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Technique vs temperament: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal and India’s Test opening concerns

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Technique vs temperament: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal and India’s Test opening concerns

India‘s search for two reliable Test openers continues, followed the 2-0 series win over West Indies in the Caribbean recently.

Prithvi Shaw’s absence on account of a doping violation saw KL Rahul retained in India’s Test squad, but he averaged 25.25 in four innings with a best score of 44. Rahul’s opening partner Mayank Agarwal fared poorly too, with an average of 20 from as many innings and one fifty (he made 55 in India’s first innings at Sabina Park).

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly believes that Rohit Sharma can translate his strong white-ball form into Test cricket, if given the chance as opener in place of the struggling Rahul. Gautam Gambhir, India’s third most successful Test opener, feels that Rohit will have to wait for his chances in Tests.

Anil Kumble, India’s greatest match-winner with the ball in Tests, is wary of pushing Rohit into the opener’s role in red-ball cricket.

On the sidelines, the likes of domestic openers Abhimanyu Easwaran and Priyank Panchal are knocking on the selectors’ doors for a chance in Tests.

So come India’s next Test series, which starts October 2 against South Africa at home, who will the chosen openers be?

Rahul’s problems in the West Indies were a continuation of his red-ball slump from 2018. Scores of 44, 38, 13 and 6 mean that of Rahul’s 60 innings in Test cricket, 21 have been between 10 and 49.

“KL Rahul has flattered to deceive and that creates an opening at the top,” Ganguly said last week. “I had suggested earlier about trying Rohit Sharma as an opener in Test cricket and I still believe that he needs to be given an opportunity because he is too good a player to be left out in the cold. After a fantastic World Cup, I believe he will be itching to grab the opportunity to open in Tests.”

In the first Test at Antigua, Agarwal’s uncertain footwork saw him caught behind to Kemar Roach and lbw to Roston Chase. In the second Test, he made 55 until an ambitious cut shot against Jason Holder saw him caught at first slip. In the second innings, Agarwal was beaten for pace by Roach and trapped lbw.

Rahul’s and Agarwal’s problems in the West Indies highlighted a trend of Test openers struggling when the conditions are tough and the new-ball bowlers are accurate. And with Rahul, it appears that he has not learned from the mistakes made last year in England and Australia.

In five Tests in England, Rahul was bowled five times. The other five dismissals were lbw thrice, caught in the cordon twice. Subtract that 149 he made in the dead rubber at The Oval, and Rahul had scores of 4, 13, 8, 0, 23, 26, 36, 19 and 37. In Australia, Rahul batted five times and scored 57 runs, of which 44 came in one innings. Around that knock which promised so much more, he made  2, 2, 0 and 9.

The failures of Rahul and Agarwal in the West Indies mirrored that of some openers during the ongoing Ashes series. England’s white-ball specialist Jason Roy made 10, 28, 0, 2, 9 and 8 in the first three Tests while opening. Handed a debut in Tests after a strong World Cup, the Surrey batsman has failed in his new role and was pushed down into the middle order for the fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford, where he made 22 and 31 but had his technique exposed by pace once again.

Roy, 28, has admitted that opening the innings in Tests has been extremely difficult.

In the Australian camp, rookie opener Marcus Harris has scores of 8, 19, 13 and 6 in two Ashes Tests. He replaced Cameron Bancroft, who made 8, 7, 13 and 16 in two Tests in England. And David Warner, around one score of 61 in his comeback Test series, has failed to get to double figures in his seven other Ashes innings. Warner has three ducks in the series, including a pair at Old Trafford, and has fallen to England pace bowler Stuart Broad on six of eight occasions.

Speaking during the fourth Ashes Test, former England captain Mike Atherton analysed why ball is dominating bat.

“The battle for an opening batsman in Test cricket is around about the top of off stump and the best bowlers, like Josh Hazlewood, will land it there more often than the less-good ones. The best opening batsman are the ones who make the best decisions about what to play, leave and attack in that very narrow area,” he told Sky Sports.

Another former England Test skipper, Nasser Hussain, pointed at the influence of white-ball cricket.

“When I was brought up you were told to play with soft hands and let the ball come to you. That is where the game has been infiltrated by white-ball cricket. High back-lifts, hard hands going at the ball, people being castled a lot. Playing late and underneath your eyes seems to have gone,” he said.

Australian cricket legend Ricky Ponting recently commented on how technology has allowed bowlers to work out where batsmen have weaknesses. “There is a lot more analysis – where is this one little chink in this guy’s armour that we can expose? You cannot survive if you have weaknesses, you need the courage and want to go and change things innings to innings or mid-series,” said Ponting.

Speaking to CricketCountry last year, former Australia batsman Dean Jones had identified a problem with techniques of top-order Test batsman. “I think it has to do with the falling standard of Test cricket, and the agronomy of pitches around the world, which are dropping, but I dare say that batsmanship is not what it used to be,” Jones had said. “I think they don’t to face the new ball or the reverse-swinging ball, so that’s where its come to and it’s a bit sad in a way.”

