BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Spike ‘wrote world’s best joke’

Comedian Spike Milligan was the author of the world’s funniest joke, a psychology professor has claimed.

New Scientist Breaking News - Drinking coffee makes you more open-minded

The coffee you drink as a pick-me-up in the morning could also make you more open to persuasion, researchers say. Evidence from a new study suggests that this happens because caffeine revs up the brain, not because it generally boosts mood.

Koonj: Shabana’s blog » Blog Archive » There is no “I” in parenthood

Hazrat Mirza Mazhar Jan-e-Janaan (RA) had a bad-tempered wife who was always scolding him. This same Hz Mirza was extremely sensitive by temperament. Someone asked him why he lived with this badtempered woman. He said that it was because of this same woman and her temper that God had been so generous to him.

(BTW I’d like this to be cited more often when it comes to talk of “rights and responsibilities” and “marriage in Islam”….

WHO INVENTED BODY ODOR?

In the 1910s and particularly the 1920s, advertising agents focused their attention on identifying—and often inventing—personal anxieties that could be resolved by the purchase of specific products. “Advertising,” wrote one commentator in a trade publication, “helps to keep the masses dissatisfied with their mode of life, discontented with ugly things around them. Satisfied customers are not as profitable as discontented ones.” Advertisers, as historian Stuart Ewen notes, tried to endow people with a “critical self-consciousness” directed especially at their personal appearances.

India Uncut - England’s love for their newest folk hero, Monty Panesar

Mike Brearley examines England’s love for their newest folk hero, Monty Panesar:

Monty
and Manuel [the waiter in Fawlty Towers] are both from cultures that
are foreign to the majority, yet both are cult heroes. In feeling so
affectionate towards them, are we also compensating for our prejudices?
In falling in love with the chosen outsider, do we thus make a
convenient exception? I’ve heard people say if all blacks/foreigners/
East Europeans/Indians, etc were like ‘him’ there’d be no problem.

So
the racism or xenophobia stays intact, while the person chosen as the
exception becomes a more than honorary Englishman, whose name is turned
from Mudhsuden Singh Panesar, to dear old Monty (with the Panesar
pronunciation anglicised). But this may be cynical and pessimistic;
perhaps the popular attitude to Panesar humanises and moderates other
more paranoid feelings. I’m not sure.

SunniPath Answers (http://qa.sunnipath.com):
Is the new translation of Al Hidayah published by Amal Press a reliable translation?

I was wondering if the new translation of Al Hidayah published by Amal Press is reliable to use for hanafi fiqh?

TheStar.com - Sky’s the limit for condos?

When it comes to highrise living, T.O. is tops in North America — at least for now

Comment is free: Which is the quack medicine?

Quite a lot of orthodox treatments are unsupported by firm evidence.

BBC NEWS | Health | Why some just cannot resist food

Scientists have discovered why some people just can’t resist food.

It’s all about me: Why e-mails are so easily misunderstood | csmonitor.com

In a world where businesses and friends often depend upon e-mail to communicate, scholars want to know if electronic communications convey ideas clearly.

The answer, the professors conclude, is sometimes “no.” Though e-mail is a powerful and convenient medium, researchers have identified three major problems.

A List Apart: Articles: The Four-Day Week Challenge

The more you work, the more you get done, right? Well, I’d like to encourage you to take the “Four-Day Challenge.”

Love of life kills

Rise of the bully-girls | the Daily Mail

Girls typically outdo boys at school - and now they’re leading the field in a particularly worrying way.

They make far more effective bullies than the boys, a study has found.

While boys display their physical strength, girls use psychological warfare to dominate their victims.

Mickey D’s McMakeover

A comfortable armchair. Cool hanging lights. Funky graphics and photos on the walls. Wi-Fi access. Premium coffee. Isn’t Starbucks great? Except…this is McDonald’s. McDonald’s? That’s right. After 30 years without a major design overhaul, the 51-year-old fast-food giant is adopting a hip new look. The world’s largest hamburger chain is redesigning its 30,000 eateries around the globe in a 21st century makeover of unprecedented scale.

Visible Earth: The Blue Marble

This spectacular “blue marble” image is the most detailed true-color image of the entire Earth to date. Using a collection of satellite-based observations, scientists and visualizers stitched together months of observations of the land surface, oceans, sea ice, and clouds into a seamless, true-color mosaic of every square kilometer (.386 square mile) of our planet. These images are freely available to educators, scientists, museums, and the public. This record includes preview images and links to full resolution versions up to 21,600 pixels across.

