Why People Should Eat Cupcakes ! ~Post for TOMORROW~ By A.Danalaximii

When it comes to sweets, there are hundreds of desserts to choose from. If you want to eat for the moment, however, the trendiest, most delicious, and most popular dessert right now is cupcakes. Not only are they delicious, but they’re cute too. They’re the perfect size for a one-person dessert you never feel like you’ve eaten too much. They’re not just for kids anymore; they can be dressed up to be served at the fanciest wedding or dressed down for casual get-togethers. They are portable and easy to serve to a crowd. Everyone gets an equal share, so nobody feels they didn’t get enough. Basically, there’s no reason why someone would want to turn one down. I feel that everyone should eat cupcakes. Even when competing with the likes of Bananas Foster or Crème Brulee. Cupcakes have a simplistic air that can surprise you with flavors like white chocolate raspberry or bittersweet lemon drop. So, if you want to eat something sweet and satisfying, but at the same time “tres chic”, you should be eating cupcakes!

The first benefit to cupcakes is that they’re easy to make. When you feel like baking your own quick, tasty dessert, you can make cupcakes just by buying the batter, mixing it up, pouring it in the pan, baking the cupcakes, and finally frosting them. The term cupcake dates back to 1828 when the tradition of weighing ingredients was changed to measuring in cups. The name also had a double meaning as the practice of baking in small cups like tea cups was developed. The small cups were much faster to bake in hearth ovens than the large cake pans that had been previously used (E. Leslie’s Receipts of 1828).Cupcakes gained popularity through the 1900’s because of their ease in baking. What makes them even better is that you can decorate them any way you want to! You can also make them as whatever you’re craving, whether you want simple vanilla cupcakes or something more complex like chocolate almond mocha cupcakes, you can satisfy your craving.

Who knows better than Martha Stewart when it comes to culinary delights? Last week on her popular television show the theme was “Cupcake Week”, and it featured some of her personal favorite cupcake recipes. Other celebrities also can’t get enough of this cupcake craze! As reported on People.com, Paris Hilton has ordered cupcakes from Mrs. Beasley’s, a popular bakery that sells gourmet cupcakes. Blake Lively, a star on the popular show “Gossip Girl”, states in a magazine article that her favorite cupcake is the red velvet flavor from the famous Sprinkles Cupcakes store in Beverly Hills (Cosmogirl). Cupcakes even graced the cover of the most recent issue of Bon Appetite magazine.

Some people think cupcakes are just for kids, but they are much more than that. They have been creating a buzz in the dessert industry and are suitable for just about every occasion. Cupcakes let you have a moment of cake but on a personal level. And depending how you decorate them, they can be served at a backyard barbeque or an elegant gala. The cupcake has gone gourmet, it’s become playful, hip, and glamorous all at the same time. Bakeries have opened all over the country with people waiting in lines out the door just for cupcakes!

So rather than looking at another boring plate of crumbly, dry cookies, reach for your own personal creation. Cupcakes can be what you want them to be: creative and fun, simple and delicious, or elaborate and designer. They are delicious, cute, trendy, fun, and easy to share. With all their benefits, not to mention popularity at the moment, they are the best dessert choice on the menu! Some may say they are messy to eat but it is worth every crumb. And if you use a fork, you can enjoy every morsel without spilling any on yourself. I feel that everyone should eat cupcakes. The fact is that they are easy to make and share and that celebrities and non-celebrities alike can’t get enough of the delightful delicacies. They used to be just for kids but not anymore. They’re here to stay and shouldn’t be missed when it comes to dessert.

Become an excellent students :)

1.Take some time to write some problems up, or you could ask someone to write them for you. Just remember, it doesn't hurt to go over what you have learned.

2.Do your homework. Teachers give you homework for a reason. It is to review what you have learned that day. Take advantage of your free time. Do your homework on the way home from school and in any spare time. Unless you have a kind of school that gives you homework for reasonability and not to review. But most schools have it to review. Do as much at school as you can; you have the teacher there in case you need help. Make sure not to rush on your homework, to check over it, and to be neat. If you really want to be a successful student, you should know right from the beginning when you want to be great at anything, and when you have to put up with things that just don't seem fair. Doing your homework is not a big deal. Remember, homework can also help you develop good habits and attitudes. Always do what is asked of you.

3.Be prepared. Bring everything you need with you to class. It would be a good idea to bring books, folders, pens, pencils, homework, review sheets and anything else you need.