Also in conversation with CricketCountry, former Indian batsman turned TV analyst Sanjay Manjrekar agreed with Jones that batsmen today are happier slotting down to avoid facing the new ball. “The good ones want to bat down the order. [Joe] Root wants to bat four. Mushfiqur [Rahim] wants to bat four, six. Dump the gloves, bat at three, I say. The tendency is to be in the comfort zone and bat down the order,” he said.

Added former India Test opener Aakash Chopra: “I think it is starting with poor opening combos across the globe … the No 3 is getting exposed too quickly and therefore, teams are finding ways to shield their best batsman by pushing him at No 4. It is one of the problems.”

Across three Test matches at venues such as Visakhapatnam, Pune and Ranchi, India’s openers will face the likes of Kagiso Rabada, Vernon Philander, Lungi Ngidi and and Anrich Nortje. None of these venues is known to assist pace, but South Africa have a very good pace attack and it remains to seen if similar pressure is put on India’s top order as West Indies’ pacers did recently.

With Shaw banned until November, Agarwal has done enough to retain his place for three Tests against South Africa but will need to produce some strong scores to hold on. On form, Rahul has a lot to do show he deserves further chances opening in Tests. Rohit has white-ball success to his name, but opening in Tests against the red ball – even in docile Indian conditions – is a different ballgame.

Ice Hockey Rules

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Ice Hockey Rules

The origins of ice hockey date back to the 19th century in Canada where adaptations of the modern day hockey game were played in icy conditions. Since then the sport has gone on to become one of the largest in the world with the major participants originating from North America. The NHL (National Hockey League) is the largest league in the world and currently turns over millions of dollars each year.

Object of the Game

The object of the game is to hit a small puck across the ice before then hitting it into a goal with a hockey stick. Every time the puck goes into the goal then one point is awarded for that team. The puck can be passed around the players on the ice and it’s the job of the opposition to try and prevent the other team from scoring. The team with the most goals at the end of the game are declared the winners. Should the game end in a tie then the game will go into overtime where the first team to then score will be crowned winners.

Players & Equipment

The game is played on an ice rink measuring roughly 61m in length by 30m in width. The rink is split into three main sections. The middle section is the neutral zone and includes a centre circle where the games start. At either side of the neutral zone are attacking and defending zones of which are determined by whichever team has the puck at the time. In each attacking and defending zone are two end zone faceoff circles and spots. There is a goal crease which is a half circle surrounding the goal. Behind the goal is the boards area.

Each player will have their own hockey stick along with ice skates and a series of padding which may include face mask, helmet, padded shorts, shoulder pads, arm guards and gloves. Each goal tender will have the same but on a much denser scale due to them being in the firing line of the puck much more often.

Each team can have a maximum of 20 players. Of these 20 players only six may be on the ice at any one time. The rest will be used as substitutes but can come and go from the game as often as required. The six starters include a goal tender and 5 outfield players. Whilst each player will be given a position, the players are free to move around the ice as they choose. This does exclude the goal tender of which must remain within their half and not pass the center red line.

The players hit what is called a ‘puck’. The puck is heavy object made from dense rubber and weighs roughly 6 ounces. The puck is hit by either a players stick or foot but at no point can the puck be handled by any player other than the goal tender.

Each game lasts for three 20 minute periods. For every stoppage in the game the game clock is stopped and as soon as the time is up in each period then the game will instantly cease.

Scoring

To score a goal a player must hit the puck over the goal line. They can use any part of their body or their stick to do so but cannot use their hand. The whole of the puck needs to cross the line to be deemed a goal. In professional leagues like the NHL the goal line has a sensor running across it which indicates when the puck has fully crossed the line. In amateur leagues the judgement of the umpires are taken into account.

Winning the Game

To win a game one team must score more goals than their opponents. If the game is a tie then the game goes into overtime and an additional quarter is played out until one of the teams score. The first team to score will be the winners.

Rules of Ice Hockey

  • The game starts in the centre circle with a face off. This is where the referee drops the puck in between two opposing players who then scrap to win position for their team. A faceoff may also be used to resume play after a stoppage in any of the attacking or defending face off zones.
  • Players may use physical force to win the puck off their opponent. Body checking can be used but is not prohibited in the back or above shoulder height.
  • Players who are imposed to have committed a minor penalty will be ordered to leave the ice for two minutes and their team play with 5 players for that duration. If the opposing team score a goal within those two minutes then that player can return to the rink immediately.
  • A minor penalty can include tripping an opponent with their stick, holding with either their stick or hands, hooking with their stick or body checking a player without the puck.
  • Major penalties will result in a player being removed from the ice for up to 5 minutes. These may include fighting, inflicting serious injury on opposing players or continued minor violations.

Who will win the World Cup? FIFA’s predictions have been eerily accurate

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Who will win the World Cup? FIFA’s predictions have been eerily accurate

Who will win the World Cup? It’s a question that’s been on every football fanatic’s mind for − let’s be honest − the past four years. EA Sports revealed its World Cup 2018 predictions in May, way ahead of the start of the tournament, by way of a comprehensive FIFA 18 simulation, and its top tip has made it to the final.

While it’s easy to dismiss World Cup predictions based on a video game, EA Sports’ FIFA franchise has actually successfully predicted the last two World Cup football tournaments.

