French Feminists Say 'Non' To 'Mademoiselle' (audio)

Slow down, listen and self-reflect! (video)

Thomas J. DeLong teaches globally in a myriad of executive programs and consults with leading organizations on the process of making individual and organizational change. His 2011 book, Flying Without a Net: Turn Fear of Change into Fuel for Success, centers on the challenges of helping talented professionals who are resistant to change.

He is also the Philip J. Stomberg Professor of Management Practice in the Organizational Behavior area at the Harvard Business School. Before joining the Harvard Faculty, DeLong was Chief Development Officer and Managing Director of Morgan Stanley Group, Inc., where he was responsible for the firm’s human capital and focused on issues of organizational strategy and organizational change.

DeLong co-authored two books focused on leading professional service firms, When Professionals Have to Lead: A New Model for High Performance (Harvard Business School Press, 2007) and Professional Services: Cases and Texts (McGraw-Hill/Irwin 2003). DeLong has coauthored two Harvard Business Review articles, “Let's Hear It for B Players” and “Why Mentoring Matters in a Hypercompetitive World”. His 2011 series of articles in the Harvard Business Review focus on why high achieving professionals often unwittingly sabotage their effort to excel.

Ford's 100 years on British roads (video)

India Untouchables Queen

How about reading and filling in the blanks?

Mayawat, a 55-year-old former teacher, …………………………………………. (be) a powerful Indian politician who currently ……………………………………… (head) India's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh.

She …………………………………………. (be) known as the Untouchables Queen because she …………………………………………. (advocate) for the Dalits or "untouchables", who …………………………………………. (be) among India's poorest and most deprived people.

Last week the WikiLeaks website ………………………………….. (release) October 2008 cables that ……………………………………. (describe) her as "a first-rate egomaniac who …………………………………………. (be) obsessed with ……………………………. (become) prime minister."

"Last month she ……………………………………… (need) new sandals, so a jet …………………………………………. (fly) to Mumbai to retrieve her favorite brand"

"She ……………………………………… (build) a private road from her residence to her office. She ………………………….………. (use) it at least twice a day and it ……………………………………… (clean) immediately after her multiple vehicle convoy …………………………………………….. (reach) its destination."

"She …………………………………………… (employ) food tasters to guard her against poisoning"

"One minister …………………………………………… (force) to do sit-ups in front of Mayawati as a punishment for a minor offence"

"Those wanting to become election candidates for her party ………………………………… (have) pay tens of thousands of dollars for the privilege"

"At her birthday parties, top public figures, including police chiefs and politicians, often …………………………………………… (feed) her cake"

A spokesperson for Mayawati …………………………………………… (say) in a statement that those cables …………………………………………… (not carry) any authenticity.

Supporters of Mayawati …………………………………………… (say) she …………………………………………… (fill) them with a sense of pride and …………………………………………… (be) a source of inspiration to the millions of Dalits, or Untouchables, who have traditionally been forbidden from displays of well-being.

India …………………………………………… (be) awash with stories of corruption that …………………………………………… (trigger) a wave of street protests demanding tougher laws.




Think of questions to get the following answers






1. For the untouchables
2. Last week
3. As a first-rate egomaniac
4. To Mumbai
5. To go to her office
6. Twice a day
7. To guard her against poisoning
8. Tens of thousands of dollars
9. At her birthday parties
10. No, they can't. It's forbidden


adapted from Reuters

Texting context (video)

Mom Jailed Because Her Baby LOLed in Library

Single mom and full-time college student Donnetta Foster, 20, was using a computer to prepare for a job interview at the Decatur Library in Georgia, when her baby allegedly laughed too loudly at a flash card. Things weren’t so funny after that.

Foster says she tried to quiet her son, but security guards told her to leave and the librarian shut down her computer. After she refused to leave, the librarian called the police, and Foster "became irate yelling in a loud manner." After that, she was handcuffed and placed under arrest for disorderly conduct and could face up to a year in jail.

Today, Foster admits she got too emotional but that police overreacted (apparently six or seven police cars ultimately responded to the scene, according to Foster’s attorney).

