Shillong celebrates platinum jubilee

The archdiocese of Shillong, which was once the base of mission in northeast India, celebrates 75 years of its existence with a host of programs.

The week-long celebrations include honoring couples who have completed 50 years of marriage and couples celebrating 25 years of marriage this year.

Meghalaya Governor R.S. Mooshahary, chief minister D.D. Lapang and deputy chief minister B.M. Lanong would be among guests attending the Nov. 7 concluding programs of the week-long celebrations.

Archbishop Pedro Lopez Quintana, the Apostolic Nuncio who represents Pope in India and Father Pascual Chavez Villanueva, the superior general of the Salesians of Don Bosco would join celebrations.

Salesian missioners led the evangelization of the hilly tribal dominated seven states in the region, since 1921 when the area was entrusted to them.

German Salvatorian missioners began work in the last quarter of 19th century and Prefeture Apostolic of Assam was established in 1898. Outbreak of World War I forced the Germans to return to their country with Jesuits taking up the mission. Later Salesians took over.

Shillong diocese was created in 1951 and over the years was divided several times to create more dioceses as the Church grew faster. In 1969 it was made Shillong-Guwahati archdiocese, and was further divided in 1992 to create Guwahati diocese.

During the past 75 years, the Church has grown and spread all over Northeast India. The Church has 15 dioceses, each owing its initial mission to the Church based in Shillong.

Salesain Archbishop Dominic Jala of Shillong said part of the celebrations would honor couples who have completed golden jubilee of marriage and those celebrating silver jubilee this year. He said this Nov. 6 program was to stress family as the most important unit of society and of the Church.

On Nov. 5, the Catholic Church will honor more than 1,000 church leaders who are the mainstay of its mission in the towns and villages stressing the role of laity in the mission of the Church.

The celebration would start with a performance by Rexband, which proposes to spread cheer through music. Rex, a Christian musical band, fuses together musical styles, including Indian classical and folk music.

The archbishop said he invited the Kerala-based band to encourage the music-loving youths of Shillong and inculcate the values of life through music.

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CRPF personnel ‘molest’ woman on train, thrashed

KOKRAJHAR: At least 20 CRPF personnel, returning from New Delhi on the Brahmaputra Mail, were injured after a mob thrashed them for allegedly molesting a woman and assaulting her brother at Fakiragram railway station in Assam’s Kokrajhar district on Tuesday.

The clash broke out when over 3,000 villagers from Fakiragram and its neighbouring areas rushed to the station following rumours that a woman had been thrown out of a train after being allegedly raped by some security personnel. An eyewitnesses said the mob stoned two compartments carrying the CRPF men and assaulted the jawans.

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Jackson picks Assam art director for album

Set designer of teleserials Kkusum, Saas Bhi Kabhi..., Kasauti, to give desi touch to songs

BIJOY KR. SHARMA

Satyen Choudhury (left) with Jermaine Jackson Dhubri, Oct. 26: Art director Satyen Choudhury has spiced up many hit Bollywood films and TV serials with elaborate sets which tell half the story by themselves. A son of the soil — Choudhury hails from Dhubri in Assam — is going international and his art will now grace a music video by singer-composer Jermaine Jackson, brother of the king of pop, Michael Jackson. Choudhury today confirmed over phone from Mumbai that shooting for the album has begun in Mumbai but he refused to reveal its name, which is a practice adopted by international music stars to create the much needed hype. The album will be released in December. The 45-year-old Choudhury — one of the most renowned art directors in India now — said the album is being made in English and Hindi with Adnan Sami singing the Hindi songs. “It was a wonderful experience working with an international star in the true sense and I enjoyed doing art for the album,” Choudhury added. Sami and Jackson will be seen together in one of the videos titled Let’s go to Mumbai city. The song will feature some of the most popular landmarks in the city like the Gateway of India, CST and Haji Ali. Jermaine Jackson, the fourth of the Jackson brothers, is a singer, bassist and composer with many hits to his name. When Michael Jackson passed away on June 25 this year, Jermaine sang Michael's favourite song Smile by Charles Chaplin as a tribute at a public memorial service held on July 7 in Los Angeles. Choudhury, who shifted base to Mumbai in 1987, said he had tried to give a “contemporary yet desi look” to the sets for the album. He said the 55-year-old Jermaine Jackson enlisted his services after hearing about his “wonderful job” in many films and TV serials. Choudhury’s work includes tele-serials like Kkusum, Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, Reporter, Kasauti Zindagi Ki and Sajan Ghar Jana while some of well-known films include Mahesh Bhatt’s Gunaah, Tinu Verma’s Ma Tujhe Salam staring Sunny Deol, and Sins starring Shiney Ahuja. Beside these, Choudhury also has to his credit art direction in other music albums for Malaysian singers Nur Sujana and Roma Irama. Choudhury, who was a passion-driven young artist, first tried his hand at fine arts at the Biswa Bharati Fine Art College in Bolpur. But he soon realised that his dreams lay elsewhere, in becoming a film art director. He then joined a five-year commercial art course at the J.J. Institute of Applied Arts in Mumbai which gave him the base to work his way through in the highly competitive world in the Mumbai film industry. Choudhury said while it was tough to find a footing in Mumbai, “it is tougher to stay put because of the competition”. Replying to a question on his upcoming projects, Choudhury — who is settled with his wife Debjani Roy Choudhury in Mumbai — said there were many “an exciting project” and the “people of Assam will know about them very soon”.

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Arunachal a part of India: Karat

New Delhi, Oct 25 : Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) general secretary Prakash Karat Sunday said that Arunachal Pradesh is a part of India and hoped Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao would iron out the contentious border issue.
Addressing a press conference after a party central committee meeting here, Karat in reply to a query on China claiming the northeastern state as its territory, said: “As far as our stand is concerned, Arunachal Pradesh is part of India.
“Now, how do you proceed to solve the long standing dispute. There is a mechanism evolved by both the governments which is being carried forward by successive governments,” he told reporters.
He hoped that the talks between Manmohan Singh and Wen in Thailand on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit would help resolve the border issue.
On the Maoists’ abduction of a West Bengal police officer and the state government’s swap of jailed women in exchange for the cop, Karat tried to sidestep the queries.
He merely said: “Those people who were released were ordinary people and had been mobilised by the Maoists. Our job is to politically isolate the Maoists. We have decided to conduct a vigorous campaign against the Maoists.”
He said the situation in Maoist affected Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand is “very serious”. “The government should deal with the real problem of the tribal people.”
Asked about complaints about irregularities in the voters’ list in Kannur constituency, where an assembly by-poll is slated Nov 7, he said the issue is being examined.

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Rs 500 prize to catch a monkey

Agartala, Oct. 24: The divisional forest office in Teliamura subdivision under West district of Tripura has declared a cash prize of Rs 500 for catching a monkey alive after being harassed continually by groups of simians for over the past six months.

The sleepy subdivisional town of Teliamura, nestled in a valley on both sides of National Highway 44, is surrounded on three sides by two major hill ranges, Barmura and Athromura.

For the past six months, large groups of monkeys have been almost daily descending on human habitations and destroying houses and crops, besides injuring people.

“These monkeys are so aggressive that they are difficult to chase away with ordinary weapons like clubs and rods. They specially target women and have injured at least 15 of them in the past six months,” Teliamura divisional forest officer Rajat Kanti Das said.

He said following complaints and appeals from people, he had announced the cash prize of Rs 500 for catching a monkey alive within Teliamura nagar panchayat.

Das said Kalitilla, Gourangatilla, Jaynagar, Rajnagar, Shanti Nagar, Dahsamighat and Netaji Nagar were most vulnerable to simian attacks because of their proximity to the hill ranges.

The process of catching monkeys started today. Five tribal youths, armed with special nets, have been brought from Maharanipur to catch the marauding simians.

“While the specialist catchers will be rewarded in cash along with expenses for food and lodging, anyone within the nagar panchayat area who catches a monkey will be given Rs 500 in cash,” the DFO said.

