Tuesday, September 28, 2010

How to Prepare for an Earthquake: Waiting for the "Big One"

How do you prepare for an earthquake? We all know how to prepare for a tornado thanks to the likes of The Wizard of Oz and Twister, or how to prepare for global climate change thanks to The Day After Tomorrow, but earthquake safety and preparing for "The Big One" is hardly in the knowledge of most Americans.

"The Big One"

If you've read the news, you'll hear scientists talking about "The Big One." No, they are not talking about the next superstar, but rather the earthquake that is supposed to shake Southern California so hard that it is rumored to break from the continental United States.

Anyways, "The Big One" is supposed to have happened "tomorrow" for the last 10 years. Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible to estimate when an earthquake is about to give because we cannot measure exactly how much pressure and tension the tectonic plates can take. All we know is that there is going to be a horrible earthquake in the "near" (and by near we mean within the next 2 days - 100 years) future.

How to Prepare

If you live near a fault line in Southern California, you should constantly be prepared for "The Big One." If you live along the San Andreas fault, hopefully you are well aware about the risks to your area if an earthquake strikes and have your house and workplace checked for the most updated earthquake building regulations.

Like in any natural disaster emergency situation, you always want to have canned food on hand as well as a lot of bottled water. These keep forever, so stock up in your garage. It also might be a good idea to keep a secret stash of cash around your house hidden in various locations in case you need to get away. We have seen in natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina where havoc broke loose and people were looting stores, etc. In case you want to fly to another city or get out of town after the disaster, it is a good idea to stash cash around your house.

If you are very paranoid about earthquakes, don't hang heavy objects above your bed (in case they fall on you while you're sleeping) and only put heavy objects on the bottom shelves of your bookshelf because those are known to topple over as well in the middle of earthquakes. You want to keep all valuables in a safe place where they will not be broken and keep any heavy and sharp objects away from areas where you rest (like a near bed or a couch).

In the Event of an Earthquake

Stop, drop and roll? No, that's in the case of a fire. During an earthquake you want to duck, cover and hold. You want to get under a sturdy table or desk that will not crush you if something falls on it, cover your neck and face (crouched over on your knees) and hold on to the leg of the object. Can't find something to get under? Stand in an archway of a door. Those are strong enough to support you. Try to stand in the archway of a door that is as wide as you are for maximum protection.

Stay away from anything sharp, pointy or breakable. Steer clear from windows, pictures hanging on walls, heavy arches and heavy pillars.

If you are outside, get away from anything that can fall on you like a tree or light post. If you are in your car, get out of your car and move to a clear area (yes, leave the Ferrari behind and run for your life).

Most Importantly, Don't Panic!

Stay calm! Panicking and running around like a chicken with its head cut off is not the way to handle an earthquake (especially "The Big One"). Get everyone you love safe and together (including pets) and make a game plan. If you have children it is probably a good idea to go over the plan before the earthquake. Just like families have an evacuation drill in the case of a fire, it is a good idea to have a plan in the case of an earthquake.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Optical Illusions

Optical illusions are simple, yet mind-boggling at the same time. An optical illusion is defined as something that is perceived differently than objective reality. Basically, optical illusions trick you to see something that is not there, hide things that are there or make you look again and say "Wait, what?" Optical illusions make your eye perceive the image differently than it actually is.

There are three different types of optical illusions:

1. Literal optical illusions - They make the images that are different from the objects that make them.

2. Physiological illusions - They stimulate the brain by playing with light, brightness, color, or movement.

3. Cognitive illusions - The brain and eye are tricked to make unconscious assumptions.

Here are some popular optical illusions:
Square A and Square B are actually the same color.


Do these lines seem parallel? Look again, because they are!


The never-ending staircase: Where does it begin and end?
In the hit movie, Inception, characters use this staircase to trick the mind.