In 2014, it correctly bet on Germany to lift the trophy, while back in 2010 it accurately said that Spain would emerge victorious from the pinnacle of international soccer. As a track record, it’s not too shabby – and surely more trustworthy than an octopus.

Based on a simulation of every World Cup match, the popular football game’s choice to win this year’s tournament was France. And what a prediction that could prove to be.

Les Bleus certainly haven’t got it in the bag (yet), but they made it to the the final with a hard-fought victory over Belgium on Tuesday, and will battle England’s conquerers Croatia for the grand prize. We’ll see what happens on Sunday afternoon.

Google, incidentally, is also tipping France for the title at the time of publication, with its new result predictor tool giving Kylian Mbappe and co a win probability of 49%, and Luka Modric and his side a 22% chance.

FIFA 18 actually managed to hit the nail on the head with several of its World Cup 2018 predictions. It correctly tipped Russia to finish second in Group A, Argentina to lose to Croatia, Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal to go out at the hands of Uruguay, Messi to go out at the hands of France, Brazil to lose to Belgium in the quarter-finals, and for the Red Devils to then fall to defeat against France in the semi-finals.

What did it foresee for England? A 5-4 penalty shootout loss against Colombia in the Round of 16. As we all know, the Three Lions did indeed face Los Cafeteros at the last 16 stage, but Gareth Southgate’s men − to the shock of everyone − managed to win on penalties.

The simulation also saw Germany reach the final, and that definitely didn’t happen, with the 2014 champions crashing out in remarkable fashion in the group stages, finishing behind, Sweden, Mexico and South Korea.

FIFA 18 also has French star Antoine Griezmann tying Spain’s Isco for the World Cup Golden Boot award, on five goals apiece. In reality, Harry Kane is the tournament’s current top scorer with six goals, and he could add to that tally in the third place playoff. Griezmann (and Mbappe) both have a slim chance of catching him, but Isco only managed a single goal before Spain were knocked out.

Deputy News and Features Editor Aatif is one of the UK’s best known tech journalists, having been News Editor at Gizmodo UK and Tech Reporter for The Independent. He’s also written for DigitalSpy and ITProPortal. Aatif now helps run…

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How to Photograph Rivers and Streams

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How to Photograph Rivers and Streams

There are many reasons for shooting rivers and streams in landscape photography and there’s a lot involved so here’s part one (probably).

Being in the landscape regularly will inevitably lead you along rivers or creeks. A lot of joy can be found being immersed in a shot from within a river. The bubbling rushing sounds, water drop splashes, glowing mossy rocks and birds whooshing along catching insects are some of the many highlights. You really do feel alive photographing from a stream and often the challenges it presents are well worth overcoming as the visual rewards can be fabulous.

Compositionally water presents excellent opportunities for a photograph such as making leading lines to another subject – like a mountain or waterfall. The patterns and shapes made by flowing water offer endless possibilities and can be the main subject in themselves. You will sometimes find S shapes and curves which are sought after compositional devices. Looking closely and exploring will reap visual rewards and you may see reflections plus reflected colors which help build a composition if the water isn’t too fast flowing. If you are lucky and the sun is shining at the right angle, water spray can form rainbow prisms which can make welcome color splashes too!

Don’t be a pussy, get in!

Eventually, you will want to get into the river or creek you are photographing, it happens to everyone. Unless you’re going to drown. Stay out if you intend to drown – yes it can be dangerous. Often the best compositional leading lines and action is from within the river, there’s no getting away from the fact you will want to get in at some point. When you do decide to take the plunge (waka waka), you’ll want to consider investing in appropriate footwear because if you wear your regular hiking shoes they will fall apart quickly. And they’ll get stinky quickly!

Use our very scientific and informative Arctic-ometer© infographic to pick the most appropriate footwear. Here’s a brief rundown:

  1. Flip flops
    If you are somewhere warm enough good for you! Flip flops are great for hot places where there are no leeches or other waterborne critters. Shooting in warm places is a dream for landscape photographers and flip flops beat barefoot if there are scratchy rocks etc.
  2. Water shoes
    These specifically designed shoes let out the water and are apparently more grippy on slippery rocks. As above you’re probably somewhere pretty warm if you can get away with water shoes. Enjoy!
  3. Wellington boots
    Wellies are maybe the easiest all-rounder for beginners as you can hop into the creek as well as wear them on the hike, which saves some extra weight. Often they will do the job and you can find insulated boots for colder conditions.
  4. Thigh waders
    Longer and heavier than wellies, waders allow far deeper… wading. I carry these with me most of the time over wellies nowadays. The considerable extra weight is well worth it when you can happily reach most parts of a river or creek.
  5. Chest waders or fishing waders
    These are the Mecca of water footwear. In fact this is pretty much whole body wear.
    If you are too embarrassed to get chest waders simply tell everyone you are taking up fishing and they will nod agreeably. You may get a look or two when you don chest height neoprene style-lead waders, however after a couple of hours in snow-melt rivers you’ll be grateful for the investment. (The ones I use were about $90 from Amazon).
  6. There’s a six? Yes – a wetsuit.
    If you’re wearing a wetsuit while shooting you’re doing something awesome and you don’t need our advice! Go play.

Versatile and essential, get your footwear sorted and you won’t look back! The good news is that any of these are applicable to photographing in oceans too.

