Ramadhan untuk Indonesia

Islam adalah agama dengan setiap jenis ibadahnya selalu memiliki dimensi sosial. Mulai dari ber-syahadat, sholat, puasa, hingga berbagai jenis ibadah lainnya.

Dalam syahadat, ikrar meng-esa-kan Tuhan dan Muhammad sebagai utusan Tuhan, bertujuan untuk mendorong optimisme individu dalam ber-fastabiqul khairat (berlomba-lomba dalam kebaikan) sehingga kemudian menciptakan peradaban yang adil dan makmur.

Mencegah Aterosklerosis Dini dengan Morfologi USG

Dunia kesehatan di Indonesia saat ini masih sering kesulitan dalam mendiagnosa atau mendeteksi keberadaan penyakit aterosklerosis dini pada manusia. Hal ini disebabkan oleh keterbatasan pengetahuan para ahli kesehatan terkait optimalisasi penggunaan teknologi USG. Chandramin, seorang Dokter Spesialis Jantung dan Pembuluh Darah Rumah Sakit Premier Bintaro, melakukan penelitian untuk memberikan solusi terhadap permasalahan tersebut. Ia melakukan klasifikasi morfologi intima media arteri karotis dengan pencitraan ultrasonografi pada aterosklerosis dini dan menggunakan monyet macaca nemestrina sebagai hewan modelnya.

Calling All Young People: The Water Crisis Needs You

Watching President Obama's historic visit to Africa this past week, I was struck by the attention he gave to young people. "The heartbeat of Africa," he called them -- a reminder of the fact that one in three people in Africa today are between the ages of 10 and 24.

This means that the young people of today are going to be determining the fate of Africa in the very near future. If they are given information in school about the importance of clean water and safe hygiene practices, today's young Africans could soon be leading countries where fewer kids die from preventable water-related diseases and more lead healthy, productive lives.

Youth and Social Entrepreneurship

When President Barack Obama was inaugurated this month for a second term, it

was in large part due to the youth vote. According to the Tufts University-based Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), which conducts research on the civic and political engagement of young Americans, 23 million Americans between the ages of 18-29, or approximately 50 percent of that demographic, voted in the election on November 6, 2012. CIRCLE further reports that 60 percent of those young Americans voted for President Obama over Governor Mitt Romney. Tellingly, had Romney won half the youth vote in Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, or had young people abstained from voting there, not only would Romney have won those battleground states but he also would have won the presidency.

Meningkatkan Produktivitas Koloni Lebah Madu

Keberadaan Khamir, yang memiliki asosiasi fungsional dengan lebah madu, akhirnya memicu Retno Widowati (Dosen Universitas Nasional) yang sebelumnya sudah tertarik dengan penelitian terkait lebah, untuk meriset lebih jauh terkait potensi dari Khamir ini. Khamir dan lebah madu merupakan simbiosis mutualistik. Khamir berperan penting dalam pemenuhan kebutuhan nutrisi dan kesehatan lebah madu. Khamir juga berperan dalam fermentasi nektar menjadi madu.

Solusi Damai bagi Konflik Indonesia-Malaysia

Konflik yang terjadi antara Indonesia dan Malaysia mengalami puncak panas diawali pada era kepemimpinan Presiden Soekarno. Slogan “Ganyang Malaysia” mengemuka dimana-mana akibat ulah provokasi Soekarno. Konflik yang terjadi ini sesungguhnya lebih banyak diakibatkan oleh konflik individu antara Soekarno dengan Tungku Abdul Rahman (Mantan Perdana Menteri Malaysia). Indonesia ketika itu tidak mau bergabung dengan sebuah komunitas regional semacam Asean dikarenakan komunitas tersebut adalah buatan Malaysia. Politik luar negeri kedua negara pun kala itu juga bertentangan, Malaysia sebagai pro barat yang anti komunis dan Indonesia dengan politik bebas aktif yang cenderung ke blok kiri (komunis).