He also said the Centre had sanctioned a compensation of Rs 50,000 for the kin of tribal priest Manmohan Debbarma, 71, who was trampled to death by a wild elephant at Bisrampara village in the subdivision on October 11.

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Poison whiff in elephant death

Carcass of female jumbo found at Orangajuli tea garden

File picture of an electrocuted elephant at a tea estate in Nagaon early this month Guwahati, Oct. 23: The carcass of a full-grown female elephant, suspected to have died of poisoning, was found this morning at Orangajuli tea estate along the Indo-Bhutan border in Udalguri district. This is the sixth elephant to have fallen prey to the rising cases of man-elephant conflict along the border the district shares with Bhutan. Eleven persons have been killed by elephants since last November. The divisional forest officer, Udalguri, Bankim Sharma, said over phone that preliminary investigations suggested that the elephant had died of poisoning. The exact cause of death will be known only after post-mortem. “The viscera will be sent to the state forensic laboratory for ascertaining the exact cause of the death,” Sharma said. Sharma said though the labourers of Orangajuli claimed that the elephant had died of injuries sustained during infighting among members of a herd last night, the carcass bore no injury mark. Another forest official said there was regular conflict among tea garden labourers and elephants as the animals constantly strayed into human settlements in search of food. “The scent of country liquor also attracts elephants towards human settlements,” the official said. Labourers often lace bananas and banana trees with toxic chemicals, mainly fertilisers used in the tea bushes, and place these on the routes constantly used by the elephants, forest officials claimed. Elephants love to gorge on bananas. Sharma said in view of the increasing man-elephant conflict, the forest department had taken several steps to minimise casualty. “We have formed teams, including members of the administration, NGOs, local villagers and the forest department to prevent such conflicts through monitoring.” Last month, the forest department also set up a permanent forest camp at Hatigarh tea estate in Udalguri district, not very far from today’s incident site, to chase away elephants from human settlements. Sharma said the forest department had also been conducting awareness programmes to motivate local people to inform the forest department immediately, instead of attacking the pachyderms. “Depleting forest cover has forced the elephants to stray into human habitats regularly. The only option left is to motivate the people to live and let live,” Sharma said. According to a study, of the 41,000 square km of elephant habitat in the Northeast, less than 6,000 square km falls under the protected area network resulting in an increase in human-elephant conflicts. Assam has a population of about 5,000 wild elephants. Sharma attributed the spurt in human-elephant conflict in the last couple of months to the approaching harvesting season.

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Amphibians with moustache

G.S. Mudur

One of the two amphibians discovered; Biju and Kamei, the Indian team members who discovered the world’s first moustached amphibian in the forests of Manipur and Nagaland New Delhi, Oct. 21: Scientists have discovered two amphibians with moustache-like stripes in the forests of northeast India, adding new members previously unknown to science to the family of primitive creatures called caecilians. Biologists at Delhi University and The Natural History Museum, London, have found two new species of caecilians — legless amphibians that resemble large earthworms or small snakes — at several sites in Manipur and Nagaland. The two species Ichthyophis moustakius and Ichthyophis sendenyu appear distinct from each other. But the moustache-like feature in both suggests that they are sister species, Sathyabhama Das Biju, a zoologist at Delhi University and his colleagues said, reporting their discovery in the journal Zootaxa. The moustache-like feature has not been observed previously in any other amphibian species. “We still don’t know the evolutionary function of these moustache stripes,” Biju told The Telegraph. During the survey of the Northeast, the researchers also found a new non-moustached species from the same family. “We’re now trying to understand the function of this unusual marking,” Biju said. The researchers detected 16 specimens altogether in a search spanning several years during which they trudged into forests, banana plantations, and paddy fields, and along highways. The caecilians are burrowing creatures and scientists had to dig the ground for the search. “The most tricky part was trying to figure out where to search,” said Rachunliu Kamei, a doctoral student and team member, and an assistant professor at St. Stephen’s College, New Delhi. “The young need water, so we pick certain microhabitats such as marshy areas, but most of the time, we don’t find them there.” The caecilians are the earliest amphibians — among the first land vertebrates — that were followed by salamanders and then frogs and toads. The scientists say their discovery highlights the need to conserve species and habitats in the Northeast. The discovery has increased the number of caecilian species in the northeast to seven. Scientists worldwide have so far catalogued about 170 species of caecilians, which are distributed mainly in South America, Africa and Southeast Asia.

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Fraudulent withdrawal case: Prelim probe faults UBI, CCpur

Imphal, October 22 : Preliminary investigations into the fraudulent withdrawal of about Rs 4.45 crores from the United Bank of India, Churachandpur branch indicate strong possibility of involvement of the branch's staff in the fraud case.

An earlier report published in The Sangai Express had exposed withdrawal of the said amount from the allocation of Central Government's MultiSectoral Development programme meant for implementation in the district under the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA).

However, cheque slips used to withdraw the amount (Rs 4.45 crore) in two separate stages, were yet to be issued to the DRDA as the process was supposed to be, mentioned a report submitted by the district's Deputy Commissioner on the matter.

The DC's report based on preliminary investigation revealed that even though DRDA withdrawals are usually made from the UBI branch, cheque slips used to withdraw the huge amount in between October 3 and 10 do not match cheque numbers that had been issued to the DRDA thereby leading to strong suspicion of Bank employees' involvement in the fraud case.

With the DC's report also suggesting appropriate measures from the Bank authorities to nail the guilty persons, if any, an official team of the UBI had reportedly launched an internal investigation.

An informed source also confided that the UBI team is yet to submit its probe report to relevant authorities.

It may be mentioned that manager and cashier of the UBI, Churachandpur Branch have been taken into custody by the police.

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Top 10 TV Nurses and What You Can Learn from Them

From army nurses to ER managers to doctor’s office assistants, here are the top 10 TV nurses and lessons you can learn from each of them.

Nurses in pop culture are portrayed in all kinds of ways, from stereotypical assistants to ball-busting managers. If you’re looking for a little inspiration while you’re in nursing school, consider the experiences of these fictional nurses from classic TV shows and new series. From army nurses to ER managers to doctor’s office assistants, here are the top 10 TV nurses and lessons you can learn from each of them.