Other essentials and tips for photographing rivers

  • Generally avoid the sky
    As a rule of thumb avoid the sky as it will probably be blown out. Of course, there are always exceptions and sometimes a little blowout isn’t too bad. Exceptions include having subject matter in the distance, such as a mountain or waterfall. Usually, these will be higher than the creek in the frame and have some sky around them.
  • Experiment with your shutter speed.
    Use the right speed for the water you are shooting; if there is a fast flow it could be quicker or you may want a slow dreamy look. As with all landscape photography try and visualize the end result when making the photo. Here’s one example when shooting multiple frames in the landscape can be really useful. Find the shutter speed you like the best, whether it is 1/2 second or milky smooth at 5 seconds by taking enough pictures to see the difference. More on shutter speeds here.
  • Polarise
    Invariably you’ll need a polarizer, but you don’t have to use it to the full effect. Sometimes the contrast will be too great when used at 100% so again use some experimentation in the field. See our related article about photography filters here.
  • Exposure is critical
    If you are making an HDR blend this isn’t so critical, but for single frames, you will want to carefully consider your exposure. Generally, the brightest part of the image will be the fastest flowing water, using this will make for a solid exposure baseline.
  • Watch the weather
    Shooting water can be done on any day, but partially cloudy are generally the best.
    Having some light on any scene, rather than completely flat grey days will improve river and creek photos just as they do dry-landscapes. Some beams, patchy light through trees and golden hour color all make for creating depth, although beware of strong sunlight as the water will easily blow out.
  • Beware fast flowing rivers
    Not only can these be dangerous, but your tripod can easily move when shooting. Put your leg in front of the tripod if it’s really fast flowing to disperse the water and try and position the other legs behind rocks to lessen the impact.
  • Regularly clean your lenses
    Your lens will probably get misty/sprayed if you are in the water. Check the element to avoid disappointment later. If there is a lot of spray use a baggy or graduated filter to compose the shot first or consider taking your lens-hood. See our post here about keeping your lens clean in water.

Some extra things to consider are having a lot of pockets. You may be away from the river banks and will end up stuffing your pockets with bits and bobs. Similarly using a backpack is pretty essential rather than a slingback or other bag, which may flop into the water. One thing I will be getting one day soon is polarised sunglasses. It’s virtually impossible to gauge the slippery rocks with regular glasses and this has been on my list for ages!

Women Genuinely Like Flowers | The Effect Of Flowers To Women’s Emotions

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Women Genuinely Like Flowers | The Effect Of Flowers To Women’s Emotions

Q: Society and media seem to try to convince everyone that men should give women flowers if they’re trying to show affection.

But is that just media-driven fake news in an age of alternative facts? Should I try to come up with some other random gift, like a candle, to show that I’m creative or unconventional?

A: No, dummy.

In the latest issue of the Journal of “No Duh” Science for Idiots*, it was shown that women genuinely like getting flowers, it increases their happiness literally for days, and flowers even result in cognitive improvements in elderly populations.

Furthermore, flowers seem to have special effects that other gifts don’t have. Just buy the dang flowers.

INTRODUCTION

Flowers serve no purpose for humans. At least, that’s the logical conclusion – you can’t eat them and they’re not particularly useful as resources. Some have medicinal value but not most of the popularly-cultivated varieties.

Yet, humans have spent thousands of years cultivating flowers for no purpose other than aesthetics and fragrance.

However, one evolutionary theory suggests that some aesthetic things, like cultivating flowers, are beneficial only because of the positive emotions they generate.

In other words, people were more likely to survive if they stopped to smell the roses – to enjoy the beautiful things in life. This causes positive emotions and those are beneficial to humans in survival.

Additionally, it could be a strategy for the flowers as well. More beautiful flowers are more likely to be cultivated by humans, thus increasing their survival strategy as well!

Some researchers sought to test what exactly the effects of flowers in human behavior might be, and the results were published in the journal Evolutionary Psychology in 2005.

STUDY 1

The researchers first sought to see the effect of giving women flowers. Does it result in genuine happiness, or fake/feigned happiness?

To determine the genuineness of happiness, the researchers explained the difference of various smiles.

“Duchenne smiles” (named after their discoverer, Guillame Duchenne in the mid-1800s) are a type of smile that has been identified in research as a genuine indicator of happiness. It occurs in infants, kids, and adults. It’s characterized by contraction of both the zygomatic major muscle and the orbicularis oculi muscle.

  • In plain language, it’s a smile that raises the corners of the mouth, raises the cheeks, AND creates crow’s feet in the eyes. It’s a broad, whole-face smile.
  • Non-Duchenne smiles involve only the mouth muscles.

Duchenne smiles seem to be almost hard-wired into human behavior and indicate reciprocal happiness and prosocial behavior.

They were pre-interviewed on various personality traits and demographic characteristics.

147 adult women were recruited in New Jersey and selected for facial expressiveness and broader ranges of emotional responses.

The researchers then went to the Society of American Florists and, after consultation, carefully selected a mixed-flower bouquet that has a variety of colors and odors and is maximally effective in eliciting happiness (as far as they could tell).

