Planet earth is under attack and the culprit behind it is the human race. For several decades now, attempts have been made to try and curb the effects of human activity on the planet. One solution that has bore fruits is living green. In essence, this means that people need to live in a manner that is friendlier to the environment. Now, the practice of making homes green has been embraced due to the positive effects. Here are essential tips for everyone, on that regard.
? Replace Regular Light Bulbs
Regular light bulbs use a lot of energy which forces people to spend more on power bills. To make your home green, remove all of these bulbs and replace them with the fluorescent ones. Fluorescent bulbs basically use ? amount of electricity when compared to the regular ones. It?s expensive to install them but they last longer. This allows you to save money which benefits you in the long run.
? Replace Shower Heads
The high ? flow shower heads, found in most houses, usually waste a lot of water. They also use more energy which consequently wastes more money. To curb this situation, go for the low-flow option. Replace all showers in the house with low-flow heads to regulate water flow efficiently. Wastage will be minimized thus enabling you to save.
? Unplug Unused Electronic Devices
Most people are unaware of the fact that electronic appliances normally use electricity when plugged in, even when not in use. This is one of the home improvements tips that will definitely make your home greener. Apart from saving energy, you?ll also be protecting the electronic devices. All risks of short-circuiting or harm caused by power surges will be prevented. Make it a habit of unplugging all devices immediately after using them.
? Opt for Solar Power
Solar energy is efficient and cost-effective. Although it?s a bit expensive to install the panels, you?ll be amazed by just how much the power bill will drastically drop as a result. It?s advisable to purchase the panels one by one until you have the required number for the power needs in your home. This way, you?ll not feel the financial pressure at all.
? Conduct Energy Tests
A lot of energy is usually wasted through the air conditioning system as it escapes without serving its intended purpose. To avoid this, contact an electrician so that energy tests can be conducted in your home. This way, you?ll be able to know the specific areas that are causing the wastage, especially during winter and summer seasons. You can then add insulation in your home to increase efficiency.
Green is definitely the way to go. However, take things step by step because the initial costs to this option are usually higher. Not only will you be able to save a lot of energy, which normally goes to waste, but you?ll also be conserving the planet for future generations, when taking this approach. Making your home greener allows you to save a lot of money, in the long run.
BETHESDA, Md. - At this time a year ago, Jordan Spieth was playing a couple of PGA Tour events for nothing more than experience and gearing up for a summer of amateur golf before returning to Texas for the start of his sophomore season.
Golf is a job now, and it's even more fun.
The 19-year-old Texan describes this summer as "free swinging," and it's not a bad place to be. He started the season in January with no guaranteed place to play, and he already is assured of a PGA Tour card when the new season starts in October.
Now he wants more ? a PGA Tour win that would create bountiful opportunities ? and the AT&T National would be a good place to start.
Spieth hit all 18 greens in regulation Friday, extended his streak without a bogey to 29 holes at tough Congressional and wound up with a 5-under 66 to share the 36-hole lead with Roberto Castro going into the weekend.
Not everyone has completed 36 holes just yet. Thunderstorms late in the afternoon halted the second round, and the other half of the field was to return Saturday morning to complete the round. Spieth and Castro (69) were at 7-under 135. Andres Romero of Argentina was at 5-under with five holes remaining. No one else was within four shots of the leaders when play was stopped.
Asked what it would mean to win, Spieth said it would be "huge," until showing some maturity.
"I can't really think about that at this point," he said. "It's only halfway through the tournament. So there's a long way to go."
It already feels like a long journey this year.
For a teenager who started the season with no tour to call his own, this is his 14th tournament on the PGA Tour ? five more than Tiger Woods ? and he already has earned more than $900,000, which is the equivalent of being No. 39 on the tour money list.
But he won't be eligible for the lucrative FedEx Cup playoffs unless he's a PGA Tour member, and he can't be a member this year unless he wins.
