UNESP

Don´t Give “A-OK” Sign in Tunisia – it´s a Death Threat

        Forming a circle with your thumb and forefinger means “A-Ok” in America. But do this in Tunisia and you could be in hot water – because there it menas “I´ll kill you!”

         Our “A-OK” sign also means “warthless” or  “zero” in France... and if you make this gesture in Japan, the Japanese will think you´re begging for money.

         Common gestures mean surprisingly different things in diferent cultures, according to world-famous antropologist Desmond Morris, author of the book “Manwatching”.

         “Sometimes when you´re making a normal, unconcious gesture you can get yourself in trouble if you don´t know  what you´re doing”, warns Morris.

         “During conversation it´s common for people to touch or pull at an earbole. But be careful about doing that in Italy – because if you´re talking to a man you´re making a big sexual insult.”

         Shaking your head from sirde to side means “no” in the U.S. But it means “yes” in Bulgaria and parts of Greece, Cyprus and Turkey.

         Different cultures also have their own gesture for the same thought, Morris added.

         For example, we signify a beautiful girl by making an exagggrtsted outline of the female figure with our hands. In Greece, however, a man gently strokes a cheek with one hand.

UFPA

FAMILY

TEARS FOR A DEER

                        It´s got na adorable hare, a gangly fawn and one of the most disturbing death scenes in the history of animation. We´re referring, of course, to the 1942 classic “Bambi” in which the hero loses his mom to the sharp crack of a hunting rifle. With the film just out on DVD, parents will be wondering how to cope with the inevitable question: “Mom, are you going to die?” Dr. Michel Cohen, author of “The New Basics: A-to-Z Baby & Child Care for the Modern Parent,” notes that not all kids will be upset by the fil. In other cases, the angst may not emerge for a week or two. Seth Aronson, a child psychologist at New York´s William Alanson White Institute, suggests explaining that Bambi´s mom didn´t die a natural death and that most people live until they´re very old. Another Idea is to watch the film with your kids safely snuggled in your lap. He also theorizes that Disney offs characters like the dad in “The Lion King” because “it leaves the hero to fend for himself, became resilient and overcome obstacles.” Try telling that to Simba.

                                                                                                (Newsweek)

Your Cat Will Thrill to the Great Indoors

         There is truly no place like home for your cat…

         WHERE HE CAN PLAY a safe game of cat and “mouse”, play hide-and-sock without getting lost, perch on a sunny window seat and make fun of the neighbor’s dog, snooze, stretch, have a little snack – all from the comfort of home. The fact is cats enjoy much safer, longer, healthier lives as indoor pets. They make better neighbors and great companions. And they don’t roam around, dodging cars or adding to the already tragic problems of cat overpopulation. So if you want to do what’s best for your feline friend, don’t put him outdoors to have fun. Instead, put more fun indoors for your cat. If you want to know more, just write to us or visit www.safecat.org.

KEEP YOUR CAT SAFE

(Environmental Magazine)

PROF.JAMIL A. JUNIOR

         UEL     

THE TIME 100

QUEEN ELIZABETH II

(By Catherine Mayer)

Helen Mirren may have scooped an Oscar for her portrayal of the Queen, head of state of Britain and 15 Commonwealth countries, but it is Elizabeth Windsor who continues to define the role. It was thrust upon her in 1952 by the premature death of her father, and she has not left the stage since. Yet unlike the celebrities and politicians with whom she regularly exchanges pleasantries, the most famous woman in the world has never given an interview.

That reserve was interpreted as indifference in the turbulent months after Princess Diana died, when Britons contemplated burying their monarchy. A decade later the institution is solid, thanks largely to Elizabeth’s steady hand. At 84, Her Majesty is still cutting ribbons, greeting dignitaries and making speeches in a voice that has resisted the temptation to seek acceptance through reinvention. That’s the secret of the Queen’s success: she understands the need for reforms, such as slimming the costs of her family to the taxpayer and opening her accounts to public scrutiny, but she has never compromised her identity. However, Iike her beloved corgis and dorgis (a dachshund cross), she occasionally slips the Ieash, says her second son, Prince Andrew. Once, on a walk, she encountered one of her subjects, who exclaimed, “You Look just Iike the Queen!” “How very reassuring,” Her Majesty replied. Many Britons feel the same  way.

LEARNING AND EARNING

New data demonstrate how graduates can expect earn much more than non-graduates, by sex and by country.

A SPELL at university offers more than the chance to indulge in a few years of debauchery. But precisely how rewarding, financially, is completing your degree? A new report from the OECD, a rich-country think-tank, attempts to measure how much more graduates can expect to earn compared with those who seek jobs without similar qualifications. In America the lifetime gross earnings of male graduates are, on average, nearly $370,000 higher than those of non-graduates, comfortably repaying the pricey investment in a university education. Female graduates earn an extra $229,000, the lower rate perhaps because women are more likely to drop out of the workforce to look after children.

On average it pays well to study: across the OECD countries studied a man can expect to make an additional $186,500 in his lifetime if he has a degree. In som places , such as South Korea and Spain, the data show that female graduates pull in more than their male counterparts. In turkey, graduates' additional wages are more modest and the financial advantages of men over women are less pronounced.

                                                                 (See and other daily charts at:

                                                                                   Economist.com/dailychart)

           UFSCAR

     AT THE WORK

FALSE FRIENDS

In the morning I attended a meeting between management and union representatives.

The discussion was very comprehensive, covering topics like working hours, days off, retirement age, etc. Both sides were interested in an agreement and ready to compromise. The secretary recorded everything in the notes. Eventually, they decided to set a new meeting to sign the final draft of the agreement.

Back at the office, a colleague of mine asked me if I had realized that the proposed agreement would be partially against the company policy not to accept workers that have already retired. I pretended to be really busy and late for an appointment, and left for the cafeteria. Actually, I didn’t want to discuss the matter at that particular moment because there were some strangers in the office.

After lunch I attended a lecture given by the mayor, who is an expert in tax legislation and has a graduate degree in Political Science. He said his government intends to assist welfare programs and senior citizens, raise funds to improve college education and build a public library, and establish tougher limits on vehicle emissions because he assumes this is what people expect from the government.

(Schütz kanamata)