They also found some other common gift items:

  • A fruit/candy basket
  • A large, multi-wicked, fragrant candle
  • The participants were told that they would be part of an experiment and that the necessary items for the experiment would be delivered at their home.
  • When the items were delivered, the gift (either a bouquet, the sweets basket, or the candle) was presented to the participant, and a second observer rated the participant’s smile.
  • Then the participant answered a variety of mood and other questions.
  • Three days later, the participant was interviewed again with open-ended questions to determine the effects of the gift.

NONE of the presenters, observers, or interviewers were aware of the purpose of the experiment (so they weren’t biased to see things that weren’t there).

RESULTS:

How many of the participants responded to the flowers with a genuine, Duchenne smile? ONE HUNDRED PERCENT.

An effect doesn’t get stronger than this, folks.

The sweets basket had a 90% success rate and the candle had a 77% success rate.close

Also, this shifted according to age: older people liked the fruit baskets more, and younger people smiled more in general.

In the second interview, only those women in the flower group experienced an increase in positive emotions after 3 days.

Part of the reason for the difference may be that the participants were able to display the flowers in a communal space such as the living room or a dining room, thus boosting their effects over multiple days.

Candles were more likely to be placed in private areas, and sweets baskets disappeared as their contents were consumed.

STUDY 2

Does this effect extend to both men and women?

The researchers sought to replicate the experiment in a different way – in a public elevator.

Some assistants were assigned to stand in a university elevator and wait for an individual to enter by themselves. Randomly, one assistant was instructed to do one of four things:

Present the person with a single daisy out of a basket of flowers. The basket had a sign on it that said “Free Flowers/Gift! The Society of American Florists Supports of Random Act of Kindness Day! People will be receiving flowers/gifts at random, on the elevator. You can pass on the kindness!”

Hold the basket of flowers but don’t give the person one.

Present the person with a ballpoint pen with the university logo on it out of a basket (this basket didn’t mention the Society of American Florists).

Do nothing.

Then, the individual’s response was measured and noted by the second assistant.

122 individuals were recorded for this study (around half male/female).

RESULTS:

The individuals who received flowers exhibited the highest levels of positive social responses (remarks, gestures, facial expressions) of any group.

This was the case for both men and women, but women especially.

In fact, women who were given a flower showed the highest positive social ratings of any other group in any condition.

Unsurprisingly, people who saw the basket but weren’t offered a flower had the most negative response.

STUDY 3

This study replicated these results in a retirement home among seniors.

113 seniors in a retirement home had an interview about their mood and general characteristics. In that interview, they were given either a:

Mixed flower bouquet, like the one in Study 1

A monochromatic yellow bouquet

Or no flowers at all.

A follow-up interview was conducted 2-3 days later.

Some seniors got a second bouquet in the second interview.

Notably, the interviews also included measurements of cognitive ability – specifically, what details about the flowers and general events of the study they could remember. This was a measurement of memory.

RESULTS:

Once again, it was shown that the flowers increased positive mood for the seniors.

Receiving the flowers the second time got a boost in their scores for happiness (lower levels of depressive symptoms).

Notably, those who received flowers had better memories of the event – the flowers seemed to boost their cognitive skills.

CONCLUSION/INTERPRETATION

What can we learn here?

The flowers effect isn’t a myth. Women love flowers. It’s a genuine reaction, it may have evolutionary roots, and flowers seem to be better than some other common gifts in eliciting this response.

But that’s not all – this effect works for both men and women, AND seniors.

For seniors, the flowers even gave them a boost in their cognitive skills – specifically, episodic memory.

Research Shows That the Clothes You Wear Actually Change the Way You Perform

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Research Shows That the Clothes You Wear Actually Change the Way You Perform

If you’ve ever watched the rehearsal process of a play, then you know just how powerful clothes are. Even in the very early stages of a project, professional actors will come to practice in certain clothing pieces that make them feel more like their character. Perhaps it’s an old pair of shoes, a long and heavy skirt, or a bandana that helps them get just the right swagger, grace, or edge.

A few weeks later, when they’re closer to opening, they’ll have an actual dress rehearsal with their real costumes. It’s pretty amazing to see how the right clothes bring the performances up to a whole new level and transform the actor into the character! As business professionals, we can actually learn a lot from this.

Like it or not, your clothes and presentation communicate volumes about you as a person. The question is not whether you care about fashion, it’s more about what you’re communicating intentionally or unconsciously through your fashion choices. Just as the actor in the right costume moves and speaks differently, so does the everyday person.

Your clothes tell a story about you. If you want to show that your work is clean, sharp, and to the point, you need to dress in clean lines, sharp creases, and (yes) points on your shoes and tie. Even the way you wear your glasses speaks volumes about you and your work!

What Do the Details Show?

Research shows that you can tell a lot about someone’s personality, politics, status, age and income just from looking at a photo of their shoes.

Did you ever notice that when President Barack Obama addressed a crowd of working class Americans, he would speak with no jacket and his sleeves rolled up? That silently and instantly communicated to the audience that he too was a hard worker.

You might remember when a 44 page dress code published by Swiss bank UBS went viral. The obsessive stipulations detailed everything from the sensible (“If you wear a watch, it suggests reliability and that punctuality is of great concern to you”) to the downright invasive (employees were instructed on how to shower and apply lotion, how to wear their underwear, and told not to eat garlic during the week).