1. LaVerne Todd, Empty Nest: Nurse LaVerne Todd, who played Dr. Harry Weston’s assistant on Empty Nest, was an audience favorite whose strong southern accent and strong-willed personality provided comic relief and inspiration for modern nurses. Todd was outspoken, stubborn and completely in charge. She managed Dr. Weston’s office more than he did, and even signed her own paychecks. She teaches nurses that being an "assistant" doesn’t mean you have to sit quietly as a behind-the-scenes character: as a nurse, you can still be in charge.
2. Carol Hathaway, ER: ER’s first starring nurse was played by Julianna Margulies from 1994 to 2000. She was the off and on love interest of George Clooney’s Dr. Doug Ross and a highly respected ER nurse manager who often stood up and rallied for nurse’s causes in the hospital. She famously told Dr. Peter Benson in season one that "it’s the nurses that make this place run and not you." Nurse Hathaway was a sometimes moody and depressed character, and was forced to step down from her Nurse Manager position at the clinic. Real-life nurses can still look up to Nurse Hathaway for her commitment to the nursing profession and loyalty to her fellow nurses as she manages the ER.
3. Jackie Peyton, Nurse Jackie: Edie Falco plays Nurse Jackie Peyton on the controversial Showtime series Nurse Jackie. As she tries to make the best of a fledgling health care system, Falco plays Robin Hood to her patients in morally ambiguous ways, like stealing from criminals in order to help innocent patients in trouble. Peyton, who some real-life nurses are wary about because she has her own issue with recreational drug use, shows audiences that nurses, and others who work in the health care, are human just like everyone else, and are victims of a troubled health care system just like patients.
4. Veronica Callahan, Mercy: Taylor Schilling plays Nurse Veronica Callahan, a pretty but troubled nurse who has just returned to New Jersey’s Mercy Hospital from a tour in Iraq. Callahan tries to deal with her disturbing memories from Iraq as she works in a hospital that barely respects its nurses, or pays them. Real-life nurses will appreciate Mercy’s portrayal of Callahan as the underdog, and although she is expertly qualified and well-liked by other nurses and her patients, she is stuck in an elitist cycle within the hospital and as she socializes in and around New Jersey and New York City with friends and love interests.
5. Samantha Taggart, ER: Real nurses loved Linda Caredellini’s Nurse Samantha Taggart on ER for her fierce independence and fighting spirit. Samantha, or Sam as she is usually called, is a single mom with a rocky family history, who falls in love with Dr. Luka Kovac. Samantha is also loved by modern nurses for her decision to pursue a higher degree in nursing and become a nurse anesthethetist instead of abandoning nursing to become a doctor, as other TV nurses have done.
6. Christina Hawthorne, HawthoRNe: The pint-sized, spirited Jada Pinkett Smith plays the no-nonsense Christina Hawthorne on TNT’s HawthoRNe. She is the Chief Nursing Officer who seems to be in a constant battle with hospital administrators over patient care and nurse benefits and is always trying to spend more time with her teenage daughter. Nurses should respect Hawthorne’s ability to think on her feet and solve professional and personal problems in creative ways.
7. Carla Espinosa, Scrubs: Carla Espinosa, the Dominican born nurse at Sacred Heart Hospital, played by Judy Reyes, has to put up with a lot of nonsense from her physician friends and superiors. But nurses can take pointers from Espinosa, who never lets a young doctor’s bloated ego make her feel less important or less in charge.
8. Abby Lockhart, ER: Maura Tierney played one of ER’s most famous nurses, Abby Lockhart. Lockhart started on the show as a labor and delivery nurse under Carol Hathaway but then decided to restart medical school after working as a nurse to pay for her then-husband’s medical training. Lockhart has to stop medical school again after her ex-husband goes bankrupt and can no longer pay her tuition. Dr. Kerry Weaver offers Lockhart a nursing position in the ER, which she accepts, until she is able to return to medical school in Season 10. Lockhart, who has a tumultuous relationship with her bipolar mother, played by Sally Field, also struggles with relationships with love interests Dr. Luka Kovac and Dr. Carter. Nurses who suffer as many career setbacks at Lockhart should feel inspired to stay positive and never give up.
9. Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan, M*A*S*H: One of M*A*S*H’s hottest babes and TV’s most famous nurses was Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan, who was the daughter of a colonel and who grew up in the army environment. Houlihan plays the head of the Army Nurse Corps and is incredibly strict and impatient with other nurses and doctors in the beginning, though she carries on affairs with colleagues. Nurses can learn how to balance their personal and professional lives and discover ways to become more patient and accepting with co-workers as Houlihan does.
10. Nurse Dixie McCall, Emergency!: Julie London played Dixie McCall, R.N. on the NBC series which aired from 1972-1977. Like Veronica Callahan, McCall had experience working as an army nurse, though she served during the Korean War. On the show, she was the chief ER nurse and fought to improve the paramedic program and demanded higher expectations and standards from medics. She mentored younger health care professionals and refused a position as a nurse supervisor because she didn’t want a desk job. Nurses today should still feel inspired by McCall’s dedication to her program and passion for nursing.

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Road blockade against uranium mining in Meghalaya

Shillong, Oct 20 The influential Khasi Students Union (KSU) has decided to intensify its agitation by enforcing a night-long road blockade on national highways from Tuesday night to protest a proposed uranium mining project in the state.
KSU president Samuel B. Jyrwa told reporters: “The three-night road blockade would commence at 8 p.m. Tuesday night and continue till 5 a.m. Wednesday and again at similar times Oct 21, 22 and 23.”

“We will make our agitation stronger until the state government considers our demand and revokes the leasing of 422 hectares of land to the Uranium Corporation of India Limited (UCIL) for 30 years,” Jyrwa added.

The KSU’s two-night road blockade Oct 14 and Oct 15 to protest the proposed uranium mining project last week affected vehicular movement, specially night passenger buses and goods-laden trucks, on the national highways between Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura.

Last week’s two-night road blockade turned violent when many vehicles including six government cars were set ablaze by KSU activists.

The KSU and several local parties have been spearheading the movement against the Meghalaya government’s decision to allow the UCIL to carry out pre-project development programmes in 422 hectares of the uranium-rich areas of West Khasi Hills.

A number of NGOs under the banner of Ka Synjuk Seng Bhalang West Khasi Hills (KSSBWKH) Monday issued a 15-day ultimatum to the Congress-led government in Meghalaya to withdraw its decision on the pre-project development programmes of UCIL.

Meghalaya Principal Secretary (Home) Barkos Warjri told reporters: “Superintendents of Police of the four districts - East Khasi Hills, West Khasi Hills, Jaintia Hills and Ri-Bhoi - have been asked to ensure that the traffic flow along the national and other highways is not disturbed due to the night road blockade.”

Directing the police to take stern action against the agitators, Chief Minister D.D. Lapang told reporters: “The uranium reserves are a national property and no one can stop the government from using them.”

“The government has waited for 20 long years to persuade the people to allow uranium mining at Domiasiat in West Khasi Hills district of southern Meghalaya,” he noted.

Meanwhile, amid protests by KSU and other local parties against the government’s proposed uranium mining project, various organisations supporting the authotities’ move held a massive rally here last week.

The rally was organised by the newly formed pro-mining organisation - Associations of Meghalaya for Development and Advancement (AMDA), a conglomerate of NGOs from various districts.

AMDA supports the state government’s move to go ahead with the Rs 2.09 billion first-phase development by UCIL in the mineral-rich west Khasi Hills district.

A senior Meghalaya government official said the union ministry of environment and forests has already allowed UCIL to start mining for the annual production of 375,000 tonnes of uranium ore and process 1,500 tonnes of the mineral ore per day in West Khasi Hills district.

The UCIL has proposed a Rs.1,046 crore open-cast uranium mining and processing plant at Domiasiat in the West Khasi Hills district. Meghalaya has an estimated 9.22 million tonnes of uranium ore deposits.

“The UCIL would invest Rs 2.09 billion to undertake pre-developmental project activities to build schools, hospitals, roads and other infrastructure,” the official said.

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10 Must-See Movies for Business Majors

These 10 movies have in common is they all proivde indispensible counsel for students who want to know the ins and outs of the business world.
True movie classics find their place in history because they tell the stories that matter. These titles are no different; some are comedic, some are dramatic, and some are hair-raising thrillers. What they all have in common is they all proivde indispensible counsel for students who want to know the ins and outs of the business world.

1. The Magnificent Ambersons (1942): A cautionary tale about a family business that faces ruin when it won’t change with the times. The family’s stubborn son even thinks automobiles "had no business to be invented."
2. Death of a Salesman (1985): Based on the 1949 Arthur Miller play, this movie details the life of Willy Loman, a struggling salesman whose goal in life is to be a hero in his family’s eyes. He works endlessly, toiling to pay the bills and earn the respect of his sons. Death of a Salesman reveals the shadowed side of the world of sales.
3. Wall Street (1987): Bud Fox, a smart ambitious young Wall Street broker, will stop at nothing to gain the career he dreams of…but will he lose his soul along the way? Young business learners should watch closely the greed of Gordon Gekko, a corporate tyrant with an insatiable hunger for power and riches.
4. Working Girl (1988): Tess McGill is an ambitious secretary with a unique approach for climbing the ladder to success. When her classy — but villainous — boss breaks a leg skiing, Tess simply takes over, revamping her office, her apartment, even her wardrobe.
5. Office Space (1999): This is the classic comedic tale of company workers who hate their jobs and decide to rebel against their greedy, selfish boss.
6. American Psycho (2000): A wealthy New York investment banking executive hides his alternate psychopathic ego from his co-workers and friends as he escalates deeper into his illogical, gratuitous fantasies.
7. Boiler Room (2000): A college dropout gets a job as a broker for a suburban investment firm, which puts him on the fast track to success, but the job might not be as legitimate as it sounds.
8. Antitrust (2001): A computer programmer’s dream job at a hot Portland-based firm turns nightmarish when he discovers his boss has a secret and ruthless means of dispatching anti-trust problems.
9. Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room(2005): A documentary about the Enron corporation, its faulty and corrupt business practices, and how they led to its fall.
10. The Pursuit of Happyness (2006): The incredible story based on the real-life stockbroking career of Chris Gardner, who went from rags to riches, from homelessness to wealth, based solely on ambition.

