| Shock tactics
Hundreds of children no other school wants — from the autistic to the merely troubled — attend a centre in America where electric shocks are administered for even the smallest misdemeanour. Forced to wear 10lb backpacks with electrodes attached to their skin, they never know when their teachers will deliver this ‘behaviour-modification’ therapy. Why hasn’t the school been closed down? .
'House' afire: Fox series up 18 percent
While other veteran shows are seeing year-to-year decreases due to everything from digital video recorders to greater new media competition, Fox's Tuesday lineup is having no such problem. “House" and “Bones" continue to see double-digit year-to-year growth in adults 18-49, and last night the pair combined for yet another winning Tuesday. “House" averaged a 7.7 in adults 18-49, according to Nielsen overnights, up 10 percent over last week. Season to date, the show is averaging a 7.9 rating, up 18 percent over this time last year. The show dominated its timeslot, more than doubling No. 2 “Dancing with the Stars" at 9 p.m. While “Bones" finished second in its 8 p.m. slot behind CBS's “NCIS," it also saw gains from last week, up 13 percent from a 3.2 to a season-high 3.6.
Field studies
In addition to a bumper crop of high-quality nature narrative from veterans such as Richard Mabey (Beechcombing) and newcomer Jay Griffiths (Wild), this year has brought a number of challenging new field guides. Pride of place for originality goes to James B Nardi's Life in the Soil: A Guide for Naturalists and Gardeners (Chicago University Press, £15). If you think the dirt under your feet is a subject beneath your gaze, think again. The decomposed minerals and microscopic organisms that mantle much of the Earth's land surface is the source of all our civilisations. Leonardo's cartoons and the Bard's pentameters are, in a sense, part of its endless harvest. Nardi takes us deep into the engine room of soil production, exploring and describing the myriad organisms - amoebae, fungi, bacteria, arthropods, etc - that dwell there.
What's On: Holiday Events
Mazowsze's Warsaw Christmas sees the Polish song and dance troupe here on their first North American tour in 10 years; performances Sun. 4 p.m. & 7:30 p.m. ($40-$70 at 416-872-4255). Massey Hall, 178 Victoria St. Toronto Star's 29th annual traditional Christmas Carol Concerts don't take place until Dec. 15 at 1 p.m. & 3 p.m. at St. Paul's Church, 227 Bloor St. E. However, the free tickets are handed out this Tues., starting at 9 a.m. in the lobby of the Toronto Star, 1 Yonge St., with a maximum of four tickets per person. The concerts are free, and a collection is taken up at each show for the Toronto Star Santa Claus Fund. Trans-Siberian Orchestra celebrates yet another of its popular holiday tours with a stop here Mon. 7:30 p.m. ($44-$52 at 416-870-8000). Air Canada Centre, 40 Bay St.
Bit of Whimsy Headlines Mrs. Revere
Bit of Whimsy, upset winner of the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (gr. IT) Oct. 13 at Keeneland, will carry her highest weight ever and take on a field of 13 other 3-year-old fillies, including two previously beaten competitors, in the $150,000 Mrs. Revere Stakes (gr. IIT) Nov. 10 at Churchill Downs. A daughter of Distorted Humor trained by Barclay Tagg for owners Joyce B. Young and Gerald McManis, Bit of Whimsy came from off the pace to take the QEII by 2 ¼-lengths over Eclipse Award winner Dreaming of Anna. Her other black-type credits include a June 2 victory in the Sands Point Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Belmont Park and a second-place finish in the Sept. 8 Garden City Handicap (gr. IT) behind Alexander Tango. In the Mrs. Revere, she'll carry high weight of 123 pounds. Bit of Whimsy is out of the El Prado mare Kristi B.
Community Calendar
TODAY Disney on Ice: Princess Classics 7 p.m. Nov. 7-9; 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Nov. 10; and 2 p.m. Nov. 11, at the Savannah Civic Center. Moments from "Cinderella," "Aladdin," "The Little Mermaid," "Sleeping Beauty," "Beauty and the Beast," "Mulan" and "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" in one production. Tickets: $12-$35. For tickets, call 651-6556 or go to www.etix.com. For information about the production, go to www.disneyonice.com. Flood Risk Information Open House 4-6 p.m. Nov. 7, rooms 200, 201 and 202 of the Savannah International Trade and Convention Center, Hutchinson Island. Representatives from local government, the Department of Natural Resources and FEMA will provide the most current information regarding Chatham County's flood risk, flood insurance, floodplain development regulations, floodplain mapping and the time line for DFIRM adoption.
Children Blighted by Poor Health status
The delicate, exquisite beauty of the native orchid flower, Winika, is an appropriate image to demonstrate the complexity of environmental impacts upon children, says Maori Party co-leader, Tariana Turia. “This beautiful putiputi grows out of the strength provided from its source – a rock, a tree, a foundation” said Mrs Turia. “Indeed so striking is the flower that Tainui named one of their prized waka taua, ‘Te Winika’, after the fine orchid which grew on the totara tree which formed the hull of the canoe”. .
New Face Parlour Website Independently Rates Skin Care Products
Medical experts join aesthetician Lauren Fornes to evaluate skin care products for safety, sustainability and efficacy. (PRWEB) November 15, 2007 -- Face Parlour, Inc. today launched its independent reviews of skin care products on the Web at www.faceparlour.com. In collaboration with its esteemed medical advisory board, Face Parlour reviews skin care products based on their own and other's scientific assessments and a proprietary rating methodology. .
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