M.C. Escher is a huge fan of creating impossibilities with art.
What do you see? Can you make sense of this?
Is the color of the intersection between lines a different color from the lines themselves?

Do you see a duck or a rabbit? Or both?

What attracts people to stare at optical illusions for hours on end is the possibility of impossibility, or even the possibility of many possibilities. Optical illusions make us question what is real, what is fake, and what we have ignored. It's amazing that your brain can trick your eyes and in turn, your eyes can trick your brain at the same time.

For more information about optical illusions, check out Experts123.com.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Top iPad Alternatives

The Apple iPad is a technological
phenomenon.
The personal tablet has become increasingly popular, but how to sort out the good alternatives from the bad? Some complaints with the iPad is the lack of multi-tasking (which is no longer a problem) and the expensive cost. Not to mention, it is hard to sync your iPad up with printer, and there are no USB ports. It is hard to find the best iPad alternatives without a little bit of background knowledge.

These tablets are some of the most popular alternatives to hit the market (or hit the market soon). Most people are either a Mac person or a PC person. The iPad is obviously Mac. So, devoted PC users might be more interested in the Windows 7 and Android operating systems that are to come on the best iPad alternatives.

Archos Tablet
Archos Tablets
With not a lot of tablets that are available for people to buy yet, the Archos tablet acts as the main competitor for the Apple iPad at the moment. Where the iPad lacks, the Archos tablet makes up for the shortcomings. There is a 9 in screen, 60GB or 120GB hard drive, larger hard disk drive, and a battery that lasts up to 5 hours. Although the battery lasts half as long as the iPad, it can easily and inexpensively be replaced whereas the iPad has to be completely replaced. The Archos tablet comes with 2 antennas and USB ports for only $549 for 60 GB.

Toshiba Libretto
Toshiba Libretto
Not one, but two touch screens? The Toshiba Libretto acts as a sleek book that can be closed to protect the two touch screens on the inside. Toshiba calls the Libretto a "concept PC" and is pricing it around $1,099, which is significantly more expensive than the iPad, but much more functional (similar to a laptop computer). Complete with a 1024x600 pixel resolution, keyboard with haptic response, Intel Pentium U5400 CPU, it is a very portable device that rivals not only the iPad, but also completely revolutionizes laptop computers as we know. Only negative is that the touch screen is only 7 inches, but you get two. The Libretto looks very professional and portable and weighs a little under 2 pounds.

Dell Streak
Dell Streak
Although the Dell Streak only has a 5-inch screen, it "measures" up to the iPad on other fronts. It has an Android 2.1 OS (with an option to upgrade to 2.2) and has over 40,000 applications available for consumers. Not to mention, it is a phone, web browser, and music player in one. Dell has engineered the Streak to be the perfect 5-inch size for the pocket. Reviews say that the Streak is user friendly, and for less than $500. Its memory can be expanded with a 32 GB card and it has a 5-megapixel camera.

Adam Android
Adam Android
The Adam is better at hardware configuration and has a more efficient battery life--also its LCD works outdoors unlike the iPad. Adam has a 180-degree swivel camera that allows video conferencing. Adam has 3 USB ports and uses a tenth of the iPad's power with a 24 hr long battery. It has a 10 inch screen, runs on an Android OS, allows for multitasking and flash, has an SD card slot and costs from $327-$800. Did we mention that it is in full HD? The Adam shows that Apple isn't the only one who can reinvent technology.

ExoPC Slate
ExoPC Slate
Often referred to as the "iPad Killer," the ExoPC Slate is a tablet PC-netbook PC combo with a Windows 7 OS, 32 GB memory, 8.9-inch multi-touch screen, webcam, and full browser with flash support. It also has an Ethernet port as well as a way to hook up your bluetooth. What distinguishes the ExoPC Slate from the iPad is the smooth keyboard. The iPad has had many complaints with its sticky keyboard that is inaccurate and hard to type on, but it is smooth sailing with the ExoPC's virtual keyboard.