READ MORE - 10 Must-See Movies for Business Majors

India: A Brighter Future for Children

You've got to really want to get there if you're going to make the trip. It's a long, winding road to get to the Jeypore Seventh-day Adventist school in Orissa, India, but once you arrive in the mountains of the...

9 Jan 2007,

You've got to really want to get there if you're going to make the trip. It's a long, winding road to get to the Jeypore Seventh-day Adventist school in Orissa, India, but once you arrive in the mountains of the Koraput District, you'll find a region steeped in tribal customs.

Here, girls between the ages of 10 and 12 are typically married off, and some tribes in the more remote areas still sacrifice boys between ages 6 and 11, a ritual to appease the spirits. In these tribal villages, thousands of children have no hope for their futures. They are resigned to a life of malnutrition, poverty and neglect. Yet a Christian school is working to change this.

Building the Adventist school here was the brainchild of Helen Eager, director of Asian Aid, an organization that helps disadvantaged communities and sponsors children in Asia. But soon after the school opened in 1998, it was clear that the facilities weren't adequate for the numbers of children who would attend. The school became overcrowded and conditions deteriorated.

"The children would come to us with their bellies swollen with malnutrition and worms, their hair full of lice, and many other skin problems," says Nilmani Podal, nurse and girls' dean. "We would treat them and they would get well for a time. But with all of them sleeping together crushed into the places where we'd try to teach them, as soon as one child got sick again, it would spread quickly through the others."

In 2005, Garwin McNeilus, a Seventh-day Adventist businessman, and his wife, Marilee, contacted Asian Aid to offer help. "Garwin asked to see our top three or four most needy projects, and Jeypore was at the top of my list," Eager explains. Asian Aid and the McNeilus family worked with Maranatha Volunteers International, an organization that builds needed churches and schools worldwide, to construct 11 new buildings and revamp two of the campus's current buildings. Within 10 months, the new school was dedicated. Additional construction is already in the planning stages so the school can operate through grade 12.

"We had 370 boys and girls and all the teachers volunteer to carry rocks, carry the steel, pass the pans of concrete, dig ditches [and] lay sewer pipes," says McNeilus. "You couldn't stop them [from] helping."

Before the new buildings were added, students and staff cooked and ate their meals outside. "The kids were squatting on the ground, eating just with their hands," McNeilus explains. Now they have a nice, clean place to prepare their food. They have tables, plates. They didn't have plates before."

Students now enjoy a cafeteria, nice dorm rooms, and restroom and shower facilities. The children have mattresses to sleep on--something many of them had never seen before. The school offers computer classes, sewing, mechanics, carpentry, secretarial classes and more.

Each student's tuition and boarding fees are funded by individual sponsorships through Asian Aid. "[You can have] a school, you can have the design, the building, [and] Maranatha builds it, but that ongoing, continued support until that child goes out that gate, that is the critical element," says McNeilus.

The more than 550 students learn not only typical school subjects, but practical skills as well. "It's extremely important that an institution be self-supporting," says McNeilus. To that end, they also grow much of their own food. The trees that were planted produce food, and the school also maintains vegetable gardens and greenhouses.

The school's primary goal is to teach children about God, but it also prepares children to be good citizens in their communities. McNeilus says that when children leave the school, he hopes they will support the Seventh-day Adventist Church. With nearly 1.2 million Adventist church members in India, education is crucial for the church in this country to become self-sustaining.

"Thirty years from now many of ... these children will become the leaders," explains McNeilus. "They will be the [local church] president. They will be the pastor. They will be the lay leaders in their church. [They] will be trained to function in the various areas of the church. I see a complete change. The work will grow and this is how to really establish the church."
Jeypore India,

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100 Twitter Feeds to Teach You Something New, Fun, and Useful

The social media and microblogging network is packed with users who log on to share news, experiences and lessons from all sectors. Here are 100 Twitter feeds to teach you something new, fun and useful.
As an online student, you’re probably already plugged into some of the best online learning resources out there. But have you discovered the educational benefits of using Twitter? The social media and microblogging network is packed with users who log on to share news, experiences and lessons from all sectors, including literature, media, business, health, and plenty more. Here are 100 Twitter feeds to teach you something new, fun and useful.
Words and Language
From book reviews to author insight to writing and grammar tips, you’ll learn something new each day just by following these Twitterers.

1. @thebookmaven: Bethanne Patrick is a book reviewer and blogger.
2. @frenchlanguage: Get a French vocabulary word or language learning tip per day.
3. @paperhaus: Carolyn Kellogg is the lead book blogger at the LA Times.
4. @GrammarGirl: Mignon Fogarty makes improving your grammar fun and easy.
5. @dailylark: Follow @dailylark to expand your vocabulary and find inspiration from fun phrases like "a pity of prisoners" or "a rumple of geeks."
6. @GrammarCops: The grammar police are obsessed with word usage and mistakes.
7. @thebookstudio: Get videos of author interviews and more.
8. @spanishlanguage: Get daily Spanish lessons, including business Spanish, here.
9. @wordnik: Learn more about words, definitions, usage and idioms from @wordnik.
10. @iMandarinPod: Learn Chinese from the podcasts and tweets shared by @iMandarinPod.
11. @talkirish: Learn Gaelic and Irish phraseology here.
12. @Linguick: Keep up with linguistics news and learn about the meaning behind phrases like "couchsurfing."

Life hacks
You’ll find incredibly useful life hacks as well as silly remedies and tips from these tweeters.

13. @MarthaStewart: The queen of life hacks and nifty living, Martha Stewart tweets about design and more.
14. @AskingAmy: Amy Dickinson addresses questions and letters from her Ask Amy advice column.
15. @tomshroder: Writer Tom Shroder offers random life tips like "When you get poison ivy, I say: Scratch till it bleeds" and "Clearly it is immoral to tweet on Sundays."
16. @gtdguy: David Allen, the inventor of the "Getting Things Done" philosophy, tweets more life hacks here.
17. @zen_habits: Fans of the Zen Habits blog will also like the Twitter feed, which is full of life hacks.
18. @Lifehacker: This popular website also uses Twitter to share tips for making life easier.
19. @stevepavlina: Follow Steve Pavlina if you want to wake up and really live your life.

Pop Culture and Current Events
News doesn’t have to be boring. These feeds combine hard news with interesting analysis and plenty of pop culture fun.

20. @petersagal: Peter Sagal is host of NPR’s "Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me" and a good follow for fun commentary on the world’s events.
21. @jdickerson: Find out what really goes on behind closed doors in Washington by following John Dickerson of Slate and CBS News.
22. @thedailybeast: Learning about the top news of the day is anything but boring when you get it from The Daily Beast.
23. @HorribleNews: Here you’ll learn about all the horrible, bizarre news of the day, with a humorous twist.
24. @NYTPicker: Follow this feed to get the most interesting stories and news from The New York Times.
25. @TIME: TIME tweets a mixture of hard news and pop culture updates.
26. @weirdnews: From a hot dog thief to real-life wedding crashers, get the weirdest news of the day here.
27. @andersoncooper: The always-popular Anderson Cooper tweets news blasts about the economy, media, President Obama, and more.

Blogging and Internet
Become a better social networker, blogger and web worker when you follow these feeds.