"Honestly, I think it's a great position to be in," Spieth said. "I'm just free swinging. I can't be in the playoffs unless I win, and that makes winning the No. 1 goal. You'd like to get in the playoffs and play against the top players, the best players from this year. It's everyone's goal out here to win the FedEx Cup. My goal is to move up the world rankings as much as I can, and that's the way to do it, is to get into those playoffs."
D.H. Lee had a 66 and was two shots behind at 5-under 139. Cameron Tringale (67) and James Driscoll (69) were another shot behind, while the group at 3-under 139 included former British Open champion Stewart Cink (69), Gary Woodland (69) and David Lingmerth, who went from around the cut line to contention with a 65.
Spieth has lived up to the hype he first generated when he played late on Sunday in the Byron Nelson Championship at age 16 and tied for 16th. In one year at Texas, the Longhorns won the NCAA title. And in six months as a pro, he has shown quickly that he belongs.
He already has four top 10s and has special temporary membership, meaning he gets unlimited exemptions. His goal was to somehow get a PGA Tour card for 2013-14 season, and a win would be over the top.
Even so, the teenager who was born just three years before Woods turned pro is savvy to realize the tournament is not even halfway over.
"Now all there's left to do is try and get a win to make the playoffs," he said. "So I'm just going out there trying to win and being aggressive, and hopefully, it will work out for me."
Scoring was slightly better at Congressional, a course that has hosted the U.S. Open three times. Warmer weather in the morning made the ball fly a little farther and shortened the longest PGA Tour course on the mainland.
Spieth began his day with a 25-foot birdie putt on the first hole, avoided a long three-putt from above the hole on No. 4 by making a 12-foot par putt and then picked up four birdies over the final five holes on the front nine for a 31. He made nine pars on the back nine, never coming close to a bogey.
It was a clean round, executed well by a teenager who plays like he knows where he is going.
"I'm excited for what the weekend is going to bring," he said.
Castro tied the course record on the TPC Sawgrass in May with a 63 to lead the opening round of The Players Championship, and then he followed with a 78 and never seriously challenged the rest of the week. After opening with a 66 at Congressional, he dropped a shot early from a fairway bunker on No. 3 and was plodding along until finishing the back nine with a pair of birdies, and then adding a birdie on the par-5 16th.
"I felt good," he said. "I probably learned a lot there (at Sawgrass) and realized that one round doesn't mean anything ? just got to keep going. And I was able to do that."
Woods, the defending champion, is not playing because of an elbow injury, and U.S. Open champion Justin Rose withdrew earlier in the week because of fatigue. Some of the other big names most likely won't be around for the weekend, such as Hunter Mahan, who had a 72 and was at 5-over 147. Masters champion Adam Scott traded birdies and bogeys in his round of 71 that left him nine shots behind.
Brandt Snedeker had to salvage a scrappy round with two late birdies for a 71, leaving him five shots behind.
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Author: Brian Blogs | Total views: 93 Comments: 0 Word Count: 754 Date:
So, what's the big deal with article marketing? What is it all about in the first place?
Well, it is the simple practice of creating written content and publishing such articles online on any of the hundreds, if not thousands, of article directories found on the Internet. Now directories that post article submissions can cater to niches that range from broad-based to specific ones. With that out of the way, what's the point of article promoting? Here are its top 10 benefits:
1. Builds Your Online Credibility.
By sharing knowledge to other people, you are establishing a reputation as an expert in a particular field - maybe even several. The more information and knowledge you provide, the more credibility you build. As a consequence, you become someone who can be trusted by your followers/readers, which will eventually be good for business.
2. Let You Help Others.
Speaking of shared knowledge, your articles that get published may be able to help other people learn more, find answers to questions, or solve their problems. Regardless of what kind of business you have, your write-ups contain knowledge that netizens are searching for.
3. Increases Your Business Exposure.
The rule of thumb in promotions and advertising is that it usually takes 3-7 instances of exposure before your brand gets recognized. This means that when someone notices something that's related to your company, say, a logo, online ad, or article, these become part of their subconscious. Now article marketing lets you reach out multiple times to your readers.