JooJoo CrunchPad
JooJoo (CrunchPad)
The JooJoo was released the same weekend as the iPad, has a slightly larger screen, and has a remarkable browsing experience. Although it is wider and heavier than the iPad, the JooJoo has a larger screen, but there have been complaints with the responsiveness. The JooJoo is created for the same purpose as the iPad: to browse the internet. However, the jury is still out about whether or not the JooJoo is better than the iPad at performing the exact same tasks.

WeTab
WeTab (WePad)
The WeTab is a German alternative to the iPad. It will have an 11.6 inch screen and the price will start around $575 for the 32 GB version. It has a resolution of 1366x768 and supports Wi-Fi, bluetooth, and has a 1.4 megapixel camera. The WeTab requires no software to play music (as opposed to iPad requiring iTunes) and supports flash for easy internet browsing.


Lenovo Skylight
Lenovo Skylight
Lenovo tries to make up for what the iPad lacks. It appears to be more like a laptop, but prides itself on multitasking for basic drag and drop properties, flash support, HD ready screen, and a detach-and-converge design that allows users to disconnect the screen from the keyboard to use like someone would use an iPad. The OS is Windows 7 Home Edition, and when detached, the Skylight runs on a custom Skylight OS developed by Lenovo (built on Linux kernel). It is truly multi-functional and versatile for users. It is like a laptop computer and tablet in one. However, one speculation is about the two separate operating systems: would you be able to access your information from Windows 7 OS?

HP Slate
HP Slate
Although the HP Slate looks nice, it is more expensive, has slower Wi-Fi and a less-productive battery than the iPad. Nonetheless, it will have two cameras and USB ports. Microsoft does not take into account overall usability. Instead the HP Slate prides itself on specific specs as opposed to the whole experience of using it. However, this is not to say that the HP Slate is a total waste. It has been developed to run on Windows 7, which will appeal to the loyal PC-users. It has an SD card reader and a faster processor than the iPad.



Our verdict: With the technology available now, the ExoPC seems to be the best iPad alternative. It has a Windows 7 OS and the same (if not better) functionality as the iPad. However, with its 24 hour long battery life, the Adam Android looks like a fantastic alternative as well.

View Full Article: iPad Alternatives on Experts123

Monday, September 20, 2010

Check Experts123 Out on Facebook!

Experts123 is finally using our Facebook page!

What to Expect

Experts123 is rolling out all the stops. On our Facebook page, we hope to bring you all the joys of Experts123 condensed into one feed. We will be combining our tweets and our most interesting facts that you can find on www.experts123.com along with photos and elaborations on the cool facts that we find on the web daily.

We are really excited to be able to offer this to all of you. Our Facebook page will combine all of the highlights of our site.

How You Can Help

Experts123 needs your support! You can "Like" Experts123 on Facebook and invite your friends, too! Even if they're not a paid contributor, they can still learn fun facts from our Facebook page.

Interact with us! Less formal than shooting us an email, tell us what you think on our Facebook page. Comment on our posts, add your own insight or correct us if we're wrong. We love seeing intellectuals interacting together, and hope Facebook will be another platform for this.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Calling all Halloween Experts

Halloween is a little over a month away. But honestly, we can't wait any longer!

Recently, Experts123 has posted revenue-share-assignments about Halloween! We are looking for experts to write about different types of costumes, different types of candy, and different types of Halloween decorations!

Snatch them up while you still can. Our goal is to make Experts123 the go-to place for people who are looking for information about Halloween costumes.

Feel free to also ask specific questions to the experts community as well. Make sure to tag them with "Halloween" in order to get them all in the same spot (easily accessible for the person who is planning on answering your Halloween questions).

We are super excited for the Halloween season to begin. To check out previously asked Halloween questions, click here. We hope that you take advantage of these fun titles and write as many Halloween assignments as possible! We want to get these complete so that when the Halloween season rolls around, people have access to all the information they want about the spookiest holiday around.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

New WFH Assignments!

