Sleep - Are you getting enough sleep?

How much sleep do you really need? In general, most adults need about 7 hours of sleep per night. Children and adolescents need even more - around 9 or 10 hours per night.The right amount of sleep is the amount that lets you wake up feeling refreshed and well.
Here's how to tell if you're not getting enough sleep:
· You need an alarm clock to wake up
· You sleep longer and better on weekends
· You have trouble getting out of bed in the morning
· You feel tired during the day
· You have bags or dark circles under your eyes
· You doze off while sitting in a public place, such as a movie theatre or meeting
· You doze off while driving
· You have trouble concentrating
· You have early morning headaches

If you notice any of these signs, you may not be getting enough sleep. Try to gradually increase the amount of sleep you get each night until you find the right amount - you'll know that you've got it when these signs start to go away.

Source: Yahoo Health.

Bottled water has contaminants too

Tests on leading brands of bottled water turned up a variety of contaminants, including cancer-linked chemicals
The findings challenge the popular impression - and marketing pitch - that bottled water is purer than tap water, the researchers say.
Lab tests detected 38 chemicals in 10 brands, with an average of eight contaminants found in each kind of bottled water.
The researchers recommend that people who are worried use a carbon filter for their tap water.

Source: Yahoo Health.

Eating healthy in a busy world

Life is busy, but when you don't eat on a schedule, your body doesn't have enough energy to keep up with your active life. The reality is that if you eat more regularly and eat a more balanced diet, sugar levels stay more even, which enhances your mood.
There are some easy ways to get the food you need and allow you to still keep to your schedule and complete all the things that need to be done - and feel better while you are doing it. You are also less likely to eat junk food from the vending machine on your way from one meeting or task to another.
· Eat smaller meals more often. This allows your body to have a constant source of fuel and energy to keep your sugar levels even.
· Avoid sugars and soft drinks that not only make your sugar level increase quickly and at extremely high levels, but they also contain a lot of useless calories and bad sugars that are bad for your overall health.
· Eat a lot of highly soluble fibre and proteins that can make you feel more lively and energetic.

Source: Yahoo Health.

Reasons to Smile

Smiling makes us attractive
Smiling Changes Our Mood
Smiling is Contagious
Smiling Relieves Stress
Smiling Boosts Your Immune System
Smiling Lowers Your Blood Pressure
Smiling Releases Endorphins, Natural Pain Killers and Serotonin
Smiling Lifts the Face and Makes You Look Younger
Smiling Makes You Seem Successful
Smiling Helps You Stay Positive

Keep smiling - it makes people wonder what you've been up to.

Source: Yahoo Health.

Lagos, Nigeria

I grew up in the city of Lagos. It is Africa’s second most populous city (7th in the world)
The city of Lagos lies in south-western Nigeria on the Atlantic coast in the Gulf of Guinea.

Lagos is Nigeria's most prosperous city, and much of the nation's wealth and economic activity are concentrated there. The commercial, financial and business centre of Lagos and of Nigeria remains the business district of Lagos Island, where most of the country's largest banks and financial institutions are located.

Lagos is served by Murtala Mohammed International Airport, one of the largest airports in Africa and the top international air passenger gateway to Nigeria. It is also the centre of the Nigerian film industry, often referred to as 'Nollywood.' There are lots of beaches, restaurants where one can visit to have fun and have a good meal. If you want to have fun and have worthwhile experiences go to Lagos, Nigeria.

Relocating

Relocating from one part of the country to another is a daunting task especially if the family relocating has young children. The idea of having to cope with relocating furniture and everything in the home is really awesome.
Even though it may be easy to get transportation to move the items, it is challenging. It is also very expensive. Depending on the distance from the old location to new, the associated cost is enormous.
A typical example is a family of six, Father and mother with four kids who had to move from Toronto to Edmonton. The flight ticket alone for the trip was over $1200.They also had to pay the courier company that will move their furniture about $3000. In addition they had to initially find some kind of temporary accommodation in Edmonton for a few weeks pending the time their items will arrive. This was done with about $2800.By the time they included other miscellaneous item they had spent close to $10,000.The children also had to cope with changing school and many other environmental issues because it is an entirely new terrain.
Finally, I think it is well worth considering before embarking on relocating. I also think you must be financially buoyant to embark on a project like this at any time in one’s life.

Money Laundering

Today, individuals who commit financial crime try to conceal the proceeds of the crime through money laundering, but the question is what is money laundering, what are the stages and methods involved.
The term "money laundering" originates from Mafia ownership of Laundromats in the United States. Gangsters there were earning huge sums in cash from extortion, prostitution, gambling and bootleg liquor. They needed to show a legitimate source for these monies.
Money laundering is the process by which large amounts of illegally obtained money from drug trafficking, terrorist activity or other serious crime is given the appearance of having originated from a legitimate source. It is estimated that more than $500 billion of money is being laundered annually.
Process/Stages involved in Money laundering
Placement stage: This involves the physical movement of currency derived from illegal activities into the financial system.
Layering stage: These involve the separation of proceeds from illegal source by using multiple complex financial transactions (e.g. wire transfers, monetary instrument) to obscure audit trail and hide the proceeds.
Integration stage: Illegal proceeds are converted into legitimate business earnings through normal financial or commercial operations.
Money laundering methods
· Structuring deposits: This method involves breaking up large amounts money into smaller or less suspicious amounts. The money is then deposited into one or more bank accounts either by multiple people or by a single person over an extended period of time.
· Overseas banks:Money launderers often send money through various "offshore accounts" in countries that allow anonymous banking.
· Investing in legitimate businesses:Launderers sometimes place dirty money is placed in legitimate businesses to clean it. They may use large business like brokerage firms or casinos that deal in so much money
· Shell companies: These are fake companies that exist for no other reason than to launder money. They take in dirty money as "payment" for supposed goods or services but actually provide no goods or services.
Preventive measures against Money laundering
The FATF (Financial Action Task Force) issued the "40 Recommendations" for banks (there are actually 49 now, but the moniker hasn't changed) that have become the anti-money-laundering standard. These recommendations include:
· Identify and do background checks on depositors.
· Report all suspicious activity. (For example, if a background check revealed that depositor A works in a steel factory, and he typically deposits $2,000 every two weeks, a series of 10 $9,000 deposits over the course of two weeks should raise a red flag.)
· Build an internal taskforce to identify laundering clues.

Conclusion
Finally it is clear from all indications that financial crime is illegal, illegitimate and not something that one should be involved in.

Happy

I am happy to be in class today.