28. @piercedavid: This college boy is full of webby, techie tips for Twitter, iPhone, and more.
29. @scottkarp: Learn more about the online publishing industry and how it’s taking over from Scott Karp, CEO of Publish2 and Editor of Publishing 2.0.
30. @dmscott: David Meerman Scott shares social media marketing tips and news.
31. @chrispirillo: Learn what’s new in social media and Internet from @chrispirillo.
32. @wired: This Wired.com feed shares tech reviews.
33. @Twitter_Tips: Hack Twitter with the tips you find on @Twitter_Tips.
34. @Maggie: Follow Maggie, and she’ll help you whip your blog into shape.

Arts and Entertainment
Discover new art, music and theatre trends as you join the conversation started by these feeds.

35. @allsongs: The All Songs Considered show on NPR shares music you’ll love on @allsongs.
36. @artistaday: A different artist each featured every day on this feed.
37. @100artworks: This urban art and grafitti blog will teach you to look at art in new ways.
38. @pitchforkmedia: If you want to be clued in about the best in new music, follow @pitchforkmedia.
39. @broadwaycom: Follow this feed for news from Broadway.

Money
From everyday budget tips to hard financial news and investing ideas, check out these feeds.

40. @TheLexColumn: The Financial Times’ column tweets about business and finance news from London, New York and Hong Kong.
41. @shoestring: Follow Shoestring Magazine on Twitter for everyday budget tips.
42. @NationalDebt: Find out the national debt on any given day by following this feed.
43. @mint: The popular web budgeting tool tweets, too.
44. @walletwhiz: The team behind the iPhone’s first budget calendar shares budget living tips.
45. @SuzeOrmanShow: Let Suze Orman tell it to you straight if you ask her money questions on Twitter.
46. @currencynews: Learn about world currencies and keep up with the health of the U.S. dollar.
47. @USATODAYmoney: Get finance news from the stock market and beyond.
48. @GetOutOfDebtGuy: Learn about all things credit from this guy.
49. @taxtherapy: Discover tips for managing your taxes here.
50. @StockTwits: Real investors connect by following this feed.
51. @walletpopper: Get money saving tips and advice on surviving the recession.

Life Questions
Follow these tweeters to get a steady stream of life questions and challenges.

52. @geneweingarten: This Washington Post columnist tweets things like "Theory: Water and celery are the same thing, only celery tastes worse" and "Some men see what is and think "Why?" I see what never was and think "Why not?" Like, why don’t ladies’ nipples dispense beer?"
53. @shitmydadsays: This 29-year-old tweeter writes down everything his dad says, like "Anytime someone sells you food in a sack, it’s not a sack of food, it’s a sack of shit."

Health
Discover tips for living a healthier life from doctors, health news sites and more.

54. @sanjayguptaCNN: Dr. Sanjay Gupta shares health tips plus insight into his fascinating, high profile career.
55. @BrstCancerNews: Follow @BrstCancerNews to get medical research updates, risk factors, and other related news.
56. @diseaseaday: Learn more about diabetes, obesity, H1N1 and more.
57. @EatThisNotThat: This popular diet makes it easy to find fun, delicious alternatives.
58. @WomensHealthMag: By following this feed, you’ll get all kinds of fitness, healthy eating and healthy living tips.

Jokes and Humor
By following these feeds, you’ll learn everything from new jokes to a new spin on the news of the day.

59. @timcarvell: Tim Carvell is a joke writer for TV.
60. @MoRocca: For random entertainment news and jokes about famous people, follow @MoRocca.
61. @BorowitzReport: Andy Borowitz makes up his own headlines to comment on the news.
62. @kevin_nealon: Weeds actor and comedian Kevin Nealon tweets "Not only texting as I drive but also bathing" and other nutty things.
63. @patrickborelli: Patrick Borelli writes for The Onion, if that gives you any clue.
64. @chelsealately: Learn about the bizarre news from the entertainment industry from Chelsea Handler.
65. @ComicTwit: Learn a cheesy joke each day when you follow @ComicTwit.
66. @cklouis: Louis C.K. shares the humor in the every day, plus more.

Business and Media
Find out what’s really going on in business, on Wall Street and in the media industry from these fun and interesting feeds.

67. @romenesko: Get a dose of media news from the Romenesko column from The Poynter Institute.
68. @carr2n: David Carr of the New York Times believes he’s "too loquacious for Twitter" but still manages to tweet about the media industry, his dog Charlie and everything in between.
69. @adage: Get the news and gossip from the advertising, marketing and media worlds here.
70. @HarvardBiz: This unstuffy feed from Harvard Business Publishing offers helpful business and management tips.
71. @MindfullyChallenge: This feed will inspire you to make real changes in your work style and beyond.
72. @FreelanceSw: FreelanceSwitch’s Twitter feed helps self-employed writers and web workers grow their businesses.
73. @dealbreaker: Get your Wall Street news from this fun-to-read gossip blog.

General Learning
From museums to colleges to libraries, these institutions and online resources will keep you learning every day.

74. @smithsonian: The Smithsonian tweets about online resources and events plus interesting issues from politics, history, art and beyond.
75. @HarvardResearch: Find out what the research teams at Harvard are working on now.
76. @USATODAYcollege: Keep up with news from academia and get tips for going back to school.
77. @resourceshelf: Professionals, educators and journalists — plus anyone who’s got a curious mind — will appreciate the headlines, research studies and random news from @resourceshelf.
78. @amhistorymuseum: The Smithsonian’s American History Museum shares trivia, new exhibit updates, a "this day in history" feature and more.
79. @RHLibrary: Random House Library offers up news, recommendations and general reference tips and suggestions for educators, Star Wars geeks, bookworms, and more.
80. @MoMAlearning: Beth Harris at the MoMA tweets for educators and students.
81. @NYBG: The New York Botanical Garden tweets about public parks, creating your own floral centerpiece, gardening, and spending more time outside.

Environment
Become a more eco-conscious, sustainable individual when you follow these green bloggers and institutions.

82. @thegoodhuman: David from TheGoodHuman.com shares tips for being more energy efficient.
83. @starfocus: Danielle from the National Wildlife Federation tweets green living tips that save animals and the environment.
84. @nature_org: The Nature Conservancy tweets small ideas that can make big changes in terms of saving the environment.
85. @Sierra_Magazine: This conservation publication offers up all kinds of everyday suggestions for going green.
86. @TreeHugger: From green shopping to green design to environmental news, @TreeHugger is a smart resource for learning about conservation and more.
87. @ecofashionista: Kelly Drennan proves that eco fashion is fabulous, too.
88. @IdealBite: Live a more sustainable life when you follow @IdealBite.

Cooking and Food
These feeds will teach you how to have more fun in the kitchen.

89. @bflay: Celebrity chef Bobby Flay tweets to share his favorite tequilas and recipes.
90. @Paula_Deen: Paula Deen will inspire you to get in the kitchen to whip up some homemade delights.
91. @andrewzimmern: Let the Bizarre Foods host open up your world to new and interesting cooking.
92. @foodgawker: Foodgawker shares recipes and tips from the best food bloggers.
93. @ChewOnThat: Learn about new recipes and brush up on your foodie vocabulary from @ChewOnThat.
94. @whatscooking: Michelle from San Francisco shares recipes and foodie news.

Sports and Recreation
Pick up a new hobby, enjoy your time outdoors and keep up with the latest in golf, sailing, camping and more.

95. @IanMBrowne: Ian Browne is a serious sports junkie who follow games play by play.
96. @PBSNationalPark: Ken Burns’ documentary about national parks is the theme of this feed.
97. @SportsNation: Keep up with players, stats, uniforms, trades, and sports trends here.
98. @SailingUpdates: Discover more about sailing culture, races, and more.
99. @The_Masters: Golf fans can keep up with general sports news and The Masters updates.
100. @traveldudes: If you want to learn more about global travel and discover new places to visit, follow @traveldudes.

