LGBT Bullying Epidemic

LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) bullying amongst teens in North America has been a hot topic this year in the media. As seen above, Ellen DeGeneres has continuously shed light on what has been happening and encourages those being bullied that they are not alone and there is help. She has had many guests recently on the show to talk about their bullying experiences and this issue including Ricky Martin and actors Chris Colfer and Mike O'Malley from GLEE. This Monday, November 22, Ellen will have Graeme Taylor on her show.

Graeme is a 14 year old gay student who defended high school teacher, Jay McDowell. One of McDowell's students told the class he "didn't accept gays". McDowell did not like where this was going and asked the student to leave the classroom. As a result, McDowell was then suspended without pay for a day. Here is what Graeme had to say about this at a Howell school board meeting:

"I want to force adults to look at what situation we've created,'' he said. "I would really like us to be more aggressive in our policing of harassing and bullying.'' - McDowell

There are many campaigns right now creating awareness of and trying to rid North America of this tragic bullying epidemic. Love is Louder is another example, it was started by Brittany Snow, the Jed Foundation, and MTV. MTV Canada also dedicated this week to talking about this issue and encourages others to talk about it as well.

To read the full story with regards to McDowell please click here

For more information about Love is Louder please click here

Also, remember to tune into The Ellen DeGeneres Show Monday to hear more about Graeme's story and the impact standing up for someone has on an individual and an epidemic like this.

Movember

For those of you who live under a rock, we are currently on Day 11 of Movember. Movember being the month where men commit to growing a mustache to raise awareness and funds for prostate cancer.

"The mustache becomes a ribbon for men's health" - Movember.com

Did you know...

- This clever idea was generated back in 2003 in Melbourne, Australia.

- In 2004 432 Mo Bros raised $55,000 for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (aka the largest donation they had ever received)

- Movember has now spread to Canada, USA, the UK, New Zealand, Ireland, Spain, South America, the Netherlands, and Finland!

- In 2009 there were 255,755 Mo Bros & Mo Sistas globally raising $47 million

And last, but not least...

"Last year’s Canadian campaign was the second largest in the world behind Australia, with 35,156 Mo Bros and Mo Sistas coming together to raise $7.8 million for Prostate Cancer Canada."

Shout outs to all the guys committed to rocking their Mos (and of course the ladies to support it)! Here are a few:

The fundraising during Movember is something to be very proud of but it is equally important to remember the reason why the money is being raised and the awareness being made. In a recent survey of the Movember community it was found that "because of their involvement in Movember, 39% of the Mo Bros sought medical advice, whilst a further 36% encouraged someone else to seek medical advice. "

Happy Movember everyone! Special thanks to those who showcased their pictures for FactSnacks, much appreciated :)

For more information and/or to show your support please visit www.movember.com

Giving Art Deeper Meaning

This blog highlights some of my favourite pieces from Chis Jordan's "Running the Numbers: an American self-portrait" collection. He has an unbelievable gift to not only create remarkable artwork, but also have the end product speak volumes. Each piece of art illustrates an alarming American statistic which is stated in the caption. Take a look at the following I have chosen to get the picture...

Depicts 106,000 aluminum cans, the number used in the US every 30 seconds.

Now if we take a closer look at the piece, we can see that it is in fact made with 106,000 aluminum cans!

Depicts 32,000 Barbies, equal to the number of elective breast augmentation surgeries performed monthly in the US in 2006

Again, when you zoom in, it is made clear that the piece is comprised of 32,000 Barbies.

Depicts 28,000 42-gallon barrels, the amount of oil consumed in the United States every 2 minutes

Depicts 320,000 light bulbs, equal to the number of kilowatt hours of electricity wasted in the United States every minute from inefficient residential electricity usage

I strongly encourage you to visit Chris Jordan's website to take a close look at his artwork. The website actually allows you to slowly zoom in on each piece so you can see the intricate details that make up the big picture. To visit CLICK HERE (it's worth the look!)

Gotta Go... In Style

Accepting Award

I am certain that everyone can attest to having to use some dangerously sketchy bathrooms; I know I can! It is safe to say that there are a broad range of bathrooms out there ranging from debatable sanitary to surprisingly immaculate. Apparently some are so impressive they are awarded the title of Best Restroom. This year's winner for Canada's Best Bathroom Award went to Cactus Club Cafe in Burnaby, BC.

Highlights of the winning bathroom included magnifying make-up mirrors, exotic foot flush toilets, stall screens streaming Food Network footage, and privacy stalls equipped with fans, a sound system and lighting.

