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Saturday, June 26, 2010

Reality Television Shows

By Wayne Torres

The people, nowadays, are more entertained to see the ordinary men doing extraordinary things. Even the television networks are focusing on the reality shows to make it interesting for the general public. The television shows are turning more real.

The reality shows are still becoming famous among the television viewers. In the reality shows, the cast are the ordinary people who are placed in an uncertain situation to achieve something. The hourly programs consist of several unknown contestants who will strive for getting their targets.

There are several classifications under reality shows. TV networks came up with documentary style programs, elimination or game shows, makeovers or self-improvement, renovation, hoaxes, hidden cameras, talk shows, and dating shows.

The new faces in the reality shows are usually uncomfortable with the camera. The ordinary people participating in the reality shows make the programs tireless for the public by their talent and adventure.

More often than not, viewers can get a glimpse of their anxiety as they compete with the other contestants. An example of such would be The Amazing Race. This show is focused on a set of contestants that travels around the world and racing each other in beating several clues that would bring them closer to the monetary prize.

When the participants hurry through the airports, do not understand local language, getting flights in schedule and the competition in the participants increases the anxiety which can be easily seen on television by the public.

The TV actors do not show anxiety commonly on television. This scenario showing anxiety makes the episodes more real and connects the public to factual world.

Another example is the famous show Fear Factor, where we find contestants doing hazardous things to compete against each other. These activities are horrible and scary for some people.

Participants in the Fear Factor struggle with their own fear and anxiety in a way one can't just imagine. They eat living insects, jump from a height of three hundred feet in the air and get locked with snakes in the coffin.

It's the fear and anxiety of contestants that can hype up the viewers. This reality is the enjoyment for public and people are coming closer to know what's real and what's not on the television. Entertainment is evolving to get a different outlook leaving behind the old fictions.

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Friday, June 25, 2010

UFC 98 Review: Machida, Hughes Big Winners

By Ross Everett

When golf legend Jack Nicklaus was still a young upstart in the sport and only starting to tear up PGA courses, legend Bobby Jones commented following 'The Golden Bear's''65 Masters win that "he plays a game with which I am not familiar". Following his absolute destruction of Rashad Evans in the main event of UFC 98, there's likely a few MMA fighters saying the same thing about the new light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida who made it look easy en route to a 2nd round TKO victory.

The fight started slowly, with each man trying to get a feel for his opponent and wait him out to see who blinked first. Evans, who prefers to counter punch, quickly began to become uncomfortable with facing an adversary who didn't come right at him. Late in the first round, Machida went on offense with frightening suddenness, flooring Evans with a nice straight right hand. Evans was able to recover and survive, but it only delayed the inevitable as Machida used another right hand to send his opponent down again and did so for the third time in the fight with a crisp combination that displayed the handspeed that hadn't before been seen from 'The Dragon' . Evans gamely tried to fight back, but a final right hand from the Shotokan Karate master left him out cold.

After the fight UFC announcer Joe Rogan proclaimed the start of the Machida era and this is not just mere hyperbole. Machida is unlike any fighter before him, rooted in mastery of traditional martial arts but with the versatility of a modern MMA competitor. He's essentially a Mortal Kombat character come to life--in a more realistic cross disciplinary comparison he shares many of the same characteristics as boxing great Floyd Mayweather, Jr. as he combines insane handspeed, underrated stopping power and nearly impenetrable defense into an unorthodox and extremely lethal package. Like Mayweather, hes a tough opponent to prepare for as there's simply no way to replicate his skill set in sparring. In another similarity with boxing's recent pound for pound king, Machida has been bred to fight since birth. His father is a first generation Japanese --Brazilian and a Shotokan Karate legend, Yoshizo Machida. He began training in his fathers discipline at the age of 3 and by the time he was 12 years old had earned a black belt.

The comparisons with the insanely talented but equally insanely arrogant Mayweather end when the final bell sounds. Outside of the cage, Machida is a modest and respectful gentleman who is quick to give credit to his father and his karate teachers for his MMA success. He spent most of his UFC 98 postfight interview not singing his own praises, but imploring others to strive to realize their dreams. In the past, his limited English was seen as a potential marketing liability here in the US but on this occasion he demonstrated vastly improved fluency in the language as a Portuguese translator stood by with his hands in his pockets. Almost overnight hes simply become a marketers dream.

