It is good to see Cristobal de Villalpando’s huge altarpiece at the Met placed at the very center of the Robert Lehman wing, where it can be admired from two levels, top-lit by daylight. At just over twenty-eight feet high by fourteen feet wide, it benefits from isolation, both from the objects in the Lehman collection and from the small selection of lesser works by Villalpando exhibited in their own gallery nearby. The lower half of the crowded composition depicts Moses raising the Brazen Serpent; the upper, the Transfiguration of Jesus. What we are not shown is the way it is displayed in its permanent Mexican home (for which it was painted) in Puebla cathedral.
Author: signordal
Happy birthday, Yosemite National Park! On October 1, 1890,…
Happy birthday, Yosemite National Park! On October 1, 1890, Yosemite became a national park, and 127 years later, it’s still wowing visitors with its waterfalls, towering granite monoliths, deep valleys and ancient giant sequoias. What’s your memory about this legendary California landmark?
Learn more: https://on.doi.gov/yosemite
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Basiago.
Erin’s Things: October 1
You’re reading Erin’s Things: October 1, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
This week for my favorite things, there’s a lot of technology, a great new book and a cool home store for those in California! Check out this week’s list and leave your comments (and suggestions for other cool stuff) below!
- ALDEA HOME + BABY – The San Francisco home goods store is cooly curated with different rooms impeccably decorated as if in a showroom. Frequently on every best design list, it boasts some quirky and also very design forward items, from furniture to accessories and even clothes. There’s everything for all budgets, from a gifts under 25$ page online to the higher end items such as the ‘Mirah Geo’ table – my fave. It’s eclectic yet perfectly streamlined. Loving it right now!
- CHILDREN’S MD – APP – If you’re a parent, or even a grandparent or uncle/aunt that is baby sitting- you will at some point encounter some anxiety over a child that is not feeling well- questions like, how can I treat this fever, what symptoms should I be concerned about? Now there are all sorts of apps that can help you with – this one in particular, ‘Children’s MD’ was developed by Children’s Hospital of Colorado and it is basically like a virtual doctor. It has a comprehensive symptom list as well as suggestions for when is the right time to call on a doctor for help, to over the counter meds/dosages and even finger food ideas! Thank-you pocket Doc.
- HTC VIVE –VIRTUAL REALITY HEADSET – The best VR set in the world is apparently this one. I am no expert but I am certainly interested in the coming VR wave we are about to experience in tech and entertainment. The controls are intuitive, the resolution is amazing and you have a 1080p screen for each eye- playing games on this would be as realistic as it can get…for now. This is a premium product so its cost reflects this fact. At 600-700$, you are guaranteed the best first generation VR product on the market. Virtual is a reality we can all immerse ourselves into now.
- IT’S MESSY – ON BOYS, BOOBS AND BADASS WOMEN – Amanda de Cadenet has done it again. She’s written another fantastic book, this time a personal collection of essays that facilitates conversations among women that deserve to be had. She gives advice and has quite a few insights gained from experience as a businesswoman, wife, mother and friend. I think it is thought provoking which is the first most important thing I require in a book, the second is generally humor- and this is also apparent in this offering. She has heart. That I admire, along with her feminist message, she helps women around the world determine the strength to find positivity against all odds. Stumped for your next read…look no further!
- Flexible sensor medical device – a gifted materials scientist by the name of Canan Dagdeviren, has been researching and inventing a slew of biomedical devices (the size of a sticker!) designed to convert energy from natural movement of your organs into electricity – an energy harvester that is built on a flexible foundation. It eliminates the need for pacemakers to have their batteries changed. Secret to its success is PZT (lead zirconate titanate) which can generate small electric charges as it flexes. The uses range from the cosmetic advantage of treating dehydrated skin to the huge potential of identifying any illnesses. This is personalized medicine at its most epic! When one can understand what the body is saying by observing an unending stream of data (the variables that fluctuate electronically in the body) then one can figure out how indeed to keep it running!