READ MORE - 100 Twitter Feeds to Teach You Something New, Fun, and Useful

ACHR welcomes NHRC order to Assam to pay

compensation to families of victims killed by police

New Delhi, Oct.12 : The Asian Centre for Human Rights (ACHR) today welcomed the order of the National Human Rights Commission of 7th October 2009 to award compensation of Rs five lakhs each to the families of Ram Singh Chauhan and Jawaharlal Gour who were killed in police firing in Mailu area under Kheroni police station in Karbi Anglong district of Assam on 16 August 2008.

The NHRC in its proceedings stated that the investigation into the incident by the Assam Police found the home guard Sanjoy Basumatary guilty of firing indiscriminately resulting in death of Ram Singh Chauhan and Jawaharlal Gour. The NHRC has been informed that the accused home guard has been arrested and sent to judicial custody.

The NHRC has recommended for discharge of the accused home guard from service and directed the government of Assam to pay compensation of Rs 500,000 to the next of kin of each of the deceased, and submit compliance report along with proof of payment within six weeks.

The NHRC took up the matter after a complaint was filed by Asian Centre for Human Rights on 18 August 2008 against the disproportionate use of firearms by the police resulting in the killing of Ram Singh Chauhan and Jawaharlal Gour who were protesting against manhandling of an advocate earlier by the police.

“ACHR welcomes the order of the NHRC but since the charge sheet has not been submitted against the accused home guard Sanjoy Basumatary as yet, ACHR urges the NHRC to further monitor the case till it leads to prosecution of the accused. The State government of Assam should be directed to submit monthly report about the progress of the case.” - stated Chakma, Director of ACHR.

READ MORE - ACHR welcomes NHRC order to Assam to pay

The Ultimate Guide to Better Business Writing: 100 Tips, Tools, and Resources

Most successful businesspeople have developed professional communication skills over the course of their career. They’ve written their fair share of memos, letters, emails, and reports, and their early work likely left a lot to be desired. They climbed their way through years of toil to where they are now, and you can do the same. Make use of these business writing tools, and you might just find yourself on top someday, too.
How-To
Everybody has to start somewhere; here are the very basics of business writing.

1. Writing Resource Center: This page introduces the concept of incorporating evidence and proofs into persuasive business writing.
2. The Business Writing Center: The Business Writing Center teaches 41 business writing courses online and presents business writing workshops at company sites.
3. Business Letters: Accentuating the Positive: From the Online Writing Lab at Purdue University comes professional writing tips to get your point across effectively.
4. Model Letters for Various Purposes: This handout provides several model letters for various job-search purposes including: a reference request model, a request for further negotiations model, and a reply to a rejection model.
5. Memo Writing: This link will help you with your memo problems by discussing what a memo is, describing the parts of memos, and providing examples and explanations that will make your memos more effective.
6. Email Etiquette: Although instant messaging and texting are taking over email inboxes, effective and appropriate email etiquette is still important. This resource will help you to become an effective writer and reader/manager of email.
7. Tone in Business Writing: This handout gives examples of how to use tone in business writing. This includes considering the audience and purpose for writing.
8. Using Appropriate Language: Eliminate jargon with this helpful handout.
9. Revision in Business Writing: Provides information on revising business documents for audience and purpose with emphasis on language, tone, organization, and correctness.
10. Prioritizing your Concerns: This handout will teach you how to increase the readability of your business documents.

Blogs
These bloggers are either business writing professionals or business writers in desperate need of help. All of them have important information on the subject, so read up.

11. Business Writing Blog: Check out this blog on business writing with expert advice and examples.
12. Write Better in Business : Best practices from business writing gurus.
13. Businessweek: Get the latest trends on business writing. This blog offers clear and easy-to-understand tips on the how to write with clarity.
14. Manage Your Writing: This blog is updated weekly with a new tip or tool to use to improve your business writing.
15. The Business Insider: Expert insights, advice, and trend spotting by Tim Rosa Associates.
16. Business Writing Info: A business writing blog offering tips and expert advice to improve your business writing skills.
17. Clear Business: Dan Furman’s business writing blog.
18. Wordbiz: Blogging and social media expert Debbie Weil shows her business readers how to make the perfect business blog.
19. The Art of Business Writing: Learn to write more persuasively and further your business endeavors.
20. Technical/Business Writing 101: The most important basics of business writing.

Workshops
Some of these workshops cost a pretty penny, but they have guaranteed results and offer personalized business writing help.

21. Business Writing at its Best: This is the “Rolls-Royce of business writing workshops,” according to its clients. A seasoned expert provides individually tailored workshops based on each writer’s need.
22. Syntax Training: This site offers public business writing classes guaranteed to improve business writing.
23. The Writing Workshop: Business writing training to boost your confidence.
24. American Management Association Seminar: This 2-day business writing workshop comes with valuable templates, how-to advice and feedback.
25. Writing Trainers: These online courses provide writing coaching, editing help, and free writing evaluation.
26. Bottom Line Business Writing:
27. The Email and Business Writing Workshop: In just one day, you’ll learn proven tips and techniques that guarantee every e-mail, letter, memo, and report you write will be polished and on-target.
28. Essentials of Business Writing: Learn the most imporant features of business writing, including logical and persuasive techniques.
29. Essentials of Technical Writing: Examine various types of documentation such as reports, proposals, instructions, and manuals, learn the principles of good document design, successfully incorporate graphics, and discover the keys to creating a text that gets the job done.
30. Elements of Effective Writing: Don’t let sloppy English hold you back from successful writing. These grammar pointers will help out businesspeople who aren’t naturally technical writers.

Etiquette
Business expert Natalie Cooper came up with these great tips to overcome email writing faux pas.

31. State the subject: The subject line should be specific about the topic or purpose of the email. Lines like “Need your help” or, worse, “(no subject),” are not informative enough and should be avoided.
32. Include a greeting: Whether it’s “Hi Bob” or “Dear Mr. Customer,” a salutation is a friendly and proper way to begin an email.
33. Identify the sender: When an email is the first point of contact with the recipient, it should clearly identify the sender and the reason for sending the message in the first paragraph. The signature line should also be used to good effect, with the sender’s full name and alternate contact information (phone, fax and mailing address, for example – even the sender’s Facebook or Twitter page if that information is relevant).
34. Short, sweet and to the point: The email should be as brief as possible. Ideally, it should only have one point to make and should be clear in what it is asking the recipient to do with the information (the “call to action”). Also, short email messages are much kinder to Blackberry users reading them on the go.
35. Revise, revise: No email should ever be sent without revision – or at least a quick proofread, concentrating on making the message as concise and clear as possible. And more recipients mean that the message should be read even more closely, because the more people who read the email, the greater the risk that someone will misunderstand part of it.
36. Get serious: Emoticons (”smilies”) should be avoided in business emails unless the emails are informal messages between coworkers. Likewise, text-messaging jargon is also something to avoid in professional emails (srsly!).
37. Careful with that “Reply” button: It’s all to easy to hit “Reply All” instead of just “Reply” or vice-versa, and clicking the wrong one could have very bad repercussions.

Common Mistakes to Avoid
The important thing for new writers to realize, is everyone makes mistakes. These lists of common errors are from writers, readers, and business professionals who have “been there, done that.” So take it easy on yourself, and look out for these writing no-no’s.

38. Common Usage Errors Quiz: Answer these questions to test your understanding of 26 common business writing problems.
39. Ten Common Business Writing Mistakes: Find out a little bit about your writing skills with this quiz. When you’re finished, check your answers to see where you can improve.
40. WorkKeys Common Business Writing Errors: A list of common business writing errors.
41. Business Writing Mistakes: Errors can damage your reputation, so follow these guidelines to ensure correctness, every time you write.
42. Proofreading your Writing: When proofreading your paper, be on the lookout for these errors.
43. Fast Email Fixes: This site shows the most common errors in business emails and how to fix them.
44. Quick Fixes for Business Writing Errors: Proofreading shouldn’t take as long as the writing itself. Make your editing fast, easy and painless, with this go-to guide.
45. Better Business English: These are things every businessperson should know, so read this, then pass it on to your colleagues.
46. Writing Mistakes that Cost You Money: Avoid these common mistakes and avoid inefficiency.
47. Getting it Write: Ten common writing mistakes and how to avoid them.

