Contested Consumption

Amazing things are happening to the next generation of cameras for Smartphones, and soon mobile phones will be able to take pictures which are as good as those produced by expensive Digital Single Lens Reflex cameras (DSLRs).

The cameras on modern mobile phones are highly sophisticated with multi-mega pixels and many programmable functions. In fact quite astounding photographs and even movies can be recorded with no more than a phone.

There is one area though where phone cameras have failed to compete with DSLRs or even bridge cameras, and that is in the control of depth of field. Depth of field (DoF) in a photograph refers to the region within the scene that is in focus. For instance, in a portrait taken by a DSLR, the photographer can use a very wide lens aperture to narrow down the DoF so that only part of the image is in focus. This can produce some excellent effects, for instance by ensuring that just the model’s face or even just the eyes are in focus and everything else is blurred, concentrates the viewer’s attention on the main features and removes any distractions to produce an artful photograph. This is only made possible by the large aperture lenses used by DSLRs.

On the other hand a phone camera has a relatively small lens, so it is not possible to use a large aperture, and portraits taken by phones are relatively poor as all areas are in focus simultaneously.

Now a new generation of phone cameras is being developed that will overcome this shortcoming. This does not use a large lens, obviously that would be impractical on a phone, but instead uses a clever computer controlled mechanism that controls the position of the lens. When the user takes a portrait shot, the camera will record the scene entirely in focus, then the lens will be moved back and forward recording frames all the time so that the background and foreground are all rendered out of focus, or blurred.

The camera will combine these multiple frames into a single shot with the important features in focus and the other regions blurred.

These developments are still in the laboratory, and so are unlikely to appear on the next Nokia model, but it shouldn’t be long before you can take professional looking pictures just using your mobile phone.

Bathrooms are usually the smallest room in the house, though sometimes even those which are relatively big in terms of floor space can seem smaller due to poor design and a lack of consideration of its size. The good news is that there are many ways in which space can be saved in a small bathroom – and there are even further ways to accentuate the space there is.

Of course the first things to consider with your bathroom are the essentials, and how these can be adapted to save space. If you are particularly pushed, it may be worth sacrificing the bath altogether and instead opting for shower tray and enclosure which come in a variety of shapes (square, curved or triangular – perfect for a corner) and sizes and thus can be a good compromise. Additionally, if you wan to keep the options of a shower and a bath, tapered baths feature a larger shower end but save floor space by being narrower at the other end.

Space can also be saved with your sink and toilet also. Although pedestal sinks are the most common, they are perhaps not the most efficient when it comes to saving space. Vanity sinks, although large, come with a significant amount of storage space below, while other options such as wall hung sinks leave more floor space for accessories such as a laundry basket. Sinks are often also built into bathroom corners to save on space. Although toilets are less versatile, corner and wall hung designs are available and are excellent space savers.

Aside from keeping your bathroom minimal more can be done to make the space seem larger than it actually is. Light colours, large mirrors and a big window can all add to any small room – and all of the above have an even more practical reason for inclusion in a bathroom. Additionally, opting for simple design and colour schemes as opposed to busy patterns will also benefit.

As far as space-saving accessories go, utilizing walls for storage is a great idea. Heated towel rails can accommodate all the towels and facecloths you need, while ample shelving and mirror fronted cabinets will also be very handy for bathroom items. If you bathroom currently has just one solitary light-bulb, it may be worth upgrading for something a little more illuminating!

It seems each time you switch on the TV or look in a magazine you see a story about the problem of worldwide obesity. People are getting more unhealthily overweight every day to the point of it becoming life threatening. In the past, there have always been a small number of people who ate unhealthy foods, but now that number is quickly growing. We need to carefully consider how our unhealthy diet affects us.