Foster was out of control (and people go to libraries to be in relative silence), but she’s already spent two days in jail because of this incident!

• Do you think the library staff and the police overreacted?

• Should this mom have to serve jail time for her actions?

adapted from Parenting.com

Comparing Brazilian states with countries

The map below presents country equivalents for every Brazilian state in terms of GDP, GDP per person and population. It throws up some curiosities: who knew that Alagoas, a state in the north-east that is currently more famous for its murder rate than for its magnificent beaches, has the same GDP per person as China? It also suggests that even the comparatively rich states in the south and south-east have some way to go before they can be compared with wealthy places in the northern hemisphere.





Click HERE if you want to go to The Economist map

Driver crashes car through bike shop

How about filling the blanks so as to get more information?

The manager of a Southern California bicycle shop …………………. (say) customers and staff …………………. (come) within inches of dying when an 85-year-old grandmother's car ……………………… (drive) into the store on Thursday.

The elderly driver …………………. (tell) authorities she …………………. (hit) the accelerator instead of the brake while …………………. (park) in a handicapped spot in front of Rock N' Road Cyclery in Mission Viejo, Orange County Sheriff's spokesman Jim Amormino …………………. (say) yesterday.

As the Cadillac Deville …………………. (smash) through the front window, customers …………………. (have) a split second to move out of the way.

CCTV footage of the incident …………………. (show) a woman on crutches who just …………………. (manage) to dive on top of the cashier counter to escape serious harm as the vehicle …………………. (rush) past.

The vehicle …………………. (come) to a stop when it …………………. (crash) into the shop's back wall.

Amazingly, no one ....................... (be) seriously injured as debris …………………. (go) flying. Two people …………………. (be) struck by glass and a third person …………………. (suffer) a knee injury. The driver …………………. (be not hurt).

John Bain who …………………. (manage) the shop …………………. (say) 3 customers and 5 workers …………………. (be) in the store. He …………………. (estimate) the car …………………. (go) 65 kmph and …………………. (miss) some employees by inches.

Mr Bain said the car …………………. (blow) smoke everywhere and even …………………. (melt) the floor (photo)

"It …………………. (be) weird, it …………………. (be) like a thunder. It …………………. (be) so loud. The car …………………. (hit) rack after rack. You …………………. (hear) every single impact. A lot of it …………………. (be) our powdered nutritional product so there …………………. (be) puffs of smoke – it …………………. (be) crazy.'

He said the woman …………………. (appear) confused and ……………….. …………………. (not think or react) properly.

'She was completely stone-faced,' he …………………. (tell) the police. 'No emotion whatsoever. We …………………. (try) to get her out of the car but she …………………. (be) concerned about …………………. (get) her purse more than anything else. I think she …………………. (be) just confused and in shock.'

The damage …………………. (cost) tens of thousands of dollars to repair. The store …………………. (install) a new reinforced handicapped sign to stop a repeat happening.

The driver …………………. (not arrest) and her name …………………. (not release).

Souvenir: The car left behind its Cadillac symbol

The Physics of the Imposssible (video)

In this excerpt from the latest lecture at Great Big Ideas, the new online course offered by The Floating University, Dr. Michio Kaku, Henry Semat Professor of Theoretical Physics at CUNY, explains that while some inventions will remain forever confined to the pages of science fiction novels, many of the innovations we've dreamed up in books - warp drive, star gates, portals through space and time - will one day make the leap in to living rooms everywhere, like the television set did in 1948.








You can also watch this video by clicking HERE or on the Play Button

9/11 Rescuers' Health Problems (video)

The Twin Towers' collapse and their smoldering ruins exposed thousands of rescuers, firefighters and cleanup crews to toxic ash and smoke. Ten years later, medical researchers say many of these people are suffering higher-than-normal rates of serious disease and psychological problems.


Click HERE or on the Play Button to watch the video

Elizabeth Taylor's jewels up for auction (video and article)

Elizabeth Taylor once said that the three loves of her life were Mike Todd, Richard Burton and jewelry. Now the gifts that the two men gave Elizabeth Taylor to satisfy the third of her passions will go on sale.

The late actress’s entire collection of 300 pieces, valued at $30million (£18.8million), will be auctioned at Christie’s in New York in December.