The Top 5 Restroom in Canada 2010 are as follows:

1. Cactus Club Cafe in Burnaby, BC

2. Spice Route Asian Bistro & Bar in Toronto, ON

3. Mildred's Temple Kitchen in Toronto,ON

4. The Shangri-La Hotel in Vancouver, BC

5. Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto,ON

Even more interesting is the 3rd place finish because I did a very shocking FactSnack on them earlier in the year. Click Here to find out what else goes on in their restrooms...

Also, I think what we can take away from these awards in not only people's appreciation for a classy bathroom but that bathrooms outside of Ontario and British Columbia need to step up their game.

For the full article and pictures of the 1st place finish please Click Here

Not Your Average Horoscope Reading

*Disclaimer: Take this article as it is. I thought it was interesting, you can decide its credibility.

As explained in the article "The Zodiac Signs of Serial Killers", author Robert Melkonyan states the following:

"It has been established that zodiac signs directly correlate to the type of crime they are likely to commit; additionally, the sign can, in a way, determine the crime likely to be committed"

According to the FBI website (fbi.org), Cancers are the most booked criminals and are the most dangerous of zodiac signs. The list of signs in descending order of most crimes committed is as follows: Cancer, Taurus, Sagittarius, Aries, Capricorn, Virgo, Libra, Pisces, Scorpio, Leo, Aquarius, and then Gemini.

I will leave you with the link to the full article, but here is a FackSnack about each sign:

Cancer: mainly passion killers (kill multiple times and usually leave a marking) and tend to be mentally unstable

Taurus: usually involved in money laundering (and very clever)

Sagittarius: con artists, robbers, and thieves (tend to not hurt their victims)

Aries: hired to do their crimes

Capricorn: mostly involved in organized crime and are more sadistic than Scorpio

Scorpio: hot tempered

Virgo: burglars and hackers

Libra: are corrupt people

Pisces: mainly involved in drug-related crime

Gemini: doesn't take things seriously; con artists and thieves

Leo: get involved in crime for the sole reason of getting recognition

Scorpio: contract killers

Aquarius: hackers and hustlers, and con artists involved in manipulation

So there you have it, take this information however you like. I hope that you found it just a wee bit more interesting than your average horoscope reading.

PS: remind me to watch out for Cancers, yikes!

To read the article please click here

Shoes Reach New Heights

Athletic Propulsion Labs (APL) has created a $300 shoe that increases your vertical jump. APL was founded by twins Adam and Ryan Goldston who combined their passion for basketball and their father's experience in the shoe industry to make this remarkable product. A spring based system is used to increase lift.

Unfortunately, the NBA has decided to ban APL's shoes due to its ability to increase vertical jump. It has been said that an average athlete can increase his/her jump by about 3.5 inches and an elite athlete can increase his/her jump by up to 8 inches! The NBA made the following statement Tuesday:

"Under league rules, players may not wear any shoe during a game that creates an undue competitive advantage"

In addition, apparently many NBA players (including about 30% of the rookies) expressed interest in the shoe. Too bad they will not get the change to wear them. Below is a video by Sports Illustrated to test the APLs. Take a look and tell me what you think...

Source

(Click on "SI.com Video" to view)

Drug Yourself Monogamous

Did you know that only about 3% of mammals are monogamous? What if something could be done to alter this? An extensive study on prairie voles (aka furry creatures above) has lead to some very interesting findings with regards to the neuroendocrinology of social bonds.

Prairie voles are one of the few mammals that practice monogamy. A study on these little guys have provided scientists with a new understanding of the hormones oxytocin and vasopressin.

"Work with voles now suggests that these hormones are involved in the development of monogamy."

Furthermore, Larry Young (a neuroscientist who studies prairie voles) claims the following:

"pair-bonding in humans (as in voles, one of the few other monogamous mammals) can be enhanced or suppressed by tinkering with brain hormones like oxytocin and vasopressin" (and predicts that we’ll be seeing new drugs to do just that

Source 1

Source 2

Inspiration for this post came from this excerpt in Jodi Picoult's "House Rules" [a book a highly recommend]:

"Let me stop you for a minute and just talk about prairie voles. They are part of only a tiny fraction of the animal kingdom that practice monogamy. They mate for twenty-four hours, and then, just like that, they're together for life. However, the montane vole- which is a close relative, sharing 99% of the prairie vole's genetic makeup- has no interest in anything except a wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am one-night stand. How come? When prairie voles have sexual intercourse, the hormones oxytocin and vasopressin flood the brain. If the hormones are blocked, prairie voles behave more like slutty montane voles. Even more interesting, if prairie voles get injections of those hormones but then are prevented from having sex, they still become slavishly devoted to their would-be mates...

The opposite, though, isn't true. You cant give a shot of hormones to a montane vole and make it lovesick. It just doesn't have the right receptors in the brain." -pg 399

Sooooo, do you think that in the future we may be able to drug ourselves monogamous? Would we even want this? What will TLC do with its shows devoted to polygamy?!