Workshops
The videos here are wonderful resources for business writers who find visual and auditory teaching most helpful.

48. Report Writing: Learn the basics of report writing through this link.
49. Email Writing: Keep your emails on-target and readable with these tips.
50. Proposal Writing: Guarantee the acceptance of your proposal by putting this tool to use.
51. Memo Writing: Spread the word with effective memos.
52. Instruction Writing: If you want something done right but don’t have time to do it yourself, watch this video and learn how to give the best directions.
53. Basic Business Letter Writing: Communicate quickly with tips from this letter writing video.
54. Expanded Business Letter Writing: Broaden your writing abilities and the length of your business letter.
55. Four Message Types: Discover the importance of message delivery, and learn how to do it correctly.
56. Business Letter Format: Helen Wilkie covers the eight parts of a business letter.
57. Email Subject Lines: Make your email stand out above all the rest by using the right subject line.

Tips
Derek Miller, a Canadian writer and editor, composed this list to help business professionals perform their best.

58. Write concisely: Some editors estimate that a third of the words in a typical letter are wasted. At every stage of writing your letter, look at it and decide what to remove — there will always be something. Remember that you want your reader to understand you and take action. Anything that does not help him or her do that is unnecessary. Avoid repeating anything, other than for specific emphasis. Remove needless words from every sentence, needless sentences from every paragraph, and needless paragraphs entirely.
59. Be complete: Don’t take conciseness too far. You should write not just what must be said, but also what should be said to achieve your goal. Your letter should not read like a telegram, but should tell your reader everything he or she needs to know, and then prod for action. Make sure that you include enough background for your reader to get what you mean, and that you come across as tactful and polite, not terse and unfeeling.
60. Use subjects and verbs: If you think of writing as driving a car, nouns and verbs are the wheels and engine, while adjectives and adverbs are the body and trim. No matter how fancy the paint and details, without power and grip your car goes nowhere. Adjectives and adverbs can enhance sturdy nouns and verbs, but they can’t rescue weak ones. Instead of “I definitely believe that the performance will be a very successful one,” write “I know the performance will succeed.” The second sentence is both stronger and shorter.
61. Write in active voice: Good writers use the active voice whenever they can. In active sentences, people do things — they act and interact. The active voice is vigorous and brief, showing who acts and how. In passive sentences, things are done — people are acted upon or, worse, disappear entirely. In most contexts, the passive voice is vague and evasive, making your reader unsure who is doing what.
62. Be specific: Most people use specific language when they talk casually: they tell stories with details, colors, and smells. Write the same way. Use words to paint pictures in your reader’s mind, not to ask him or her to dissect abstract concepts. If you have numbers, use them. Don’t discuss ideas without examples. Avoid abbreviations not everyone knows. Everybody understands words that apply to everyday life, so use everyday words and your reader will understand you.
63. Write interesting sentences: Vary the length of your sentences to avoid lulling your reader to sleep. Make some short and sharp. Draw others out by linking two or three together: clip with commas, stitch with semicolons; even staple with dashes — if you like. Don’t make all your sentences the same.
64. Write to your readers, not down to them: Most people understand far more words than they use, either in writing or speech. If you read any general how-to book, business letter, newspaper, or even these writing guidelines, you will find each written at roughly the same level of language. None treats its readers like children, but none is likely to use the word “turpitude” either. Even if you are writing to tell your readers something they know nothing about, think of them as intelligent but uninformed, not dumb.
65. Be correct: Reference books, such as style guides and dictionaries, will help you write with proper spelling, punctuation, grammar, and formatting. The facts, however, are yours alone. Letters serve as records of what you say, often spending years in filing cabinets for later reference, so your facts must be correct. If you have relevant information, present it. If you are uncertain, say so. If you merely suspect something, make the suspicion clear so your reader does not think you know more than you do. Check your letter over before you send it, to save the awkwardness of correcting a mistake after your reader sees it.
66. Use a positive tone: Use negatives such as “don’t,” “won’t,” and “not” only to deny, not to evade or be indecisive. Instead of “We can’t decide until tomorrow,” write “We should decide tomorrow,” or, better yet, “We will decide tomorrow.” Even many negative statements have single words that work better than negative statements: “disagreeable” instead of “not nice,” “late” instead of “not on time,” “wrong” instead of “non-optimal,” “rarely” instead of “not very often,” and so on.
67. Be clear: Good business writing is all about being clear. A letter is not a poem, a mystery story, or a morality play. It should not have subtle allegorical overtones requiring careful study, or different shades of meaning. In short, it should not be open to interpretation.

Networks
Connect with people who are either in your shoes or have been there before; they likely have novel tips based on their experience.

68. LinkedIn: A networking tool that helps you discover inside connections to your business and success.
69. Facebook: Message one of your contacts to ask whatever business writing questions you encounter.
70. Twitter: Connect with colleagues,follow business feeds, and direct message any of your friends for information you need about better writing.
71. Wordpress: Practice everything you’ve learned by creating a blog here.
72. Blogspot: Another great blogging service, Blogspot also features thousands of blogs from writers just like yourself.
73. Business Yelp: Allows business owners to share information about their business with their colleagues and communities.
74. Talkbiznow: Talkbiznow is a business community that provides business services for small businesses and professionals.
75. Ning: An online service to create, customize, and share a social network, which can (of course) include business writers.
76. Career Builder: Search through self-help articles on this site to find resources that make you the best business writer possible.
77. Social Harbor: Social Harbor is a full service social media marketing and search engine marketing solution for companies and their employees.

Books
Books often trump Web sites in that they offer hundreds of organized pages about one specific subject. If you have specific questions about becoming a better business writer, you might want to peruse through them at your local library or bookstore.

78. Effective Business Writing: (A Guide For Those who Write On the Job): by Maryann V. Piotrowski.
79. Business Grammar, Style & Usage: The Most Used Desk Reference for Articulate and Polished Business Writing and Speaking by Executives Worldwide : by Alicia Abell and Aspatore Book Staff.
80. The McGraw-Hill 36-Hour Course in Business Writing and Communication: Manage Your Writing: by Kenneth Davis.
81. 10 Steps to Successful Business Writing: by Jack E. Appleman.
82. Writing for Business: Expert Solutions to Everyday Challenges: by Harvard Business School Press.
83. Writing for Business: What Works, What Won’t: by Wilma Davidson.
84. The Elements of Business Writing: A Guide to Writing Clear, Concise Letters, Memos, Reports, Proposals, and Other Business Documents: by Gary Blake and Robert W. Bly
85. Houghton Mifflin Strategic Business Letters and E-mail: by Sheryl Lindsell-Roberts.
86. The Business Writer’s Handbook, Ninth Edition: by Gerald J. Aldred, et al.
87. MBA Fundamentals Business Writing: by Timothy Flood.

Other Great Tools
The last few spots on this list go to valuable resources with which every business writer should be familiar.

88. businessdictionary.com: Easy-to-use free business glossary with over 20000 terms. Concise, clear, and comprehensive.
89. The Glossarist: Business dictionary and business glossary directory.
90. Thesaurus.com: Avoid bad writing by replacing jargon with words you find here.
91. Brief Guide to Business Writing: A useful, printable booklet from the Department of Management and Organizations at the University of Iowa.
92. Sample Memo from The Writing Center: A great handout from the people who know writing best.
93. Lupinworks Links: This page is full of links to other sites that are sure to improve your business writing and grammar.
94. The Business Writer’s Free Library: Follow these guidelines, and watch the quality of your writing skyrocket!
95. Grammarphobia.com: If you haven’t had all your grammar questions answered by the other links in this compilation, check out this site that has it all.
96. Writing that Works: Offers a number of resources for anyone interested in business communication, including a free email newsletter.
97. Inc.com: The daily resource for entrepreneurs, with tons of writing tips.
98. WikiBooks Business Writing: This open-book site lets you look (for free) at the intricacies of business writing.
99. Library Online Reprimand Letter Template: When you need to “be the boss,” you’ll have to step up to your role as a disciplinarian. Make sure you do it right with this great template.
100. Microsoft Employee Promotion Announcement: On the flip side, you’ll have the chance to promote your employees from time to time as well, and this template will help you keep your congratulations professional.