 New Issue of Q-News - Habib Ali al-Jifri: The Mercy Warrior

copenhagen interpretation: a minor on tradition and modernity

The question of tradition and its place in this “modern world” is one that vexes a minor number of Muslims in a major way. Not only in the West. But it is here, in the West, that the battle seems to rage at its fiercest. Especially since each of us is taught to believe that all tradition is evil, backward, oppressive: that success lies in ditching the “dead weight” of tradition whether by means of Protestant reform, Marxist revision, or fundamentalist recreation. Merely coming to grips with tradition and applying it seems far too dull. It is as if staircases, built pretty much the same old way for ages, have become an object of undergraduate philosophical debate.

Random Consistent Ideas: A trip to Mecca …. California!

Opinions: ‘My mate MSG’ by Alex Renton | Prospect Magazine May 2006 issue 122

Monosodium glutamate gets a terrible press, but without it there would be no Marmite

Rolling Stone : The Worst President in History?

George W. Bush’s presidency appears headed for colossal historical disgrace. Barring a cataclysmic event on the order of the terrorist attacks of September 11th, after which the public might rally around the White House once again, there seems to be little the administration can do to avoid being ranked on the lowest tier of U.S. presidents. And that may be the best-case scenario. Many historians are now wondering whether Bush, in fact, will be remembered as the very worst president in all of American history.

New Scientist Breaking News - Watching the brain ’switch off’ self-awareness

Everybody has experienced a sense of “losing oneself” in an activity – being totally absorbed in a task, a movie or sex. Now researchers have caught the brain in the act.

BBC NEWS | Europe | Wildlife defies Chernobyl radiation

It contains some of the most contaminated land in the world, yet it has become a haven for wildlife - a nature reserve in all but name.

Shifa: The Importance of Emotional Wellness

The World Health Organization defines health as a “state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” This comprehensive definition is consistent with the Old English meaning of wholeness.

Freakonomics Blog » Don’t Tell Me Little Leaguers Are On Steroids, Too

Why else would the two stadiums in Williamsport, Pa., where the Little League Baseball World Series is played, be moving back their fences 20 feet?
Well, it turns out that Little Leaguers at this level are hitting more
home runs than doubles, which isn’t the way it works in the Bigs.
It’s funny: MLB’s idea of a
thrilling game is one with lots of home runs; LL’s idea is to
have more doubles and triples. Of course, none of this precludes the
possibility that Little Leaguers are cheating, whether by
chemicals or some other fashion. When I played Little League, a friend
of mine used to bash his aluminum bat against a brick wall to flatten
it out, which he swore gave him a bigger and better batting surface.
Truthfully, it was hard to tell: he struck out so often, I never saw
much of a difference.

India Uncut - America’s struggles with immigration shouldn’t go Europe’s way

As America struggles with immigration, Fareed Zakaria, an immigrant himself, says that it should not go Europe’s way. He writes in Newsweek:

Across
Europe one sees disaffected, alienated immigrants, ripe for radicalism.
The immigrant communities deserve their fair share of blame for this,
but there’s a cycle at work. European societies exclude the immigrants,
who become alienated and reject their societies.

France is
an excellent example of how Europe is creating parallel societies by
treating immigrants the way it does. For more, do read these three fine
essays by Theodore Dalrymple: “The Barbarians at the Gates of Paris,” “How PC Boosts Le Pen,” and “The Dumbest Immigration Policy.”

Global Voices Online » Blog Archive » Images from Argentina: Perito Moreno Glacier

Argentina’s Perito Moreno Glacier
has been in the international news lately as it takes stage during the
unfolding drama that is global warming. Ironically, Perito Moreno is
one of only three Patagonian glaciers not retreating due to warming
temperatures. In fact, its advancement is causing mammoth walls of ice
to break off almost daily.

Alexandalus » Blog Archive » Shaykh Hamza Yusuf lecture on Rabi al-Awal

Audio:
Allah & His Messenger in Our Lives

(Allah bless him and give him peace)

Islam: Nasheed Video - Multazim Par by Junaid Jamshed - Google Video

A wonderful Urdu nasheed video with an inspiring theme.

Lyric: Mufti Taqi Usmani

BEDTIME-STORY CLASSICS-Alice In Wonderland BACKGROUND

The Background & History of Alice In Wonderland…

How to Drink More Water Everyday - WikiHow

There are a variety of reasons to drink plenty of water each day. Adequate water intake prevents dehydration, cleans out the body, and promotes healing processes. Substituting water for beverages high in calories can also help control weight. Follow the steps below to make sure you’re getting enough of this most basic necessity.