You’ve read Erin’s Things: October 1, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
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It’s National Public Lands Day! Today is the perfect time to get…
It’s National Public Lands Day! Today is the perfect time to get out and explore parks, refuges and wilderness areas near you. There are also thousands of volunteer events across the country and fees are waived, so head outdoors and enjoy some active time in nature. Photo from Kenai National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Kinds of Blue Black
The exhibition that I ended up curating at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation this year, “Blue Black,” explores the space between Ellsworth Kelly’s Blue Black and Louis Armstrong’s “Black and Blue,” using them as bookends for an inquiry into how these two colors have been employed within a wide range of artistic practices. The selected works hew flexibly to the theme. It is by no means a comprehensive survey of the subject.
Family Annex Made by the Firm Nommo Arquitetos in Florianópolis, Brazil
This project consists of a gated community composed of three houses that are shared by members belonging to the same family. The family has, over time, grown, and come to need more space in order to cover their needs. Rustic materials were used in the social block of the home, such as reinforced concrete. Additionally, glass walls running from wall to wall have installed, allowing a direct connection with the..
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10 Body Language Tips that Make Your Communication Skills 10x Better
You’re reading 10 Body Language Tips that Make Your Communication Skills 10x Better, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
Have you ever noticed the connection between the body language and communication skills? Why do emotional people who are animated attract more people and have fewer communication problems than those who are reserved and unemotional? The following article is going to reveal the secrets of the body language and tell you 10 body language tips that will make your communication skills 10x better.
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Do Not Cross Your Arms or Legs
To show that you are open to people, you need to open literally and not close with the help of arms and legs. You are thus looking defensive and guarded – who needs that for the effective communication? In fact, the statistics show that you should open both your arms and legs to improve your retention. By crossing your arms and legs subconsciously, you are closing yourself from both the people and upcoming information – try to control this gesture, and you will soon see the positive results. People would be attracted to you, and you would memorize the information better and faster.
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Keep an Eye Contact
To show you are interested in the conversation, you have to look at your dialogue partner’s eyes. If you are looking sideways, it is obvious that you are not interested and thinking about other things. To demonstrate your involvement in the dialogue, try nodding as well. It is pretty weird and quite difficult to talk to a person whose facial expression is still: you thus do not comprehend whether s/he agrees with you or not. To avoid uncomfortable situations, consider keeping an eye contact (but do not stare!) and nodding – this will create an impression that you are fully involved in the conversation and really enjoy it.
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Smile with Your Whole Face
People will feel your smile is fake if you are smiling with only your mouth. The sincere smile involves not only the one showing the teeth, but it is also about the whole facial expression you make when you beam: eyebrows, eyelids, and cheeks. Try to control this part of your body language and make no fake smiles. As mentioned earlier, people gather around the beaming person because they feel as if they are wanted to talk to. And they will never barter this feeling away for the person with the peevish facial expression.
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Do Not Point at People
Every person knows that it is extremely rude to dab with finger at your dialogue partner, however, it does not stop people of still doing it. If you have this habit, you have to control yourself as much as possible because you will push off any adequate dialogue partner. Just put yourself in his/her place and imagine s/he will point at you – how would you feel?
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Do Not Droop Your Shoulders and Arms
When you droop your shoulders and arms, you are thus making yourself smaller and more unremarkable. People would not notice you unless you set back your shoulders and stick out your chest. Do not pretend you are a superhero, of course, but having a normal pose would do only good for you. Relax and loosen up by shaking your shoulders and the confident posture will appear itself.
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Do Not Distance from Your Dialogue Partner
Of course, no one says you have to come up really close to your dialogue partner – it will make him/her feel uncomfortable. But keeping a big distance is another extreme that will make your partner feel uneasy as well. The big distance would confuse him/her because s/he would have to speak louder to make sure you can hear him/her. Second of all, the conversation is an intimate process of sharing information that is why the partners do not need to have a huge distance between them.