4. Develops Brand Awareness.
As was mentioned, having a lot of articles out on the Web will let you reach many customers and prospects several times. What you may not realize, however, is how wide this reach is. You see, article directories often make your work available to websites and blogs the world over for reprint. And if your work is high-quality, imagine how many people will create positive associations with your company.
5. Promotes Your Services and Products.
Although nobody really wants to read sales pitches, you can subtly promote what your business has to offer through your write-ups. This can be done by including 'suggestions' in your work, and perhaps some links that will lead to your website should your input catches the readers' attention somehow. Of course, make sure your content is of value so they'll read in the first place.
6. Stimulate Website Traffic.
Aside from subtle suggestions, you can still directly promote your business through your article. This is since each of your articles will have bio/author boxes where you can include links to your company site. By simply including a short 'teaser' at the conclusion portion of your post, you might entice click-throughs from your readers, which can lead to possible click-to-sales conversions.
7. Attract New Customers.
Whether your business is fresh out of the oven or has been around for several years now, article marketing will help you gain new patrons. In fact, it's almost a guarantee that you do so. You see, when consumers go online for research, they might end up finding your article and getting impressed by it - so they click your site like and voila! You now have a new customer.
8. Enhance Your SEO Efforts.
This is made possible by the link-building that occurs when your article gets published. And the most your work gets reprinted or republished because of its quality, the most links that lead to your website. Search engines will perceive this as reliability and will give your site better rankings. This leads to better market visibility.
9. It Is for Free.
Almost all article directories offer their sites for posting at no charge. Although some offer upgrades that provide more interesting features, such sites are usually free to use. And even if you did decide to pay for more features, your returns are still likely to be very high. The benefits will greatly outweigh the costs.
10. It Is an Incredibly Easy Promotional Method.
Indeed it is, as it's just a matter of writing useful, high-quality content and taking the time to post them. Besides, you don't have to do the work yourself as you can always outsource the writing aspect to professional writers.
In conclusion, article marketing offers a win-win opportunity for any business owner.
Brian Blogs is a part time internet marketer, in a first class work from home program. He invites you to visit his website for free video and audio training on building a very affordable home business, at your own pace. For more inside information, go below for details…. nhttp://www.empowernetwork.com/truestory3.php?id=srecuocs01
Related to: how to work from home - internet marketing - Network Marketing - article marketing opportunities - Work From Home - online business - Work at home - blogging - Home Business - article marketing
1: Article Marketing Strategy: Putting Together a "Class Schedule" For Your Article Topics
Businesses go to so much trouble when there is one sure-fire, simple, very inexpensive way to attract new clients to a business: Teach a free class. That is what article marketing is like. Your articles are just like free classes. You teach your target readers something helpful in your article. Your resource box then says, "If you enjoyed this article you can visit my website and apply what you have learned."
2: Why You Need To Build Multiple Streams of Income For Yourself
Being an entrepreneur and earning multiple streams of income is a dream that many have, but in reality it does take some initial hard work to achieve this. Earning multiple streams of income is the wave of the future, and here are some tips and advice for you when you are looking for ways in which to do this for yourself.
3: Understanding Online Business Success
Starting a home based business to earn income online takes a significant amount of time and energy upfront to get things going. Not seeing results immediately can be discouraging and cause people to give up too early. In this article, we look at the process of starting a home based business and working through the frustrations to be there when the sales come flowing in.
4: What is Cyber Marketing And Why It Is So Important For The Success Of Your Website
Cyber marketing has now become an indispensable segment of e-commerce as well as the internet and World Wide Web related topics. Cyber marketing simply refers to a technique of attracting potential customers by advertising your products or services through such means as websites, emails, and banners.
5: Simple Article Writing: 5 Steps For Beginners Who Are Learning To Write Articles (Try This!)
When you look at an article, you may say, "That article looks great, but I have no idea how I would produce something that good." In this article I am going to help you break your article creation process down into "blocks"--smaller bits of information that when assembled together will form a top quality article submission.