An odd trivia note about Machida serves as further repudiation for MMA neophytes who think that the sports kinship with pro wrestling began with Brock Lesnar: Machida was discovered by Japanese wrestling legend Antonio Inoki, and became something of his protege. He trained for some time at the New Japan Pro Wrestling dojo in Tokyo.

Perhaps the most frightening thing about Machida is that hes only now reaching his full potential as an MMA fighter. In other words, hes only going to get better which is a scary prospect for opponents given the fact that hes never lost in MMA competition. In his recent bouts hes shown a downright lethal ability to end fights. He stopped Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou at UFC 79 with an arm triangle choke, and blitzed Evans and previous foe Thiago Alves with punishing punching combinations en route to TKO victories.

Machida will very likely face Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson in a future light heavyweight title defense and, with all due respect to the PRIDE/UFC veteran, its difficult to see him faring much differently than Evans did. One thing working in 'Rampage's' favor is his greater experience and a resume filled with high level opponents of various fighting styles. Still, everyone comes back to the fundamental reality that no one has ever really seen a fighter quite like Machida before.

In the co-main event of the evening, Matt Hughes defeated Matt Serra by unanimous decision to gain the upperhand in their long running feud. It was a surprisingly entertaining fight, with Serra taking the first round with his power punching before Hughes used his takedown and ground control abilities to win rounds two and three. The two men embraced after the fight so, for now at least, their well known dislike for one another that began during their stint as rival coaches on The Ultimate Fighter may have ebbed.

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Thursday, June 24, 2010

Atlanta Tops St. Louis In NFL Preseason Action

By Ross Everett

It may only be preseason in the NFL, but the Atlanta Falcons are making a statement that they'll be a factor in the NFC. The Falcons starters behind QB Matt Ryan were almost flawless, and left the reserves with a 14-0 lead before eventually beating the St. Louis Rams 20-13 at the Edward Jones Dome on Friday night.

Running back Michael Turner was unstoppable in his limited playing time, churning out 65 yards in the Falcons opening drive. After the game, he confirmed that the Falcons offense had placed a priority on flawless execution:

"We wanted to come out and execute. They were preaching that all week and we wanted to show that on game day. We're way better than we were last year at this time."

Quarterback Matt Ryan was 7 of 8 for 81 yards and a touchdown pass before he called it a night. Tony Gonzalez praised his signal caller in his postgame comments:

"He's a great quarterback. It's obvious he's figuring things out. He has a great arm, talent, and knows how to play with poise."

It was a disappointing home debut for new Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo, who saw his team blown away from the opening whistle before a half empty stadium. Still, he tried to frame the loss as a learning experience:

"Just like I said to the team, we'd have liked to have started out a little better. You've got to come out and take it to them."

Rams safety O.J. Atogwe sounded a similar tone:

"This was a fabulous game for us. That's the reason you play the preseason. Going against a team like Atlanta, a top-caliber team, it allows us to reassess what we've been doing."

Falcons coach Mike Smith, meanwhile, was enthused about the improved play of his rushing defense:

"We were much improved against the run. It's something we have to continue to get better at. We still had some missteps."

Atlanta will get the NFL regular season underway on Sunday, September 13th as they host the Miami Dolphins while the Rams will head to the Pacific Northwest for a game against the Seahawks in Seattle.

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Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Ideas For Minimalist Modern Home Interior Design

By Mark Allen Parker

Planning to have your dream house build? If you want a house with a modern touch, then you basically have to know what constitutes a modern house. The modern house type of designs offers you a wide variety of choices when it comes to the materials you can you use for your house. Fabrics, colors, furniture, all come in wide varieties. You can freely express your own unique style with your home.

Comparing to the designs of the past, modern home interior design exudes simplicity and elegance. Modern designers have practice minimalism especially in very crowded cities where space is a very important factor.

Minimalism is highly influenced by Japanese traditional design and architecture. It describes a trend in design and architecture where the subject is reduced to its necessary elements. Quoting the famous architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, he said "Less is more" to describe his aesthetic tactic of arranging the numerous necessary components of a building to create an impression of extreme simplicity. Designers pay special attention to the connection between perfect planes, elegant lighting, spacing and using tasteful non-fussy bright color combinations.

Minimalist home designers go for exterior walls of windows or glass. This choice allows more natural light to come in inside the house. The space is often divided into smaller areas using low furniture such as cabinets. Some designers also use curtains or fabrics to divide open space.

In terms of color, walls are basically neutral and painted taupe, brown, cream or beige.