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Do Not Turn Your Feet Away
As oddly as it may sound, legs are the most honest part of the body. While you may control your whole body, you are, unfortunately, unable to control where your feet are turned. Standing with your legs apart will add you confidence, and you will thus show you feel comfortable. Of course, it is difficult to control all the time where the feet are turned but knowing about this part of body language will let you notice when you seem defensive.
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Smile and Laugh
The best way to pull people in by your body language is to smile and laugh sincerely. For one reason or another, people are attracted to those who beam. The contagious laughter is the best way to find yourself in the center of everyone’s attention and become everyone’s favorite. As for smiling, it is a powerful weapon: if a stranger approaches you, and you smile when s/he speaks to you, conceive that you will be friends. There is nothing more pleasant than to speak to a smiling person because when you beam, you warm your dialogue partner up.
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Do Not Keep Your Head Down
Do not keep your head too high because people will think you are arrogant, but do not keep it too down. This will signify you are shy and reserved and will thus frighten the potential dialogue partner. Keeping your head down creates an impression you are feeling guilty and discourages having a conversation with you because you have no idea how to get the eye contact with you. What you need is keep your head straight in front of your dialogue partner’s eyes: not too high, not too down.
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Do Not Hold Anything in Front of Your Heart
If you are at a party, try not to hold your drink in front of your chest because you are thus closing yourself from your dialogue partner. In fact, do not hold anything in front of your heart ever: this gesture makes you seem guarded and distant. If you have something in your hands, just keep it near the leg, but do not create a barrier between you and your partner with the help of the drink.
This article has covered all the points for improving your skills in spoken language. But don’t forget about your written communication skills, matter too! To learn more about this, check out the brilliant initiative on EduBirdie. This site is built for students, who require help with their endless assignments.
You’ve read 10 Body Language Tips that Make Your Communication Skills 10x Better, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
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The B&N Podcast: Jenny Zhang
Every author has a story beyond the one that they put down on paper. The Barnes & Noble Podcast goes between the lines with today’s most interesting writers, exploring what inspires them, what confounds them, and what they were thinking when they wrote the books we’re talking about.
The short stories in Jenny Zhang’s debut collection Sour Heart started out as separate tales, but soon the young author found herself in possession of the story of a community — told through moments in the lives of Chinese-American children growing up in a New York City neighborhood. Insightful and wry, ferocious and beautiful, these interlinking stories earned Sour Heart a spot in Barnes and Noble’s Discover Great New Writers program. In this episode, the author joins Miwa Messer to talk about her book, navigating family, and coming of age in America.
A fresh new voice emerges with the arrival of Sour Heart, establishing Jenny Zhang as a frank and subversive interpreter of the immigrant experience in America. Her stories cut across generations and continents, moving from the fraught halls of a public school in Flushing, Queens, to the tumultuous streets of Shanghai, China, during the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s. In the absence of grown-ups, latchkey kids experiment on each other until one day the experiments turn violent; an overbearing mother abandons her artistic aspirations to come to America but relives her glory days through karaoke; and a shy loner struggles to master English so she can speak to God.
Narrated by the daughters of Chinese immigrants who fled imperiled lives as artists back home only to struggle to stay afloat—dumpster diving for food and scamming Atlantic City casino buses to make a buck—these seven stories showcase Zhang’s compassion, moral courage, and a perverse sense of humor reminiscent of Portnoy’s Complaint. A darkly funny and intimate rendering of girlhood, Sour Heart examines what it means to belong to a family, to find your home, leave it, reject it, and return again.
Like this podcast? Subscribe on iTunes or Stitcher to discover intriguing new conversations every week.
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Tom Price is out at the White House — here are all the…
This Empty House
One may wind up concluding that by far the most terrifying thing about Mother! is that Darren Aronofsky seems to be Hollywood’s idea of an intellectual, our own brainy, home-grown auteur. Aronofsky isn’t much interested in these people’s complexity or humanity, but purely in his own big concepts. Of course, it’s possible to have characters and ideas; it’s a great gift of narrative art.
Sig Nordal 