They may have been control freaks, but UBS got one thing right: every detail about your presentation communicates something.

When you’re dressing or grooming, consider what it says about you and whether it’s in line with the message you want to communicate. There’s no right or wrong. It’s all about context. A tie can make you look reliable and rooted in tradition. This might be important at an investment firm, where clients want to know that you’re serious about stewarding their capital. But it can also come off as stuffy and resistant to change, which may be inappropriate for a tech startup.

Your Clothing Impacts Your Thinking

Of course, dressing smart is also important for your confidence and sense of self-empowerment. But your style does more than just send messages, to your mind or to others. New research shows it actually impacts how you think. Professional dress, one study found, increases abstract thinking and gives people a broader perspective. So that tie might actually be switching on your creativity button.

“The formality of clothing might not only influence the way others perceive a person, and how people perceive themselves, but could influence decision making in important ways through its influence on processing style,” the study says.

Professional attire creates social distance. When we are more socially distant, we tend to think in more distant, abstract terms. In socially distant settings we address people by their title, for instance, rather than the more intimate first name.

“Even after controlling for socioeconomic status, students wearing more formal clothing showed stronger inclinations towards abstract processing.”

Thin-Slicing

Usually we process visual details instantaneously through a process called thin-slicing. That’s when the brain makes millisecond judgements based on new stimulus. It often happens without us even knowing. We might just get a feeling that we don’t trust someone, or that someone else is steady and reliable. We might not even know why.

That gut feeling, commonly called intuition or a first impression, is really part of the very fast-paced mental process of thin-slicing. It’s how we continually judge books by their covers, all day, every day.

So choose your personal presentation with care. Presentation includes not only your clothes, but your accessories, hairstyle, fragrance, posture, body language, tone of voice, and the level of energy with which you move and speak. Think of the person that you need to be in any particular situation. Then dress, groom, and accessorize in a way that helps you mentally step into that personality.

Are you marching in there to get things done? Put on something red, roll up your sleeves and speak in a commanding voice. Are you making social connections at a gala event? Go for suave, but not workplace formal. Dress to feel attractive. Speak in a smooth tone, and let one shoulder relax.

If you’re loafing around on a long weekend with half a box of pizza, you can probably get away with breaking out the frumpy comfortables.

Taking intentional command of how you dress and present is a good step in empowering yourself, accomplishing your goals, and living a more lucid life at the helm of your decisions. So pay attention! Remember, all the world’s a stage.

WC win justification for how we went about the game in last four years

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WC win justification for how we went about the game in last four years

When tournaments are finally won, the victors often talk of relief. Relief that they have met, or exceeded, expectations, relief that they have got over the line. Relief, above all, that they will not have to live with the agony of defeat. Amid the happiness and excitement generated by England’s remarkable World Cup victory at Lord’s on Sunday, there is a palpable sense that the whole team, as well as the ECB, are relieved that four years of hard work has been rewarded with the ultimate prize. The alternative would have been unthinkable.

Beginning this tournament as favourites, with home advantage, and having swept aside most of their opponents since the last World Cup, the pressure was on England over the past seven weeks. A nation expected. Had they been unable to win the tournament, their best chance in a generation, plenty of questions would have been asked about Eoin Morgan’s team and the value of the progress they had made since their capitulation in Australia in 2015. Too fickle? Maybe. But it’s also the reality.

Those questions will never be asked of this team now. They will always be the team who won England’s first World Cup, the favourites who backed it up and delivered. It wasn’t perfect – far from it – but they beat India, Australia and New Zealand twice, the three other best teams, in what were effectively four consecutive knock-out games. They are worthy winners.

“It’s terribly exciting and justification for how we went about it for the last four years,” head coach Trevor Bayliss, who finally won a final after three previous unsuccessful attempts as a coach, said at The Oval on Monday. “At different times we have copped a bit of criticism for the way we went about it. But we had an end goal in mind and this is the result. I am one from four now so I am quite happy with at least getting one.

“To see the joy on the boys faces yesterday and to see the way they celebrated in the dressing room was all worth it.”

It was fitting, in a way, that England’s journey started four years ago in a series against New Zealand, the team they beat in yesterday’s final. Five brilliant matches in the early summer of 2015 showcased, for the first time, the bold style that is now the hallmark of this England team. They won the series 3-2 and started in style by making 408 in the first ODI. They chased 350 within 44 overs at Trent Bridge in the fourth game. They scored more than 300 in the first four matches. It was a revelation.

It was also a key moment in the development of this team, a line drawn under what had gone before and a radical change of approach initiated. That series was, Joe Root said, when the team started to believe they might be able to do something special in one-day cricket. “The way we performed throughout that series, the way Morgs laid things out and gave the guys opportunity to go and express themselves and play in that manner,” he said at the Oval.

“And seeing us do it and adapt to it so quickly obviously meant that we were good enough to do it. But it’s obviously a long road form there to continue to do it and look to improve be more consistent and grow as a team. It’s been such a fun journey these last four years.”

England have had their moments during that time, of course. They disappointingly lost in the semi-final of the Champions Trophy in 2017. They suffered thrashings against South Africa at Lord’s, against Australia in Adelaide and in Colombo against Sri Lanka, all on surfaces which did a bit. They lost other games too, including three in the group stages of the World Cup. But after each setback, England responded.