"These are the top jewels that Elizabeth Taylor received from the great loves of her life, Mike Todd and Richard Burton," said Christie's jewelry expert Rahul Kadakia. It's an extraordinary collection of rubies, diamonds, emeralds and sapphires



Lots will include the first jewel Burton bought for Taylor — the 33.19-carat Asscher-cut Krupp Diamond, which later became known as The Elizabeth Taylor Diamond. Burton bought the diamond, set in a platinum ring, for $305,000 in 1968, and Christie's is expected to fetch up to $3.5million (£2.2m).

"Elizabeth Taylor used to refer to it as her baby and wore it as much and as often as she could," said Kadakia, including in nearly all her subsequent films.



Other standout items include the 16th-century La Peregrina, one of the largest and most symmetrically perfect pear-shaped pearls in the world, which Burton bought for Taylor in 1969 as a Valentine’s Day gift.

Once part of the Crown Jewels of Spain, the pearl later passed into the hands of Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon III and the Duke of Abercorn.

When it came up at auction in New York, Burton snapped it up for $37,000, beating out the underbidder, a member of the Spanish Royal family.

Cartier later created a ruby and diamond necklace from which the pearl was suspended, a design that was inspired by the famous Velazquez portraits of Spain's Queen Margarita and Queen Isabel wearing the pearl as a necklace.

It is estimated to fetch $2 million to $3 million.



Burton loved historical pieces, and in 1972 purchased the famous 17th-century Taj Mahal diamond pendant for Taylor's 40th birthday. The transaction took place at John F. Kennedy International Airport because the couple didn't have time to run into the city before catching a plane, said Kadakia.

The heart-shaped diamond is associated with one of history's greatest love stories. It belonged to Emperor Shah Jahangir, who had the diamond inscribed with his wife's name "Nur Jahan." He later passed the stone on to his son, Shah Jahan, who built the Taj Mahal in memory of his wife Mumtaz, who died in childbirth.

"I would have liked to buy her the Taj Mahal but it would cost too much to transport," Burton remarked after buying it.

Cartier later recreated the diamond's original silk cord as a gold rope-like necklace set with rubies and diamonds.

The necklace has a pre-sale estimate of $300,000 to $500,000.

"Jewelry was a way of life for Elizabeth Taylor. They were her friends. She enjoyed wearing them and it gave her a lot of pleasure because they reminded her of the great moments in her life, the great places in her life," Kadakia said.

Like the time Taylor's third husband, theater and film producer Mike Todd, presented her with a red leather Cartier box as she sat by the pool at a rented villa in the south of France. Inside was a ruby necklace, matching earrings and bracelet.

"She was so, so happy that she jumped into the pool wearing all this jewelry and started doing laps," said Kadakia, adding that the pieces will be sold separately.

Eighty of the most iconic pieces will be sold on the evening of Dec. 13. The following day, 189 more gems will be sold. About 500 pieces of Taylor's costume jewelry will be sold online at the same time.

Prior to the auction, Christie's will ship the top 80 jewelry pieces to Geneva, Paris, Hong Kong, Dubai and Los Angeles; many of them will also be shown in London and Moscow. Serious collectors will be able to try on the jewelry by appointment.

The entire collection will be exhibited from Dec. 3-10 at Christie's New York galleries.

A portion of the proceeds from the exhibition admissions and publications related to the sales will be donated to The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation. Proceeds from the auctions will go to Taylor's estate.







Based on the information you have, can you ask at least 12 of the following questions?




1. What did Elizabeth Taylor ……………….?
2. Where will the jewels be …………..?
3. When will the jewels be …………………?
4. Who did Elizabeth Taylor …………….?
5. What will be ………………..?
6. When did Burton …………………?
7. What did Burton …………………?
8. How much did Burton …………………?
9. Where did Burton …………………?
10. How often did Elizabeth Taylor ……………?
11. What did Shah Jahan ………………..?
12. When did his wife Mumtaz ……………?
13. What did Mike Todd …………………?
14. Where did Mike Todd …………………?
15. After Mike Todd gave Elizabeth Taylor the ring, what did she…………………?
16. On December 13 how many pieces will …………………..?
17. When will 189 more gems ………………?
18. Where will Christie's ……………………..?
19. What will serious collectors……………..?
20. How long will Christie's ……………….?