Question: Look, I'm not really the tinfoil hat type, but everyone keeps telling me I should care a little bit about my privacy. So I ask you: what privacy-related stuff actually affects me day to day, and what should I actually be paying attention to?
Answer: Everyone has a different opinion on this, but for the bulk of us, privacy matters in a few key ways. Let's start first by talking about why people care about privacy to begin with, and what it really means in the online world.
Why we care about privacy It seems like every week we hear about some type of invasion of privacy. Whether it's Facebook tracking us or the NSA, someone is watching what we're doing online at all the time. So, what's the point in caring anymore? It's about control.
Online privacy is about the ability to control the social information you release. It means that you are aware of what information is public about you, and you can alter that information to suit your needs. Privacy isn't about keeping things away from the public eye, it's about choosing what the public sees. This is why we hear a lot about Facebook's privacy settings, but not Twitter's. On Twitter, everything is clearly public (unless your account is private), whereas on Facebook privacy is a bit more obtuse.
That said, privacy concerns are raised when the data collected by these social networks is used for ads. This happens both online and off. Your data is worth a lot of money, and the fact they're collecting it without you really knowing about it makes a lot of people upset. Companies make money from what you do online. If you don't know that's happening it's pretty easy to see how it's considered an invasion of privacy.
Beyond that, online privacy is a much bigger issue than keeping minor details on Facebook a secret. Your Facebook profile might include private information about your health, legal issues, finances, sexuality, religion, and so much more. Even if you have your own privacy locked down, others in your social network may not, and that means information you think is private gets leaked elsewhere.
The fact is, we leave a heck of a digital trail everywhere we go and that trail can be put together to form a pretty good image of you. We've talked a lot about why you should care about your privacy before, and a reason to defend privacy isn't just because you have something to hide, it's because you probably just don't know you want it hidden yet.
The privacy settings that affect you day to day
Courtesy of LifeHacker
All that said, we understand not everyone cares about their privacy on such a large scale. And, while we disagree, it's true that certain things matter much more on a day to day basis.
Traditional wisdom says that if you don't want information public, then you shouldn't put it online. That's certainly true, but there's a lot of private information you have out there that you might not even realize is public. For most of us, this means what people see on social networks and our personal identifiable information that really matters?no tinfoil hat required.
Your Social Updates, Photos, and Other Personal StuffIt might sound obvious, but the main concern for most people is getting their digital persona under wraps. It's incredibly easy to dig up information on people, especially whenyou're doing a ton of stupid things and just leaving it out all out there.
For your own sake, keeping a clean online presence is essential for job hunting. Understanding the way privacy settings work it the first step to ensuring you're not accidentally sharing that photo of you drunk at the bar.
Privacy on social networks isn't important just for your own sake though. It's also about your friends, family, and children. Everyone is comfortable with different levels of privacy, so if you're sharing details, photos, or locations of friends, that can be pretty upsetting for some people. That's why Facebook has privacy settings that control how you're tagged in photos and locations. Again, this boils down to what privacy really means: the ability to control what's shared and who it's shared with.
Credit cards, addresses, and other personally identifiable information It might seem obvious, but the other main privacy concern everyone can identify with is sensitive information like credit cards, credit reports, addresses, health information and other similarly personal stuff.
The fact is, we release a lot of this information online, and it's incredibly easy to dig up off your hard drive, from retailers, or after a data breach. Part of the issue here is security, but it's also about privacy.
We've talked about ways to keep this stuff private before, but in a lot of cases it's out of your hands. The best you can do is use incognito mode in your browser, and protect your online accounts as best you can so people don't sneak in to grab your information. Security and privacy are two different things, but they're so closely connected you need to pay attention to both. All this stuff is connected, and the information that identifies who you are can be combined together pretty easily.
We'd argue that these are just the most obvious, basic privacy settings you should be worried about, and there's actually a lot more out there. But this is the stuff everyone should start with, no matter who they are. After that, if you care about digging deeper,you can.