“The main plan was to let them go out and test the ceiling of how good they could be,” Bayliss said.”We knew they were going to stuff up. We knew they would lose games and probably lose some games badly but you only get better from making mistakes and seeing how well you can play. Learn from those mistakes with a period of four years to get it right. The talent of the team was obvious very early on.”

And all that talk of fault lines on tricky pitches can be put to bed now, too, after they emerged victorious in both the semi-final and final on surfaces which were far from the batting belters on which they dominate. Flat track bullies, yes, but far, far more than that now. “That’s the one thing I said yesterday to some of the coaching staff, that just showed how much these guys have grown over the four years,” Bayliss added.

“In one way, we have been practising for the last three and four years and learning to play on flat decks. There were games where we lost wickets and lost badly on wickets that were doing a little bit. But that’s how much they have grown. They have learnt from those bad games and been able to play some smart cricket and adjust to wickets with a little bit in them. Hopefully that’s put that to rest.”

Ben Stokes is another who might well be feeling relief after his man of the match performance. Relief that the fracas outside a Bristol nightclub two years ago will now be consigned to a footnote in any evaluation of his contribution. In danger then of throwing a career away, he is now a World Cup winner and a – the? – key reason of why his team got over the line. He has worked incredibly hard since that night in Bristol to get himself in this position. And then he delivered on the biggest stage. The narrative has certainly been changed.

“I don’t want this taken out of context but he is a real fighter,” Bayliss said. “What he did yesterday was extraordinary. You can’t stop him at practice. He wants to be involved in absolutely everything. He has a belief in his own ability and the rest of the players have a belief in his ability as well. At some stage that was going to come out and it was just set up for him beautifully.”

Was Bayliss concerned that this day, this redemption, might not come for Stokes? “Not really. The type of bloke he was, if there was one guy who could come back from that sort of adversity, he was the one. I’m really happy he was able to show what he can do on a big stage. His zest for life, he is a leader of people off the field as well and not just on it. He is a guy that a lot of people gravitate to. Everyone in the team is so happy for him.”

Stokes, Root, Bayliss. World Cup winners all of them. “It sounds pretty special, doesn’t it?” Root said. “If you’d said it four years ago, I might not have believed you. But what a journey What a tournament. What a day yesterday was

Comic-Con Unveils New Teaser For ‘The Walking Dead’

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Comic-Con Unveils New Teaser For ‘The Walking Dead’

A new teaser for the new season of The Walking Dead has been unveiled at the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con. We’re expecting a longer trailer later today, but this was unveiled in Southern California yesterday at the world’s biggest comic convention.

The Walking Dead stars Andrew Lincoln, Norman Reedus, Lauren Cohan, Chandler Riggs, Danai Gurira, Melissa McBride, Lennie James, Alanna Masterson, Josh McDermitt, Christian Serratos, Seth Gilliam, Ross Marquand, Austin Amelio, Tom Payne, Xander Berkeley, Khary Payton, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. It airs on AMC Stateside, who debuted the teaser, and the Fox cable channel in the UK.

The Walking Dead returns to screens later this year.

Urea dysfunctions in the liver may signal cancer

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Urea dysfunctions in the liver may signal cancer

A new study, now published in the journal Cell, suggests that the way in which the human body processes nitrogen may be key to finding new ways of detecting and destroying cancer.

Nitrogen is a gas that is vital for all organisms. Both plants and animals need it in order to make proteins.

When our body processes nitrogen, it generates a substance called urea as waste; the body later eliminates this substance through urine.

This metabolizing process is called the urea cycle, and it takes place in the liver.

New research suggests that dysregulations in the urea cycle could be a marker of cancer. The new study was led by Dr. Ayelet Erez, from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel.

Studying urea dysregulations and tumors
Dr. Erez and colleagues altered the genetic expression of urea cycle enzymes in the colon cancer tumors of rodents and compared their urea levels with those of control mice.

The mice whose urea cycle had been interfered with had lower blood levels of urea and higher levels of a substance called pyrimidine in their urine.

The scientists also examined the medical records of 100 children who had been diagnosed with cancer at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center.

“We found that on the day of their admission to the hospital,” explains the lead researcher, “children with cancer had significantly decreased urea levels in their blood, compared with documented levels of urea in healthy children of the same age.”

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Finally, the researchers also analyzed large genomic sets in search of DNA mutations that could indicate disruptions in the urea cycle.

They found mutations in DNA, RNA, and proteins, which indicates an excess of pyrimidine. This is produced through the synthesis of nitrogen and can, in turn, promote the growth of cancer cells.

Overall, the findings suggest that dysfunctions in the urea cycle may be a good indicator of cancer.

“Standard laboratory tests check for high levels of urea in blood, but we are now showing that low levels can also signal a problem,” says Dr. Erez. “Cancerous cells don’t waste anything, they make use of as much nitrogen as possible instead of disposing of it in the form of urea, as do normal cells.”

Making tumors vulnerable to immunotherapy
As the researchers explain, high levels of pyrimidine represent both good news and bad. The bad news is that it could make the cancer spread faster and more aggressively, but the good news is that the mutations that are related to excessive pyrimidine could make cancer cells more vulnerable to an attack from the immune system.

