Friday, March 12, 2010

Buddha & the Squirrel


Buddha who had set out to search for truth was so long in finding it that he became discouraged and decided to return home. As he was leaving, he came across a squirrel dipping its tail into the water of a lake and shaking it over the land.

"Little squirrel," he said. "What are you doing?" "I'm emptying this lake," said the squirrel. "But you will never be able to do that," said Buddha. "If you dipped your tail into the lake a million times, there would still be nearly as much water there as before." "Well," said the squirrel, "I shall
still persevere."

Buddha learned the lesson and resolved to continue his search for truth.

Moral: We Sometimes Need to Persevere Despite Appearances.
 
Thanks to ManageTrainLearn

Me and My Boss

When I take a long time, I am slow. When my boss takes a long time, he is thorough.

When I don't do it, I am lazy. When my boss doesn't do it, he is too busy.

When I do something without being told, I am trying to be smart. When my boss does the same, that is initiative.

When I please my boss, I am ass-kissing. When my boss pleases his boss, he is co-operating.

When I do good, my boss never remembers. When I do wrong, he never forgets.

When I make a mistake, I am an idiot. When my boss makes a mistake, he's only human.

When I am out of the office, I am wandering around. When my boss is out of the office, he's on business.  

Thanks to ManageTrainLearn

Attend Every Argument

"I don't have to attend every argument I'm invited to."  ~~~ Author Unknown  

We came across this quote recently and just had to share it. It's a good reminder to all of us that conflict is all about our response. We don't have to get sucked in every time someone does or says something that we might disagree with. Choose your arguments. And choose wisely. Consider whether the issue is really important enough to you for you to invest your time and effort.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Persistence

Two frogs happened one day to come upon a milk churn standing in the farmyard. Feeling thirsty, they both jumped in and drank their fill. When they sought a way out however, there was none; the sides of the churn were too smooth and slippery.

After battling for some time, they were both exhausted. "Come on," encouraged the younger frog; "there must be a way out." "No," replied the older frog. "It's no good. We've had it." And with that he sank to the bottom of the churn and drowned.

The younger frog refused to give up. He kicked and kicked for what seemed hours until suddenly with one leap he was free. When he looked back to discover what had enabled him to get out, he saw that, with all his kicking, the milk had turned to butter.

Moral: You Can't Achieve Anything By Giving Up.

Thanks to ManageTrainLearn 2009

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Floating Ideas About

In 1879, the Proctor and Gamble company's best seller was candles. But Thomas Edison had just patented the electric light bulb. Within a short space of time, the market for candles had collapsed and the company were in trouble.

However, destiny turned their fortunes around. At their factory in Cincinatti, a forgetful employee had one day gone to lunch and forgotten to turn the candle-making machine off. When he returned, he found a mass of frothing lather filled with air bubbles. Rather than discard the batch, he decided to turn it into soap. To his surprise, he found that the soap floated.

At that time, many people still bathed in the Ohio river. The idea of a soap that floated and never got lost appealed to them. Thus Ivory soap was born and became the mainstay of the Proctor and Gamble company for many years to come.

Moral: Many innovations are the result of chance discovery and customer need. 

Thanks to ManageTrainLearn

You Never Know...

The Sultan of Persia had sentenced two men to death.

One of the men, knowing how much the sultan liked his stallion, offered to teach the horse to fly within a year if the sultan would spare him his life.

The sultan, fancying himself as the rider of the only flying horse in the world, agreed.

"You're mad," said the other prisoner. "You know that horses can't fly. You're only putting off the inevitable." "Not so," said the first prisoner. "I have four chances of escaping my sentence.

First, the sultan might die. Secondly, I might die. Thirdly, the horse might die. And fourth...I might teach the horse to fly."

Moral: Never be too certain of what the future holds.
 
Thanks to ManageTrainLearn

The Graduate's First Day

A young man, hired by a supermarket, reported for his first day of work. The manager greeted him with a warm handshake and a smile, gave him a broom and said, "Your first job will be to sweep out the store." "But I'm a college graduate." the young man replied indignantly. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know that," said the manager. "Here, give me the broom, I'll show you how."
 

Eye Safety for Emergency Responders

Emergency workers responding to disasters like the recent earthquake in Haiti are exposed to numerous safety and health hazards; among them, eye injuries.
 