READ MORE - The Ultimate Guide to Better Business Writing: 100 Tips, Tools, and Resources

50 Great Games to Sharpen Your Business Skills

When your study guides and textbooks fail to motivate you, have you ever though about playing computer games or entering into a virtual reality game space to practice your business skills? From the silly to the cutthroat, these 50 games can help you apply the skills you learn in class to realistic situations and challenges. Keep reading for fun opportunities to become a better manager, small business owner, corporate player, real estate developer, and more.
Virtual Reality
Get lost in these virtual reality games, from Second Life to the Sims.

1. Second Life: Head to this addictive virtual platform to set up your own work space, buy land and open your own business in a safe space.
2. Sim City: Even if you’re not part of the construction or urban planning sectors, you’ll learn a lot about management, strategy, finance, organization and pleasing people in this popular game.
3. Active Worlds: In the Active Worlds sphere, you can visit the mall and pick shop owner’s brains about sales, customer service and more.
4. Hollywood Mogul 3: This intense virtual reality game lets you manage a movie studio for as many years as you want.
5. Sim Theme Park: This game challenges players to run a chain of profitable theme parks.
6. Railroad Pioneer: Build your own railroad in the 19th century when you play this game.
7. The Guild 2: You’re challenged to build an entire dynasty in the Guild 2, which takes place in Europe after the last Crusade.

Economic Simulation Games
These games challenge you to run entire economies, cities and trading companies as you juggle bankruptcy and more.

8. Capitalism II: Trevor Chan’s business simulation game puts players in the role of CEO as they try to avoid going bankrupt or being bought out by another company. Players can either start their own business or take over an existing business.
9. Tropico 2: The premise for this game centers on pirates hanging out on a Caribbean island, but you have to manage the island’s economy, from providing docks, restaurants and lodging, to making sure "highly skilled" wenches are readily available.
10. Patrician III: You’re at the head of a medieval trading company that sells beer, cloth and spices as you port at cities on the Baltic Sea when you play this game.
11. Tamogotchi Connection: Corner Shop: You and a Tamogotchi character partner must manage a successful clothing store while supporting yourselves.
12. Outpost Kaloki X: Here you’ll try to manage an intergalactic shopping mall as you maximize cash flow from lemonade stands, video arcades and more.

Tycoon Games
The famous "tycoon" games use different business genres and startup ideas to train you to become a real strategist and effective business manager in all types of business niches.

13. Coffee Tycoon: Here you’ll start by running one coffee shop and then add new stores until you have an entire franchise.
14. Prison Tycoon 4: Manage security, staff, layout, construction, and more in a privately-run prison.
15. Oil Tycoon: Become an oil tycoon as you map out and drill in 18 different locations, from the North Sea to Texas.
16. Luxury Liner Tycoon: Spoil your guests with casinos, pools, entertainers, top of the line rooms, and more as you run a luxury cruise ship.
17. Ice Cream Tycoon: Your goal as a wannabe ice cream tycoon is to develop a multi-million pound ice cream factory.
18. Skateboard Park Tycoon: You’ll have to manage and develop exciting and successful skateboard parks in Seattle, Chicago, Dallas and other cities in this game.
19. Mall of America Tycoon: In this game, you’ll have to design a 4.2 million square foot mall and manage food courts, chain stores, boutiques and everything in between.
20. Tabloid Tycoon: This near-impossible challenge requires you to turn your tabloid rag into the most respected paper in the industry.

Finance, Wealth Management and Corporate Success
Take over corporations, develop your own empire and learn how to become filthy rich with the help of these games.

21. Monopoly Here and Now: The World Edition: 3 or more players can play Monopoly Here and Now online, which challenges you to trade and auction properties on 6 continents.
22. Playboy: The Mansion: This strategy game has a decadent premise, but its challenge is totally serious: you’ve got to build your own dynasty and come up with an effective PR strategy to keep yourself legit.
23. The Apprentice: The Apprentice is actually a collection of mini games in which you’re paired up with former show candidates for different challenges.
24. Sim Lemonade Millionaire: This Apprentice-like game counts on you to combine innovation and strategy to sell as much lemonade as you can.
25. Donald Trump’s Real Estate Tycoon: Donald Trump teaches you how to follow in his real estate mogul footsteps in this game.
26. Wages of War: Make money off of wartime when you play this game. You have to complete missions for different sponsors while hiring mercenaries, leasing weapons and more.
27. Industry Giant: Play Industry Giant II to take over a massive corporation and manage everything from mass production to customer service to picking out vendors as you become disgustingly rich.
28. Hydrophobia: This fascinating game is set in "the near future" after a string of terrorist attacks results in a community of uber-rich people and their shady businesses.
29. Mansion Impossible: Become a real estate magnate when you play this game.
30. Oligarchy: The music is kind of annoying, but you’ll have a lot of fun bribing politicians and digging for oil as you run a massive oil company.
31. Villa Village: Another real estate game, Villa Village challenges you to turn a piece of land into a thriving village of villas.
32. Hot Dog King: A Fast Food Empire: Your goal in this game is to "dominate the fast food industry city by city." You’ll have to please employees and customers while battling traitors and the competition.

Management and Leadership
Practice your management and leadership skills as you take over movie studios, run your own farm, assemble a team of gangsters or sit in the air traffic control tower.

33. The Movies: In this game, you’re put in charge of an entire movie studio and have to manage movie stars, film production, post-production, and more.
34. John Deere American Farmer: Manage your own farm, from taking care of cattle to doing the plowing to making deals and trades.
35. Gangsters 2: Vendetta: Assemble and lead a team to avenge your father’s death in this strategy game.
36. Air Traffic Chaos: Test your communication and leadership skills when it most counts when you play Air Traffic Chaos.
37. Democracy: Even if you aren’t in public service, you can play Democracy to improve your management, communication and leadership skills.
38. Trevor Chan’s Restaurant Empire Review: This restaurant management game features 18 different scenarios in Paris, Rome and Los Angeles that Armand LeBoeuf must master.
39. Rock Manager: In this game, you’ll have to manage different rock groups, from assembling the bands, to negotiating contracts and licensing, to going on a world tour.
40. Ape Escape Academy: This game has a silly premise: managing unruly, disobedient monkeys, but it’s a good exercise for HR managers and small business owners.
41. Jane’s Hotel: Play Jane, a hotel manager who is trying to turn a rundown lodge into a 5-star hotel.
42. Super Manager: See if you have what it takes to become a super manager as you try to earn $1 million for your store.

Entrepreneurship
These games will help you develop valuable entrepreneurial skills, including supply management, finding investors, taking over a family business and more.

43. Air Bucks: Start your own airline with this game, which lets you buy rights to pilots, arrange seats, plan for in-flight food and entertainment, make budget cuts and more.
44. The Sims 2: Open for Business: The Sims get a chance to open up their own business in this game, and manage everything from HR to sales.
45. Build in Time: This game takes you through time as you build homes for customers in the 1950s while helping a young kid build his own business.
46. Imagine Fashion Designer: In this game, you get to set up your own fashion design business in Manhattan and direct photo shoots, create a clothing line, and more.
47. Wallace & Gromit: Beloved animated characters Wallace and Gromit try their hand at several business ventures in this game.
48. Cake Mania 2: You’ve got to take over the family cake business in this game, which feature 10 customer characters and various cake styles and designs.
49. Vega$: Make it Big: You’ll have to compete with all the other places on the strip as you develop your own resort in Vegas.
50. Choclatier: It’s you and your secret recipes against the competition in this entrepreneur training game.

READ MORE - 50 Great Games to Sharpen Your Business Skills