4.Get organized. Staying organized in school is extremely important. If you are organized, then you are one step ahead in being successful. Keep a folder for each subject, that means that you put your math papers in your math folder, your Language Arts papers in your Language Arts folder, your science papers in your science folder, and so on. To make this easier, use color codes or label your folders.


5.Study. It is advised to start studying at least a few days before a test. Make a studyschedule. If an extracurricular activity gets in the way of your studying, tell the person in charge of that certain event that you will not be able to attend that event, or you will have to leave early. However, there will be certain situations where you will have to attend. In this kind of situation, you will just have to study another day. This is where your study schedule comes in. Write out a schedule of the week of your test and find your free time. Always remember, use your time wisely. Study as if you are motivated for the outcome of your hard work.


6.Ask a parent or older sibling to look over your notes and create a mini-test for you three days prior to your test. Study before the night of your test.

Wajib Lulus Bahasa Inggeris Spm Tahun 2016! POST FOR TODAY BY DANA !

Pengetua Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Damansara Utama, Zulaika A Rahman (tengah) bersama pelajarnya meninjau pameran Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia 2013-2025 selepas Majlis Pelancaran Pelan Pembangunan Pendidikan Malaysia di Pusat Konvensyen Kuala Lumpur, semalam.  Kuala Lumpur: Mulai 2016, mata pelajaran Bahasa Inggeris akan dijadikan kertas wajib lulus di peringkat Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM).  Ia dilaksanakan kerana rekod menunjukkan hanya 28 peratus murid mendapat minimum kredit dalam Bahasa Inggeris pada SPM 2011 yang ditanda mengikut standard kertas Cambridge 1119.  Selain itu, kelemahan penguasaan kemahiran Bahasa Inggeris dalam kalangan siswazah adalah antara isu yang dihadapi majikan pada 2006.  Berdasarkan statistik itu, kerajaan akan berusaha menambah masa atau ‘contact hours’ dalam kelas agar pendedahan murid dalam Bahasa Inggeris akan lebih mendalam.  Laksana sistem set  Kerajaan juga akan melaksanakan Sistem Set untuk membahagikan murid kepada kumpulan tertentu bagi membolehkan guru merangka pendekatan pedagogi yang sesuai dengan tahap kemahiran dan keperluan pembelajaran murid.  Selain itu, pendedahan berterusan kepada murid diperluaskan dengan modul Sastera dalam Bahasa Inggeris akan diwajibkan kepada murid sekolah rendah dan menengah.  Uji kemahiran guru  Selain itu, guru Bahasa Inggeris akan diuji kemahiran mereka melalui Cambridge Placement Test (CPT).  Setakat ini 5,000 guru sudah mengikuti latihan lanjutan yang dianjurkan oleh British Council, manakala 9,000 lagi dijangka menyertai kursus berkenaan pada Oktober ini.  Bagi memastikan semua guru mendapat manfaat, kerajaan akan memastikan 61,000 guru mengikuti CPT dalam tempoh dua tahun bagi membolehkan murid mengikuti pembelajaran daripada guru yang mempunyai kemahiran mengikut standard antarabangsa.

Seorang bayi berusia lapan bulan cedera parah ! post for today by DANA

 Seorang bayi berusia lapan bulan cedera parah di gigit biawak. Kejadian dilaporkan berlaku di Pulau Tioman. Kejadian di sedari ibunya. Sebelum kejadian ibunya dilaporkan meninggalkan bayi berkenaan di di dalam buaian bersendirian untuk ke dapur. Sebelum mendengar anaknya menangis.

Mendengar anaknya menangis ibu berkenaan bergegas ke depan dan melihat seekor biawak yang agak besar sedang menggigit kepala anaknya. Dia berjaya menyelamatkan anaknya sejurus kemudian. Bayi berkenaan sekrang berada di Hospital Mersing untuk rawatan lanjut.

How To Be A Good Leader :)

1. Learn More About Your Leadership Style

Understanding your current leadership style is essential. What are your strengths? Which areas need some improvement? One way to start assessing your skills is to take thisleadership style quiz to get a general idea of how you lead. Once you have completed the quiz, read about the major characteristics of your dominant style. Are these qualities helping or hindering your leadership? Once you've determine which areas need some work, you can begin looking for ways to improve your leadership abilities.