We all watched in horror as the news footage of the devastation in Haiti played out across our TV and computer screens. Disasters like this underscore the dangers faced by emergency responders, especially those working their way through the rubble of collapsed buildings. Today, we're going to focus on one particular danger—eye hazards.

According to NIOSH, the most common eye hazards faced by emergency workers at the structural collapse of large buildings are:

  • Dust, concrete, and metal particles
  • Falling or shifting debris, building materials, and glass
  • Smoke and noxious or poisonous gases
  • Chemicals (acids, bases, fuels, solvents, lime, and wet or dry cement powder)
  • Cutting or welding light and electrical arcing
  • Thermal hazards and fires
  • Bloodborne pathogens from blood, bodily fluids, and human remains
Common Eye Injuries

Injuries commonly suffered by emergency workers facing these hazards include:

  • Corneal abrasions and conjunctivitis (red eyes)
  • Concrete or metal particles or slivers embedded in the eye
  • Chemical splashes or burns
  • Welder's flash
  • Eyeball laceration
  • Facial contusions and black eyes
Recommended Eye Protection

NIOSH says that before selecting the best eye protection for emergency workers, a competent person should assess the conditions and hazards at the site.

Safety glasses with side protection would be considered minimum required protection for such conditions. When using safety glasses, workers should wear a retainer to keep the glasses tight to the face or hanging from the neck when not in use.

When more protection is needed—for example, to protect from high impacts, dusty environments, and chemical splashes—goggles should be worn. The best goggles for emergency workers dealing with collapsed buildings are designed with high air flow, minimum fogging, and maximum particle and splash protection.

Alternatively, NIOSH suggests hybrid eye safety products with the comfort of glasses, the enclosure of goggles, and better breathability. Wraparound hybrids also provide better peripheral vision than conventional goggles.

A face shield over eye protection is recommended for greater protection, especially to protect workers from high-impact hazards during chipping and grinding operations. Face shields also protect from chemical and bloodborne hazards that could be sprayed or splashed onto the face. But workers should understand that the requirement is for face shield with eye protection, never just a face shield alone, because the curve of the face shield can direct particles or chemicals from the side right into the eyes.

Workers engaged in cutting or welding activities should use a welding helmet, goggles, or welding respirator with the appropriate lens shade. Welders' helpers, other workers, and bystanders must be protected from light and sparks as well.

Additional Requirements

All eye protection must comply with ANSI Z87.1 requirements. New safety glasses with polycarbonate lenses should be hard coated to reduce scratching. And polycarbonate or TrivexĂ¢ lenses should be used for prescription safety glasses.

Tomorrow, we'll continue talking about emergency response and eye safety, focusing on first aid for eye injuries.

Thanks to Safety Daily Advisor

Sunday, March 7, 2010

Diet Soft Drinks

Regular intake of soft drinks ensures a dangerous habit pattern, which later becomes difficult to break. Soft drinks are a mixture of health destroying ingredients like-

■ Phosphoric acid it enhances the absorption of carbon dioxide and also slowly releases the bubbles of carbon dioxide. It is very sour so to neutralize it, lots of sugar is added. It is a strong chemical and is used to clear a clogged shower. A tooth will dissolve in this acid.

■ Sugar The high sugar content causes blood sugar levels to rise. Insulin is secreted from the pancreas to bring the blood sugar level down. Overuse of soft drinks wears out the pancreas and makes the cells resistant to insulin, resulting in the disease we know as diabetes. It also impairs the immune functions, hence causing chronic infections.

■ Caffeine Caffeine is a mild drug that can have harmful effects, especially on youngsters. Large amounts of consumption of caffeine can cause insomnia, nervousness, anxiety, irritability and deviations from the normal heart rate. It is an addictive substance that increases the excretions of calcium in the urine and boosts the risks of osteoporosis.

■ Aluminium The phosphoric acid in the drink leaches away toxic amounts of aluminium from the can. Aluminium is deposited in the brain and bone tissue, it causes lesions in the brain tissue lesions that are very similar to the ones found in someone suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Exposure to aluminium causes the increase in bone breakdown while reducing new bone formation.

■ Polyethylene glycol─ it is used to give a darker appearance to the drink and glycol is used to prevent the drink from freezing. Scientists believe polyethylene glycol is a carcinogen.

Some of the latent health mishaps of drinking soft drinks are obesity, diabetes, tooth decay, osteoporosis, nutritional deficiencies, heart diseases and kidney stones and other neurological disorders.

Once a while it is ok to have a soft drink however a regular habit can be dangerous to health