In terms of light, natural lighting is preferred. Bigger windows or glass walls or chosen to welcome light inside the house.

The use of furniture is minimized, most of those that are being used are made from stainless steel, glass, plastic and leather. Strong geometric shapes and asymmetry take center stage.

Those are the basic ideas. The most important thing you have to know about modern home interior design is that it is so easy to maintain and so comfortable to live with.

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Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Advanced Sofa Bed Finding Tactics For Your Home

By Jamie White

Are you determined to find the right sofa bed for your home? Then you have finally reached the right place to start your journey towards finding the best sofa bed in just a few seconds!

People have their own tastes when it comes to the choice of bed, but one of the best choices has to be a sofa bed. Sofa beds have many advantages over the other types of beds the main one being the ability to preserve space. Sofa beds will vary according to needs since there are those designed for regular use while others are for occasional use. Sofa beds for occasional use may only be used as extra beds while those for regular use may serve as seats and beds at the same time.

If you're struggling with limited space or just want a convenient seating and sleeping option for your guest room, living room or bedroom consider a sofa sleeper bed. Sofa beds are ideal for saving space because they fold up into the size of a sofa when not being used as a bed.

The quality of the sofa bed comes in when you want value for your money. Go for the trusted brands of sofa beds instead of getting something that is not long lasting. A good quality sofa bed is long lasting and it saves you the costs of having to go for another sofa bed within a short period of time because the other one cannot be used anymore. You also have to make a choice between the kind of mattress to have for your sofa bed; spring or foam. Both of these fit well for different circumstances but it all depends on the kind of comfort you can derive from your choice.

Consider getting a sofa bed that will fit in well with other items in your room it terms of matching. Also the sofa bed has to be made of a material that is easy to clean. Depending on how it is used, the bed gets dirty once in a while, hence get something you won't have difficulty cleaning or maintaining.

Another factor to consider when looking for a sofa bed is the layout of your room. Make sure your sofa will sit in an area that will accommodate the folded out bed. Sofa beds are also much heavier than a standard sofa and are not as easy to move so be sure its location will be permanent for a time.

Modern designs of sofa beds are both stylish and elegant but there are traditional designs that are still attractive and strong the decision will depend on you. The best thing is to take care of your sofa bed.

The other one is to check whether the furniture is comfortable for you. You can lie and sit down on it to find it yourself. This will help you see whether the sofa bed is of great quality or not. Now that you know some guidelines when it comes to purchasing a good sleeper sofa bed, you can always be sure that you always get a good buy.

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Monday, June 21, 2010

How To Attract Buyers To Your Home

By Tara Millar

First thing gaze at your home both in and out. You never obtain a second chance to create a first impression, use your fascinated viewers to the fullest potential. The initial seconds are vital in the home buying evaluation. The buyer is said to make up their mind concerning a property within the first 15 seconds of looking at a home.

Before we even start, you will need to obtain packing containers and pack up everything that will not be wanted for the next few months. Clean out your cabinets, vanities, closets, laundry area like they have never been cleaned before. Take away any and every clutter; the home should seem as roomy as possible. Take into account the possible buyer is there to see their existence within your home and not your possessions in their lives.

Let us initiate with the curb appeal. Whenever a probable buyer arrives at the property it should appear neat spotless and freed from any what I call lawn clutter aka statues, Nome's. The shrubs and lawn should be above reproach, spruce up a garden instantaneously by fluffing up the mulch in the beds. Pull any weeds in the beds, concrete, the road, anywhere that the buys views.

Several individuals have been identified to actually tidy and mow the neighbours yards to give them an edge when their home was available on the market. Should you own a dog then pick up any droppings in the yard. Make use of a blower to produce a tidy, clean trail for the would-be customer to take a first walk to their home that comes with any patios, back walkways, etc. One end point in the yard, make sure that there are no signs of neglect in regard to flowers, shrubs being watered and the exterior of the home needs to be washed and any dust removed.

Now walking into the residence, it should be free of any mess, which includes toys, laundry, bills, and shoes. The drapes or blinds ought to be placed to produce a sun-saturated impression and to model faultlessly clean house windows. Any recessed lights should be turned on along with some select accent lights. Ceiling fans must turned low and on as well as the air controls at a comfortable setting. If the period warrants then have the fireplace crackling.