After 9/11, a Decision to Tango (video)

The terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon 10 years ago affected the lives of many people in countless ways. For Ney Melo, an investment banker who worked across the street from the Twin Towers, the events of Sept. 11 led to a major career change as he moved away from Wall Street and into the dance studio.

“I think if I had not seen how quickly one’s life can end, I probably wouldn’t have taken the steps to change my life,” he said.

After the attacks, Mr. Melo says, he was looking for a distraction, and he responded to a poster for tango lessons. He was hooked, and soon met his dance partner, Jennifer. To hear their story, which is featured on Yahoo!, watch the video

You can also watch the video by clicking HERE

TARA PARKER-POPE for The New York Times

Yahoo CEO Bartz fired over the phone

CEO Carol Bartz Photo: Reuters Robert Gallbraith

(Reuters) - Yahoo Inc Chairman Roy Bostock fired CEO Carol Bartz over the phone on Tuesday, ending a tumultuous tenure marked by stagnation and a rift with Chinese partner Alibaba.

Chief Financial Officer Tim Morse will step in as interim CEO, and the company will search for a permanent leader to lead a battle in online advertising and content with rivals Google Inc and Facebook.

"I am very sad to tell you that I've just been fired over the phone by Yahoo's Chairman of the Board. It has been my pleasure to work with all of you and I wish you only the best going forward," the outspoken CEO said in a two-sentence email to employees obtained by Reuters.

Yahoo is still one of the most popular destinations on the Internet but faces increasing competition from social networking service Facebook and from Google, which has a market value of $170 billion, 10 times more than Yahoo.

Yahoo said a new executive leadership council will help Morse in managing day-to-day operations as well as supporting "a comprehensive strategic review" to position the company for growth.

The decision to oust Bartz was reached by the unanimous vote of Yahoo's eight independent directors late last week, according to a person close to the company. Bartz, and co-founder Jerry Yang, who are also on the board, did not participate in the vote

"It's hard to say what direction they are going to head. What is the next step for Yahoo?" said YCMNet Advisors CEO Michael Yoshikami. "I'm not sure where they go right now. One wonders if this means that they might be ripe for a takeover."

Yahoo is worth about $16 billion, with much of that ascribed to its roughly 40 percent stake in China's Alibaba, the parent company of websites including Alibaba.com and Taobao. Yahoo also owns a stake in Yahoo Japan, along with Japanese mobile company Softbank.

"The immediate impact will not be much because I don't think Yahoo wants to sell its stake although Alibaba wants to buy it. It really depends on how Tim handles this, as in the past Carol has had a strong stance on this," said Hong Kong-based CLSA analyst Elinor Leung.

Bartz's ouster capped a decade-long fall from grace for a company whose shares traded at more than $125 in January 2000 during the dotcom bubble -- but now languishes at about a 10th of that level.

Bartz, who joined Yahoo in January 2009 and had more than a year left on her four-year contract with Yahoo, was slated to host a Q&A at the Citi Technology Conference at 1250 pm ET in New York on Wednesday.

Bartz had reserved a room at the St. Regis hotel in Manhattan for Tuesday evening, but a hotel receptionist reached over the phone said the booking had been canceled.

Vinyl records comeback (video)

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Luxury shopping in Beverly Hills (video)

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Poverty in Las Vegas (video)

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The Suez Canal and the world economy

FURTHER economic trouble may be ahead: recently released data points to a slowdown in the world economy.

This is confirmed by one alternative measure: the amount of cargo passing through the Suez Canal in Egypt. Approximately 8% of the world's international trade is estimated to flow through the canal, so it acts as a good early indicator of the prevailing economic conditions.

The average increase in the total weight of cargo passing through the canal was 5.7% in the three months to July, down from 9.5% in December.

Making a simple forecast based on the past few months' data suggests that world GDP will fall from 3.8% in the first quarter to 3.3% in the second quarter.


from The Economist