Image by Svilen Milev

2. Encourage Creativity

Intellectual stimulation is one of the hallmarks of transformational leadership. Followers need to be encouraged to express their creativity. Effective leaders should offer new challenges with ample support to achieve these goals. One way to foster creativity is to offer challenges to group members, making sure that the goals are within the grasp of their abilities. The purpose of this type of exercise is to get people to stretch their limits, but to not become discouraged by barriers to success.

Image by Marja Flick-Buijs

3. Serve As a Role Model

Idealized influence is another of the four key components of transformational leadership. Transformational leaders exemplify the behaviors and characteristics that they encourage in their followers. They walk the walk and talk the talk. As a result, group members admire these leaders and work to emulate these behaviors. If you want to become a better leader, work on modeling the qualities that you would like to see in your team members.

6. Have a Positive Attitude

Transformational leaders have anupbeat, optimistic attitude that serves as a source of inspiration for followers. If leaders seem discouraged or apathetic, members of the group are likely to also become uninspired. Even when things look bleak and your followers start to feel disheartened, try to stay positive. This does not mean viewing things through rose-colored glasses. It simply means maintaining a sense of optimism and hope in the face of challenges.

Image by Marja Flick-Buijs

7. Encourage People to Make Contributions

Let the members of your team know that you welcome their ideas. Leaders who encourage involvement from group members are often referred to asdemocratic or participative leaders. While they retain the final say over all decisions, they encourage team members to take an active role in coming up with ideas and plans. Research has shown that using a democratic leadership style leads to greater commitment, more creative problem-solving and improved productivity.

Post for 22nd of September :)
-Nuradlin Athirah-

7 Delicious Desserts With Secret, Healthy Ingredients

Nutrition-conscious bakers will get a kick out of these desserts sweetened with natural ingredients.

How do you hide black beans in brownies, chia seeds in pudding or avocado in truffles? Beat them into submission with a food processor.
Yes, after a week of experimenting with desserts that look decadent on the outside but harbour secret, healthful ingredient lists on the inside, I’ve discovered that a food processor is the nutrition-conscious baker’s best friend. And the more powerful, the better.
These desserts are all sweetened naturally and are not only filled with secret, healthy ingredients, but sometimes made more delicious because of those ingredients.

This 'ice cream' is actually just made from frozen bananas, frozen cherries and vanilla extract. – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT

Cherry Vanilla ‘Ice Cream’ (With Bananas)
Secret ingredient: Bananas
This ice cream isn’t ice cream at all. In fact, in its simplest form it’s just bananas. But add in a few frozen cherries and some vanilla, or any number of additions (cocoa powder, coconut flakes, peanut butter, instant coffee) and you’ve got an all-natural alternative to frozen yoghurt with no added sugar.
Click for the recipe.

These fudgy brownie bites actually contain black beans instead of flour. – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT

Fudgy Vegan Brownies (With Black Beans)
Secret ingredient: Black beans
These vegan, gluten-free brownies are dense and fudgy. Don’t tell anyone the secret ingredient is black beans! The recipe is from minimalistbaker.com.
Click for the recipe.

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Bites are naturally sweetened and contain a secret ingredient: chickpeas. – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT

Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Bites (With Chickpeas)
Secret ingredient: Chickpeas
These cookie bites are gooey and perfect right out of the oven — you’d never know they’re essentially just nuts, beans and chocolate chips. The recipe is adapted from texanerin.com.
Click for the recipe.

Chocolate truffles get their creamy texture from avocado instead of cream. – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT

Chocolate Truffles (With Avocado)
Secret ingredient: Avocado
These truffles get their creamy texture from avocado, making them as decadent as chocolates made with heavy cream, but much healthier. And don’t worry, the avocado flavour is masked by the chocolate. In their simplest form, they use just three ingredients, but cacao nibs add texture and flavour (without additional sugar). You could also simply reserve and chop ½ cup of the chocolate chips to add in for texture. The recipe is adapted from Food52.com.
Click for the recipe.

This chocolate ice cream is sweetened naturally with dates and maple syrup, and gets its creamy texture from chia seeds. – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT

Chocolate Ice Cream (With Chia Seeds)
Secret ingredient: Chia seeds
Chia seeds are touted as an ancient superfood rich in omega-3 fatty acids. The little black seeds don’t have much flavour, but when soaked in liquid they form a gelatinous texture, making them popular for faux-pudding recipes. Not sure about chia pudding? Put it in an ice cream maker and naturally-sweetened chia ice cream might be more your style. This recipe is from topwithcinnamon.com.
Click for the recipe.