FINALLY THEY'RE HERE!

We have created a ton of new WFH articles, and plan on keeping them coming. Right now there are articles in the categories of cosmetic surgery (plastic surgery, cosmetic enhancement, procedures) and oral care (tooth whitening, cavities, homemade toothpaste)! (We plan on releasing more WFH articles in heating services soon, too.)

A lot of you have been emailing us about how you can bump up your status to be a WFH contributor. Well, if you've written some fantastic revenue-share-assignments, you can be automatically bumped up. If you feel like you're not being noticed, go ahead and shoot us an email at customerservice@experts123.com requesting for your status to be increased.

Lately, we've been starting our contributors off with revenue-share-status and then promoting them to WFH. Just like in any professional environment, if you feel like you're doing a good job and deserve a promotion, feel free to tell us!

Keep writing, experts! Remember, the WFH articles require a much higher caliber of writing and go through a much more rigorous editing process. Bring your A-game!

Click here to log-in to Experts123 and start writing. (Go to your profile and your assignments tab in order to browse available assignments.)

Friday, September 10, 2010

Explore

Across the top of the Experts123 toolbar lies links for Questions, Articles, Top Askers, Top Answerers, Ask, Explore and $Questions.

Ever wondered where the Explore button lead you? Well click on it! It will open your eyes to the infinite amounts of information on Experts123.

From here, you can browse categories, see the hottest questions, and just get an overall feel for the site. It's a great way to get more information on subjects that you've been dying to learn about.

For example, if you click on Life & Society, and then Celebrities, you will have access to every question and article in our database about celebrities. Click on one of the filters to narrow your search.

It's a great way to explore the information at hand, and maybe even learn something new!

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Want to Join the Experts123 Hall of Fame?

If you've been on the Experts123 homepage recently, you may have noticed this ever changing list of superstar Experts123 contributors. Well, do you want to join the ranks of the Experts123 top contributors?



It's easy, really. The way that these great writers got on this homepage is through writing a lot of articles and answering a lot of questions. For each question you answer, especially those unanswered questions, you are one step closer to your name being on the homepage for the world to see.

Don't want to be on the homepage? Why not? Experts123 is about sharing your work as a writer and an expert. People who contribute often and regularly receive the perks of being on the homepage and receiving all of the traffic! More traffic to your work, means more cash in your pocket!

It doesn't matter what your area of expertise is - we have bartending experts, pet experts, health experts, and even alternative medicine experts that grace our homepage answering your questions and writing interesting articles for the experts community.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

That's Hot.

Have you noticed the automatic feed on the bottom right of the Experts123 homepage that says "What's Hot?" and wondered what exactly it is?

Well, we have decided to filter out questions that pertain the most to pop culture, current events or even just fun facts that you definitely want to know more about.

For example, one of the questions is: What happens to oil spills in water? Well, considering TODAY another oil rig blew up in the Gulf of Mexico (which has been plagued with oil spills recently), it might be good to know if the oil will affect water in your area, or even contaminate fish and other sea creatures that you are looking to consume in the near future.

Another one of our hot questions is How is the iPad going to change the future for computers? Considering we JUST wrapped up our free iPad giveaway and one of you lucky experts is going to win an iPad, this is extremely relevant! Regardless, the iPad is probably the coolest thing to hit the technology market. People have predicted that it might replace the computer, but if you've heard differently, feel free to add your insight.

These questions are supposed to stimulate your brain and spark conversation. If you have something that you would like to add to the answer, by all means add it! It's important that the person who asked the question gets as much information as they possibly can to paint a complete picture.

Everyday these questions will change and filter through on the homepage. If you feel like you see a question that is super hot and should be added to this list, let us know! Shoot us an email at customerservice@experts123.com or send us a tweet @Experts123!