All bedrooms should be clean, in good order- that involves the closet, beds ready and room vacuumed. The bathing room should excel along with the linen closet being neat and clean to point out a great quantity of space for their own linens. Any living area should be picked up to not have so much as a blanket if it does not compliment the decoration. The kitchen appliance should be the cleanest they have been. Never to discover a dish in the sink, even ensure the fridge is spotless together with the cabinets for the reason that they will check- believe me. The kitchen and baths cannot be clean enough.

Subsequently with everything said, I strongly recommend a vendor to get to work on the de-cluttering procedure instantly when deciding to put on the market. The remainder will fall in naturally; just envision what you desire to find out when looking at a property. You not at all get one more opportunity to produce a first impression!

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Sunday, June 20, 2010

Common Sports Betting Futures Mistakes To Avoid

By Ross Everett

Betting on sports 'futures' is an enjoyable and potentially profitable way to wager, but there are several potential risks that can lead to losses. Here's a rundown of things to avoid:

You gotta shop around: More specifically, you have to 'shop points' just as you would with a straight bet. This is crucial in all forms of sports betting but particularly key with futures wagers. There are often greater variances in the prices from book to book on future plays than any other type of wagering proposition. The reason for this is simple--most books are less concern with what the 'other guys' are doing as they are with keeping their own position 'in balance'. All in all, the sports betting marketplace just doesn't react as quickly to changing futures prices as it does to individual game lines.

Don't try to pick the winner in a competitive marketplace: This may sound sort of counter intuitive since the general idea of betting on futures is to determine the actual winner but it's really not. Like everything else, its essential to always be mindful of the value you're getting. In a futures market with several legitimate contenders at the top the price offered is seldom high enough to properly compensate for the risk you're assuming. Here's an example: in a hypothetical NCAA hoops tournament Duke is +200 to win the national championship. They've certainly got a shot, but at a payback of only 2/1 its hard to justify a wager at this point with the potential for so many interceding events that can make a championship more problematic. Such events as injuries, a tough tournament draw or even just going into a slump at the wrong time can happen to any team but when you bet a higher priced team--a 'dark horse mid major at 15/1 for example--you're getting "compensation" for assuming the "risks" of betting on a proposition with so many unknown variables.

In more theoretical terms, the 'true odds' of a Duke or similar top team winning the tournament are almost always higher than the price offered. Think of it this way--say we're betting Duke to win the national title at 2/1. This means that the Blue Devils would have to win more than 33% of the time to break even. So lets say, for the sake of argument, that we could play the tournament over 100 times. Would Duke come out on top more than 33 of these times? If not, they represent a poor value. Let's say that they win 30 of 100 times. This means that any price under +333 or thereabouts is a poor wagering value.

Note that the more competitive the market, the more difficult it is to find good value on the favorites. Since you can make a case for quite a few teams to win the NCAA tournament at this point this particular futures market is clearly a very competitive one. In a less competitive marketplace it might be possible to "pick the winner" and have it be a good value though you will pay a price for this. Here's a (thankfully) hypothetical example: let's say the UFC decided to hold a one night round robin tournament with 5 competitors. Competitor #1 would be heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. The other four competitors would be professional figure skaters Elvis Stojko, Rudy Gallindo, Brian Boitano and Evgeni Plushinko. Even if he didn't bring his "A game", Lesnar would be essentially have a 100% certainty of beating the four untrained fighters, who also happen to be rather effeminate. If a sportsbook installed Lesnar as a -1000 favorite a bet on the 63 265 pound takedown would still be theoretically a good value. It's always difficult to risk so much to win a little, but from a strictly theoretical standpoint its a good play.

Don't go for the big killing: Sports wagering is not a good arena in which to make a 'big killing'. It may happen from time to time, but it is extremely rare. A perennial doormat can come out of nowhere to win a championship at a big price, but the fact that it happens from time to time doesn't make it a good value. If you're a recreational player and want to throw a few dollars at a big long shot, no real harm. If you aspire to any degree of seriousness as a sports better, however, you need to maintain your discipline and commitment to value at all times. If you want to hit a big jackpot play the lottery or the slot machines, but don't try to do it in a sports betting paradigm.

On a more theoretical level, a big price alone is no way to justify a wager. The concept of value works the same at the bottom of the barrel as it does at the top: make sure the price you're getting on an underdog accurately reflects their "true odds" of winning.

Don't bet one sided props: Sometimes sports books will offer silly bets just to get publicity or in some cases just to be funny. While there may be life on other planets, the 'true odds' of a Martian being named to President Obama's cabinet wouldn't justify a +5000 line that it would occur.

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