Coconut milk can be whipped to make a non-dairy whipped topping. – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT

Coconut Whipped Cream (Dairy-free)
Secret ingredient: Coconut milk
Well, the secret ingredient isn’t so secret, but it’s a good option for those with a dairy intolerance, looking to cut down a bit on fat or who just love coconut flavour.

Click for the recipe.

This chocolate pudding gets its gelatinous texture from chia seeds. – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/MCT

Almost Instant Chocolate Pudding (With Chia Seeds)
Secret ingredient: Chia seeds
Chia seeds turn gelatinous when chilled in liquid, making them a healthy, vegan substitute for egg yolks and cornstarch typically found in homemade pudding. Most recipes for chia pudding (or traditional pudding, for that matter) involve chilling the recipe for several hours or overnight, but if you keep a batch of almond milk ice cubes in your freezer this recipe lets you enjoy healthy chocolate pudding almost instantly. This recipe is adapted from ohsheglows.com.
Click for the recipe.
– Milwaukee Journal Sentinel/McClatchy-Tribune Information Services

credit : alison sherwood

nurnajwa

What Is SPF Sunscreen?

Sun Protection Factor Explained

In Brief

SPF measures sunscreen protection from UVB rays, the kind that cause sunburn and contribute to skin cancer.

SPF does not measure how well a sunscreen will protect from UVA rays, which are also damaging and dangerous.

Dermatologists recommend using a SPF15 or SPF30 sunscreen. Higher SPFs don't give much more protection.

What is SPF Sunscreen?

SPF, or Sun Protection Factor,is a measure of how well a sunscreen will protect skin from UVB rays, the kind of radiation that causes sunburn, damages skin, and can contribute to skin cancer.

• If your skin would normally burn after 10 minutes in the sun, applying an SPF 15 sunscreen would allow you to stay in the sun without burning for approximately 150 minutes (a factor of 15 times longer). This is a rough estimate that depends on skin type, intensity of sunlight and amount of sunscreen used. SPF is actually a measure of protection from amount of UVB exposure and it is not meant to help you determine duration of exposure.
   
• For best protection, experts recommend using a minimum SPF sunscreen of 15, applying the proper amount (2mg/cm² of skin, or about one ounce for full body coverage), and reapplying every 2 hours.
   
• Most people under-apply sunscreens, using ¼ to ½ the amount required. Using half the required amount of sunscreen only provides the square root of the SPF. So, a half application of an SPF 30 sunscreen only provides an effective SPF of 5.5!

The SPF (Sun Protection Factor) scale is not linear:

• SPF 15 blocks 93% of UVB rays
   
• SPF 30 blocks 97% of UVB rays
   
• SPF 50 blocks 98% of UVB rays

So, one way of looking at this is that SPF 30 sunscreen only gives you 4% more protection than SPF 15 sunscreen.

Or, another way of looking at it is:

• SPF 15 (93% protection) allows 7 out of 100 photons through

• SPF 30 (97% protection) allows 3 out of 100 photons through.

So, while you may not be doubling your level of protection, an SPF 30 will block half the radiation that an SPF 15 would let through to your skin.

It’s complicated, but to keep it simple, most dermatologists recommend using a SPF 15 or SPF 30 sunscreen.

Why not use a really high Sun Protection Factor? Sunscreens with really high SPFs, such as SPF 75 or SPF 100, do not offer significantly greater protection than SPF 30 and mislead people into thinking they have more protection than they actually do. Additionally, in order to have broad spectrum protection, the UVA protection should be at least 1/3 of the UVB protection. High SPF sunscreens usually offer far greater UVB than UVA protection, thus offering a false sense of full protection. 

nurnajwa

The Croods :)

Eep (Emma Stone) is a girl in a family of cavemen living and hunting in pre-historic times. Her family is one of the few to survive, mainly due to the strict rules of her overprotective father, Grug (Nicolas Cage). In their cave home, Grug tells a story to the family, which includes his wife Ugga (Catherine Keener), his daughter Sandy, his son Thunk (Clark Duke), and his mother-in-law Gran (Cloris Leachman). He uses the story of a character who mirrors Eep's curious nature to warn the family that exploration and 'new things' pose a threat to their survival, and says to never not be afraid. This irritates the bored and adventurous Eep, and after the family falls asleep, she leaves the cave, against her father's advice, when she sees a light moving outside.