Eating the wrong types of food can cause us to feel lethargic and sluggish. We’re getting the wrong kinds of nutrients from all this junk food we consume. It’s important to consider the quality of the food we eat, especially if you are a senior. As we age, our metabolism slows down quite a bit. We can’t burn the calories at the same rate as when we were kids. This is what makes older people put on weight more easily and makes it harder to take off too. Gaining weight may affect seniors in a negative way, more so than younger people. Being overweight can put a lot of stress on your joints and can accelerate the problems of osteoporosis and arthritis. It can also contribute to other illnesses and muscle disorders. Being overweight can bring on diabetes, which is very common to seniors.

Everyone should treat themselves to something they really like to eat, now and then, but one shouldn’t over do it. It’s important to maintain a balanced diet. A good diet for seniors could consist of: Up to ten servings of fresh fruits and vegetables. Up to ten servings of complex carbohydrates like pasta, bread, rice and cereals. Three servings of calcium containing products, such as cheese, yoghurt and milk (low fat is best). Two servings of fish, poultry or meat for protein. A large helping of fiber, such as fruit, vegetables and cereals. This diet will not only provide good health, but will also fulfill all of your nutritional needs. All of us, especially seniors should avoid salt and saturated fats. Salt is really bad for high blood pressure. If you do use salt, just use a tiny amount. Most foods naturally contain some salt, so we really don’t need to add any. Try not to use too much salt while baking and preparing food. Don’t keep the salt shaker on the table while eating either. This will help break you of the habit of salting your food. Besides laying off the salt, stay far away from saturated fat. The body just isn’t meant to handle it. Saturated fat is hard for your body to break down. It just sits around, clogging your arteries.

This is one of the main causes of obesity, cancer and gallbladder disease in our society today. Just as a well balanced diet can improve you health, a bad diet can cause it to deteriorate. This is especially dangerous for seniors. Seniors usually aren’t as active as young people and have a harder time working off the extra calories. If you can keep your weight down, you’ll improve your mobility and be able to burn more calories. It’s important for seniors to enjoy life. If you eat a sensible diet and maintain a proper weight, you’ll be around to enjoy your life a lot longer. You only get one chance at life. Make the most of it. Improve you diet today and you’ll be rewarded with good health and long life.

Does going to school really pay off after having graduated in this current economic condition? The decision to go to a school of higher learning is a major commitment of not only time but also money. The question is, does this schooling give students an extra edge against others applying for the same jobs. The current recession has touched absolutely every facet of living, including those planning on going to college. Fees for entrance as well as the cost of living during schooling can be a formidable challenge for students alone or students and family.

Students wishing to work part time while in college are also having a difficult time as with the current condition of the economy and so many companies downsizing or closing down, jobs just aren’t available in the number they used to be and there are a multitude of people all applying for the same jobs, internships, traineeships and any other type of job there is out there in the market today. Many companies, though they may have a little more work than they can realistically handle, are unwilling to hire anyone to come in and work for them. The economy is so unstable, the companies don’t know what to expect next so they err on the side of caution. It’s not just the people graduating that are having a hard time, even the schools themselves are in a constant state of flux. There are many cuts within the schools and within funding, including available grants. At a time when education seems even more important to have, it may be getting even harder to acquire. Some institutions that have cancelled grants say that the money will still be directed towards higher education purposes and to target students from lower income families.

Many institutions are talking of raising tuition fees across Britain, and students have to decide if the investment they will have to put into the education will be equitable considering the opportunities the higher education affords them. This is very definitely a very turbulent time for every part of the economy and education is no exception. There is no clear way for the general student body to see whether the investment in their future through higher education will be worth it in the end. There is no way for them to know if they will have better opportunities or any opportunities once their schooling is over. The prospective student will need to have a clear focus of what he or she wants to achieve, what knowledge they need to know to achieve it and if the field of study they are engaging in has the capacity to support them once they have graduated. There will be different answers to this question for different individuals. They will also need to figure out if there is enough financial ability available to see them through the full schooling once they have started. They cannot rely on a job coming their way once their schooling has begun, they may have more knowledge than when they started, but in these economic times, they will not have enough knowledge to make them really marketable until their schooling is completed. Then they will have a better chance of competing out in the tough job market of the time.