In the end, it's a pretty ruthless fight to keep your information private and continue to use the internet. We've shown you how you can protect yourself to a point (the NSA can certainly still see exactly what you're doing), how to browse the Web privately, or just give up and delete yourself from the internet forever. Once you're offline, The New York Times has a guide for keeping it that way if you're interested. If you're going to continue using the internet with the expectation of privacy, you'll be sorely disappointed, but at the very least you can lock down the data that really matters to you.
There almost certainly is a requirement for yourself to have yourself a guarantor in submitting an application for a cash loan. A guarantor is someone who will take all the obligation for the loan you applied together if in case you fail to pay up. You must select a guarantor that has an impressive credit score and salary that?s sufficiently good to handle the loan. Men are often stunned to hear the good news from the money lenders that they are able to utilize their cars as a collateral just to get qualified. If you are caring for your auto loan, there?s a better opportunity that you may lend money instead of your car title loan. These financing options are usually not ideal, but they?re greater than pawnshops and payday loans. You have to keep in your thoughts and understand clearly that you may forfeit your precious automobile if you neglect to pay back the loans you made. That can prevent you from getting to and fro the office and earning a salary, and your wages are exactly what you want to get away from debt. Fast cash loans are generally personal loan determined by when you acquire your salary. People from all over the world face numerous financial problems everyday and often, short-term borrowing is not that possible. If you will be searching for a means to fix such matters, why don?t you go for quick cash by having a secured loan or instant cash? Besides, this is the fastest option to receive the fast money you need in spite of your bad credit score or when your pals and family cannot help you monetarily. During your application procedure of the loan don?t ignore to look into the conditions and terms of loans, know all the possible costs you will include specifically those covered charges. There are a lot of means that may cause you to extra charges on these loans however the blame certainly falls into you, that is why knowing all the details of a loan is best!
GREENVILLE, N.C. (AP) ? A man who investigators think shot four people near a Greenville Wal-Mart appears to have planned the shooting but picked out his victims at random, Greenville Police Chief Hassan Aden said Sunday.
Aden identified the suspect as Lakim Anthony Faust and said the 23-year-old Greenville man will be charged with four counts of attempted first-degree murder when he recovers from gunshot wounds he suffered as police took him into custody Friday.
Investigators haven't found any links between Faust and the four victims, Aden said at a news conference Sunday. But evidence gathered during a search of Faust's home appears to show he had some plan for the attack and wanted to shoot a number of people, the chief said.
"Some of the way, the manor with which he carried it out, sort of indicates that he had some idea to what he wanted to do. But we don't know that for certain," Aden said.
Police said Faust used a pistol-gripped shotgun to shoot a man in a car outside a law firm, crossed five lanes of traffic and shot three more people outside a Wal-Mart in the city of about 87,000 people around 85 miles east of Raleigh.
More than 100 rounds of shotgun ammunition were found on Faust after police shot him, Aden said.
A phone listing for Faust couldn't be found, and it wasn't immediately clear whether he has a lawyer.
Faust is recovering from wounds to his arms and legs. Aden would not say when he might be released from the hospital.
Faust had a short criminal record that included property crimes but no signs of violence, Aden said.
The police chief visited the four people wounded before Sunday's news conference. He said some had serious injuries, but they all are recovering. He did not release their names or conditions.
Authorities serving a search warrant on Faust's home first sent in a robot to check for any other victims or possible traps inside, but Aden said they didn't find any.
Police did find documents and computers that are helping investigators figure out why Faust started shooting, Aden said. The computer has been sent to FBI headquarters to be analyzed further, he said.
"It is a very complex investigation. We still are talking to a lot of people and looking at his background," Aden said.
Investigators have no evidence anyone helped Faust in the shootings, but they also haven't ruled that out, the police chief said.
The officers who shot Faust have been put on administrative leave while the State Bureau of Investigation investigates the shooting.
DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) ? Suicide bombers targeted security compounds in Damascus and a car bomb exploded in a pro-regime district there Sunday, killing at least eight people, the latest in a surge of civil war violence in the capital.
In northern Syria, a car bomb killed 12 soldiers in Aleppo, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of activists in Syria for information. It had no other details, and the government did not comment.
The state-run news agency SANA said three suicide bombers blew themselves up while trying to break into the Rukneddine police station in northern Damascus, killing five people and wounding several others. SANA said three would-be suicide bombers also tried to break into the Criminal Security Branch in the southern Bab Mousalla area but were caught by security forces before they could detonate their explosives.
Activists confirmed the death toll.
SANA said a car bomb exploded in Mazzeh 86 district in the capital, killing three people, including a 3-year-old boy. Residents of the district are mostly Alawites, an offshoot Shiite sect that President Bashar Assad's family belongs to. The opposition forces fighting against Assad's regime are mostly Sunni Muslims.
Nobody immediately claimed responsibility for the Damascus explosions, but they bore the hallmarks of al-Qaida-linked groups that have joined forces with rebels fighting to oust Assad.
The attacks in Syria's two largest cities came as government forces pressed an offensive on the outskirts of the capital.
SANA carried a statement by the Interior Ministry saying that the Damascus attacks were a "new escalation by terrorist groups," a term used by the government to refer to the rebels.
More than 93,000 people have been killed in Syrian conflict that started in March 2011 as peaceful protest against Assad's rule. In the past year, the war has taken on sectarian overtones.
The conflict has increasingly spilled across Syria's borders.
In neighboring Lebanon, clashes erupted between Lebanese military and supporters of hard-line Sunni cleric Sheik Ahmad al-Assar, a security official said. Three Lebanese soldiers were killed, he said speaking anonymously in line with regulations.
The fighting broke out in the predominantly Sunni southern port city of Sidon after al-Assir's supporters opened fire on an army checkpoint.
The military issued a statement confirming that three soldiers died in the shooting, including two officers. It said the shooting was unprovoked.
Heavy fighting with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades caused panic in the city, which until recently had been largely spared the violence hitting other areas. Many people who were spending the day on the beach hurried home, while others living on high floors came down or fled to safer areas. Gray smoke billowed over parts of the city.
The clashes centered on the Bilal bin Rabbah Mosque, where al-Assir preaches. The cleric, a virulent critic of the Shiite militant Hezbollah group, is believed to have hundreds of armed supporters in Sidon. Dozens of al-Assir's gunmen also partially shut down the main highway linking south Lebanon with Beirut.
By Sunday evening, the army appeared poised to move against al-Assir and his supporters, who have been agitating for months. Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said the army have surrounded the mosque, sealing off access to it from all directions and neutralized hostile fire from neighboring buildings.
The NNA report said Assir was believed to be hiding inside the mosque with several of his followers.
The cleric and his followers support Sunni rebels in the Syria conflict, and he has threatened to clear apartments in Sidon where Hezbollah supporters live.
Sunday's clashes in Sidon deepened tensions in Lebanon. on edge since the Syrian conflict began more than two years ago.
Lebanese President Michel Suleiman called an emergency meeting of the security cabinet for Monday. NNA also reported sporadic shooting in the volatile city of Tripoli in the north, and the army announced additional force deployments in around Beirut.
The violence came a day after an 11-nation group that includes the U.S. met in the Qatari capital of Doha to coordinate military aid and other forms of assistance to the rebels.
Syria's al-Thawra newspaper, the mouthpiece of the government, assailed the Friends of Syria meeting.
"It's clear that the enemies of Syria are rushing to arm the terrorists to kill the chances for holding the Geneva conference," the newspaper said, referring to a U.S.-Russia initiative for bringing Assad's government and rebels together to negotiate an end to the crisis.
The Syrian paper pledged that the army would "continue the showdown to eliminate terrorism and restore security and stability."
____
Surk reported from Beirut. Associated Press writer Jamal Halaby in Amman, Jordan contributed to this report.