Seeking the light's source, she meets Guy (Ryan Reynolds), a clever and inventive caveboy. She at first attacks him but then becomes fascinated with the fire he creates and is eager to learn more. He tells her about his theory that the world is reaching its 'end' and asks her to join him. She refuses and Guy leaves, but not before giving her a noise-making shell to call him if she needs help. Eep is then caught by Grug (who had been searching for her), and is later grounded for what she had done. Grug brings Eep home and is joined by the rest of the family. Eep tells them about Guy and shows them the shell given to her, only for them to destroy it in fear of 'new things'. An earthquake then occurs, sending everyone running for the cave, only to be stopped by Grug moments before the cave is destroyed by falling rocks. They climb over the wreckage to discover a land with lush vegetation, much different from their usual surroundings of rocky terrain. Grug takes his family into the forest to find a new cave.

The family is chased by a "Macawnivore" (a large, macaw-colored machairodont later called "Chunky") and attacked by a swarm of "Piranhakeets" (deadly red-feathered, piranha-like birds). In panic, Eep finds and sounds a horn similar to that which Guy gave her. Guy hears this and rushes to her. Thinking quickly, he creates a torch of fire, which scares the birds away. The other Croods are captivated by the fire, having never seen it before. They steal Guy's torch and accidentally set the land around them in flames. Some giant corn is also lit, which rockets up to the sky, prompting a display of "fireworks" as the kernels explode. After feeling impressed by Guy's intelligence and 'ideas', Grug bottles him in a hollow log to carry him in, then suggests that they take solitude in the cave of a nearby mountain mentioned by Guy. Guy is forcibly persuaded to lead the way and learns of the Croods' way of living, which he thinks of as unusual.

After an unsuccessful hunting attempt, Guy, his "pet" sloth Belt (Chris Sanders), and Eep build a puppet to fool and lure nearby Turkey-Fish. After they make their capture, the family greedily devours everything they caught. Grug then tells another of his morale-lowering tales, this time mirroring the events of their day. Guy then tells a story of his own about a paradise he calls "Tomorrow".

The next day, the family reaches a path coated in spiked rock which Grug, Thunk, and Gran get pricked upon trying to cross them. A freed Guy tries to flee but then presents one of his inventions called shoes making some out of all the resources he can find for each family member. This gains him some respect from the others except for Grug, who feels jealous of Guy's cleverness. After Guy's ideas help the Croods on their journey, the family members gain something. Ugga, Gran, and Sandy have their first idea to get past carnivorous plants by hiding under flower heads as they pass, Thunk encounters and befriends a crocodile-like dog he calls Douglas, and Eep and Guy grow closer while Grug is stranded in a ravine forcing Ugga to go back for him. The next day, Grug shows the others some of his ideas (like a see-saw, shades made out of wood, and a snapshot that involves the family being slammed with a flat rock) which fail and humiliate him. They soon reach the mountain where Grug is unable to convince the family that settling in a nearby cave is a better option. Angry, he attacks Guy. The two become stuck in tar and Guy reveals his family died drowning in a tar pool and their last words inspired his traditions of "Tomorrow." Grug has a change of heart; he and Guy trick Chunky into freeing them by pretending to be a female "Macawnivore" in trouble.

As they are about to reach their destination, an earthquake opens a deep ravine in their path. Grug throws each of them across the gap and reconciles with Eep while creating the first hug with her. Grug then throws her across the ravine and is left behind. He takes shelter in a cave and makes a torch. After seeing a blank rock face, he paints a large cave-drawing of the Croods and Guy together. He then encounters Chunky, who attacks him until Grug's torch is accidentally blown out, panicking them both. The frightened Chunky lies near Grug for comfort, who then has his first good idea. Using a bigger torch and a large skeletal rib cage, Grug manages to lure the Piranhakeets into transporting himself, Chunky, Douglas, and several other animals across the ravine, barely escaping the oncoming destruction. Afterwards, Grug shares the "hug" when he embraces his daughter again, followed by the Croods inventing the group hug.

The family discovers that they have found an ocean-like area where the sun goes down over the sea. Grug and his family - including Guy, Chunky, Belt, Douglas and all their various pets - settle down in this paradise-like environment. He stops being so over-protective; as a result the family becomes more adventurous, bringing happiness to them all.