Therefore, malignancies characterized by a dysregulated urea cycle could be destroyed more easily with immunotherapy.

To test this hypothesis, Dr. Erez and colleagues examined melanoma tumors and found that the tumors that had dysregulated urea cycles responded better to immunotherapy. Dr. Erez and colleagues conclude:

“Taken together, our findings demonstrate that [urea cycle dysregulation] is a common feature of tumors that profoundly affects carcinogenesis, mutagenesis, and immunotherapy response.”

Moreover, say the researchers, the results could lead to better tools not only for diagnosing cancer, but also for treating it.

“Yet another possibility worth exploring,” Dr. Erez says, “is whether genetic manipulation of the tumor to induce such dysregulation prior to immunotherapy can increase the therapy’s effectiveness.”

Diets ‘devoid of vegetable matter’ may cause colon cancer

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Diets ‘devoid of vegetable matter’ may cause colon cancer

A new study emphasizes the importance to gut health of eating plenty of vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, and kale.
selection of greens
Eating brassicas such as collards, kale, and broccoli may protect against colon cancer.
Researchers from the Francis Crick Institute in London, United Kingdom, found that keeping mice on a diet rich in a compound known as indole-3-carbinol (I3C) — which comes from such vegetables — prevented the animals’ intestines from becoming inflamed and developing colon cancer.

They report the study in a paper now published in the journal Immunity.

“Seeing the profound effect,” says study senior author Dr. Brigitta Stockinger, a group leader at the Francis Crick Institute, “of diet on gut inflammation and colon cancer was very striking.”

Our digestive system produces I3C when we eat vegetables from a “large and diverse group” of plants known as brassicas.

Brassicas include, but are not limited to: broccoli, cabbage, collards, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kale, kohlrabi, swede, turnip, bok choi, and mizuna.

Colon cancer typically starts as a growth, or polyp, in the lining of the colon or large intestine. It can take many years for the cancer to develop from a polyp and not all polyps become cancerous.

Cancer of the colon or rectum is the third most commonly diagnosed in both women and men in the United States, not counting skin cancer.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) estimate that there will be 97,220 new cases of diagnosed colon cancer in the U.S. in 2018.

‘Concrete evidence’ of hidden mechanism
Despite a lot of evidence about the benefits to our digestive system of a diet rich in vegetables, much of the underlying cell biology remains unknown.

The new findings are the first to give “concrete evidence” of how dietary I3C — through its effect on a cell protein known as aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) — protects the gut from inflammation and cancer.

AhR has several roles, and for it to work properly, it has to be activated by a compound that binds to it uniquely. I3C is such a compound.

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One of AhR’s jobs in the gut is to pick up environmental signals and pass them on to immune cells and other cells in the lining. These signals are important for protecting the digestive tract from inflammation-promoting signals that come from the “trillions of bacteria” that live in it.

Another important role that AhR plays is helping stem cells convert into specialized gut lining cells that produce protective mucus and help extract nutrients from food.

When AhR is absent or does not work properly, the stem cells do not convert into working cells in the gut lining but “divide uncontrollably.” Uncontrolled cell division may lead to abnormal growths that can become malignant, or cancerous.

Importance of ‘plant matter’ in diet
Dr. Stockinger and her colleagues saw that normal laboratory mice that ate “purified control diets” developed colon tumors within 10 weeks, while those that ate standard “chow” containing grains and other ingredients did not develop any.

Purified control diets are tightly controlled to include precise amounts of protein, fat, carbohydrate, fiber, minerals, and vitamins. They are designed to exactly match nutritional requirements without including germs, allergens, and other substances that might introduce spurious variables in experiments.

The new study suggests that because purified control diets contain less plant matter, they have fewer compounds that activate AhR, compared with standard chow diets or diets enriched with I3C.

Dr. Chris Schiering, of Imperial College London, remarks that “even without genetic risk factors,” it would seem that “a diet devoid of vegetable matter can lead to colon cancer.”

‘Significantly fewer tumors’
The researchers used mice and organoids, or “mini guts,” grown from mouse stem cells, in their experiments. These revealed that the ability of intestinal epithelial cells to replenish themselves and repair the gut lining after infection or chemical damage was “profoundly influenced” by AhR.

The team also found that genetically engineered mice whose intestinal epithelial cells had no AhR — or could not activate the protein — failed to control an infection from a gut bacterium called Citrobacter rodentium. The animals developed gut inflammation and then colon cancer.

“However, when we fed them a diet enriched with I3C, they did not develop inflammation or cancer,” remarks first author Dr. Amina Metidji, also of the Francis Crick Institute.

Additionally, notes Dr. Metidji, when they switched mice that were already developing colon cancer to a diet rich in I3C, they found that those animals developed “significantly fewer tumors” and that those tumors were less likely to be malignant.

In discussing their results, the researchers raise the issue of whether it is the high fat content or the low consumption of vegetables in high-fat diets that explains the link to colon cancer.

The scientists now expect to continue the work on I3C and AhR with organoids grown from human gut tissue extracted in biopsies. Eventually, they expect the work to lead to human trials.

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