Things you don’t see every day …: The Top 18 Skylines in the World

All urban “life” begins and ends, each day and night under the watch of the city’s tallest skyscrapers and most grand architectural structures. So kick back and appreciate the view that they have to offer…

IKEA billionaire founder proud to be frugal at 80| Reuters.co.uk

IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad, ranked 4th richest man in the world, drives a 15-year-old car and always flies economy class, in part to inspire his 90,000 employees worldwide to see the virtue of frugality.

A false smile can be hazardous to your health - Lifehacker

A german study suggests that “enforced jolliness on the job” isn’t good for you.

Why Do So Few Women Reach the Top of Big Law Firms? - New York Times

Although the nation’s law schools for years have been graduating classes that are almost evenly split between men and women, and although firms are absorbing new associates in numbers that largely reflect that balance, something unusual happens to most women after they begin to climb into the upper tiers of law firms. They disappear.

Africa’s New Ocean: A Continent Splits Apart - International - SPIEGEL ONLINE - News

Normally new rivers, seas and mountains are born in slow motion. The Afar Triangle near the Horn of Africa is another story. A new ocean is forming there with staggering speed — at least by geological standards. Africa will eventually lose its horn.

News-Leader.com | Amish neighbors take just one day to rebuild home

Family members survive devastation unscathed, but house came crashing down around them.

SunniPath Academy

Courses in Islamic Beliefs, Worship, Spirituality, Qur’an, Hadith, and more…

course.SunniPath.com

BBC NEWS | Health | Call to tackle Asian heart risk

Urgent action is needed to tackle high rates of heart disease and diabetes among British Asians, say campaigners.

UK Asians are about 50% more likely to develop coronary
heart disease than people of European origin, British Heart Foundation
research suggests.

[I got this in my email… Don’t read if you think halal jokes are haram.]

Several men are in the changing room of a golf club. A mobile phone on a bench rings and a man engages the hands free speaker-function and began to talk…. Everyone else in the room stops to listen.

MAN: “Hello”
WOMAN: “Darling, it’s me. Are you at the club?”
MAN: “Yes”
WOMAN: “I am at the shopping centre and found this beautiful leather coat. It’s only £1,000. Is it OK if I buy it?”
MAN: “Sure,..go ahead if you like it that much.”
WOMAN: “I also stopped by the Mercedes dealership and saw the new 2006 models. I saw one I really liked.”
MAN: “How much?”
WOMAN: “£70,000″
MAN: “OK, but for that price I want it with all the options.”
WOMAN: “Great! Oh, and one more thing … The house I wanted last year is back on the market. They’re asking £950,000″
MAN: “Well, then go ahead and give them an offer of 900,000. They will probably take it. If not, we can go the extra 50 thousand. It really is a pretty good price.”
WOMAN: “OK. I’ll see you later! I love you so much!!”
MAN: “Bye! I love you, too.”

The man hangs up. The other men in the changing room are staring at him in astonishment, mouths agape…..

He smiles and asks: “Anyone know who this phone belongs to?”

heraldsun.com: Food Fight: Scientists take on soda…

One of every five calories in the American diet
is liquid. The nation’s single biggest “food” is soda, and nutrition
experts have long demonized it.

Now they are escalating the fight.

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | I’m lovin’ it

The week brought great news for fans of real food: falling sales have forced the closure of 25 UK McDonald’s branches. Could this be a tipping point? Asks Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

The Beatnik Sufis » Howdy Y’all

Mmmmmmmangoes! - Sepia Mutiny

For me, the sweetest fruit of Bush’s bisit to India is that finally, after 17 years of trying, Indian mangoes will soon be available in the US. Thus far, desis in the US have had to settle for Mexican mangoes, which are neither as sweet nor as juicy as what one can get back in the sub-continent.

In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful and Compassionate

Insh’Allah, Sheikh Nuh Keller will be speaking in Pakistan on March 10-12th (Fri-Sun) at the Avari Hotel in Lahore.

Admission is free of charge but by invitation only. The good news for those people we had previously turned away due to space considerations is that the new venue accommodates more people. Please confirm your interest as soon as possible because space is still limited.

In order to attend the talks or invite friends and family (to whom you have permission to forward this email), please: Read the rest of this entry »

Umar (aged 4 1/2) tells Mother:

“If the Shaytan emails me, I’ll tell him: ‘Go away! I won’t listen to you!’”

SunniPath Academy: Learn the Essentials

Swimming in syrup is as easy as water

It’s a question that has taxed generations of the finest minds in physics: do humans swim slower in syrup than in water? And since you ask, the answer’s no. Scientists have filled a swimming pool with a syrupy mixture and proved it.

Nano Technology may make cleaning Toilets a thing of the Past

Researchers from University of New South Wales, Australia, are working on developing a coating that may make cleaning bathrooms less of a chore