Beyond Technique: Teaching How to Think Structurally

The presenter held a potato in his left hand and a refreshment straw in the right one. Seconds later the straw had neatly perforated the potato from side to side. Most of the aspiring young executives in the audience accepted the invitation to try themselves, but after a few frantic attempts, the table was littered with dented potatoes, broken straws, and damaged egos. The presenter then called the executives’ attention on a technical trick: his right thumb was firmly placed on the upper end of the straw, cutting the air flow and giving the straw more rigidity. With renewed enthusiasm, the leaders-to-be tried again-—and again they failed. Now the presenter was ready to make his point: “I observed that your movements were hesitant, as if you were wondering whether the straw would go through the potato or not.” He demonstrated his own movements once more. “You see, I know that I can get the straw through the potato, so I move my right hand in one single, fast thrust, and I do it.”

Public Speaking: How To Nail An Interesting Presentation

As an introvert, my ability to communicate didn’t come naturally. I consider this apparent flaw one of my greatest strengths, as it forced me to learn how to strategically present information. This led to a lifelong study of the art of communication.

Regardless of what you do for a living, your ability to communicate effectively is crucial to your personal and professional success. While entire books could be dedicated to this art, I am confident that these few insights will assist you at becoming the master communicator you wish to be.

Canadian Food

When people think of Canadian cuisine, sometimes it's hard to get past the stereotypes of crispy bacon and sweet maple syrup — believe it or not, we've even seen the two go hand-in-hand.

We're so fiercely proud of our quirky culinary traditions that even the clichés are whole-heartedly embraced. Still, that doesn't mean we lack imagination, or an endless variety of ingredients. From Montreal's smoked deli meat to Prince Edward Island's world-famous potatoes, Canadians have a huge choice of local foods to experiment with, and they're often available year-round.

Suspending Judgement

How to Build Effective Teams through Critical and Creative Thinking

Just beneath the surface of polite behavior in most meetings there lurks a primitive---even savage---struggle for turf and power. Emerging concepts get lost in hidden, underground conflicts. Good ideas are attacked and destroyed even before they are understood. Useful thoughts are prematurely cut off by interruptions unconnected to previous statements. Most of what happens in meetings is a colossal waste of time and energy.

One exasperated manager told me recently that in most of the meetings she attends, 95% of the time is caught up in jockeying for power and other such activities unrelated to the purpose of the meeting. "All this stuff just gets in the way," she said. Another told me, "So often we spend more than half our meeting time just wandering. It's a wonder anything ever gets done !"

Governance and Waste Management Policies

Waste management policy - Developed countries

European Union

Every year about 2 billion tonnes of waste are produced in the EU. The wealthier the European Union becomes, the more waste it generates, this is the reason for its ambitious aims to face this problem. The European Union's approach to waste management is based on three principles:

1. Waste prevention: This is a key factor in any waste management strategy and it is closely linked with improving manufacturing methods and influencing consumers to demand greener products and less packaging¹.
2. Recycling and reuse: The European Commission has defined several specific 'waste streams' for priority attention, the aim being to reduce their overall environmental impact. This includes packaging waste, end-of-life vehicles, batteries, electrical and electronic waste¹.
3. Improving final disposal and monitoring: The EU has recently approved a directive setting strict guidelines for landfill management. It bans certain types of waste, such as used tires, and sets targets for reducing quantities of biodegradable rubbish. The Union also wants to reduce emissions of dioxins and acid gases such as nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxides , and hydrogen chlorides, which can be harmful to human health¹. Each Member State is required to build its own disposal capacities by the establishment of a system of national treatment facilities².

5 Reasons Why Young People Become Terrorists

What causes a young person to become a terrorist?

 They are looking for an identity.

Many young people often join terrorist organizations because they are looking for an identity for themselves. A 2010 study from the United States Institute of Peace found that among “2,032 ‘foreign fighters’” who joined al-Qaeda, being a so-called “identity seeker” was the largest reason to join a terrorist organization.

Like many young college students, high school students and adolescents, potential terrorists are looking to answer the question “Who am I?” Having a traumatic experience as a youth in particular is a motivating factor in deciding to become a terrorist — and terrorist recruiters recognize this.

“The personal pathway model suggests that terrorists came from a selected, at risk population, who have suffered from early damage to their self-esteem,” said psychologist Eric D. Shaw in a 1986 paper.

American-born al-Qaeda spokesman Adam Gadahn, shoe bomber Richard Reid, American Taliban John Walker Lindh, Puerto Rican dirty bomber plotter Joe Padila, and underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab have been cited as prime examples of this.