detox and substitute junk food for healthy meals
MORE BIZARRE
Crunching on ice
Iron deficiency
beans, legumes, unsulphured prunes, figs+ other dried fruit, seaweed, spinach, cherries, Vitamin C for iron absorption
Laundry starch
Iron deficiency
beans, legumes, unsulphured prunes, figs+ other dried fruit, seaweed, spinach, cherries, Vitamin C for iron absorption
Cigarette butts
Iron deficiency
beans, legumes, unsulphured prunes, figs+ other dried fruit, seaweed, spinach, cherries, Vitamin C for iron absorption
Cured meat made from baby poop bacteria? It's the new probiotics.
Probiotic foods have been associated with several health benefits, from regulating bowel movements to increasing immunity. Though the claims are sometimes disputed, we've seen a number of "good bacteria" products appear in the last few years, including "functional" yogurts like Activia and more ancient recipes like kimchi and kombucha.
You may not be surprised to hear of another probiotic foodstuff in the making. It is, oddly enough, in the form of a sausage. But that's not even the weirdest part. What may be most shocking is the source of the mighty micro-organisms present in the sausage: human feces. Or, to be more exact--baby poop.
What may be most shocking is the source of the mighty micro-organisms present in the sausage: human feces.
Food scientists in Spain took 43 stool samples from baby diapers and cultured the bacteria in petri dishes. Then, they transferred the bacteria to six bundles of fuet, a Catalonian sausage similar to chorizo. The researchers were looking for a bacteria that would become the dominant strain within the meat (would dominate over the naturally occurring organism) and they found only one that did. It multiplied to levels of 100 million cells per gram--enough to begin to promote health benefits, the scientists say.
Co-author of the study, Anna Jofré, a food microbiologist at Catalonia's Institute of Food and Agricultural Research, says the sausages could be an alternative for people who don't like yogurt. She told Live Science: "Probiotic fermented sausages will give an opportunity to consumers who don't take dairy products the possibility to include probiotic foods to their diet."
The researchers still need to test the sausage's actual probiotic effects on humans, and there are no plans to commercialize the meat tubes at this stage. However, Jofré says the sausages "tasted very good" when cooked.
