When J. K. Rowling, author of the phenomenally successful Harry Potter series, had been out of college for seven years, she found herself at a dark juncture in her life. At that time, she says, she had failed in life on an epic scale. “An exceptionally short-lived marriage had imploded. I was jobless, a lone […]

Statically, you won’t keep that resolution you’ve just wrote in your diary (perhaps another resolution?). So why make them at all?  Don’t give up yet—statistics also show that setting resolutions make a person not only look at their life analytically, but also give one something to work towards. Both of these factors are highly motivating […]

The oldest person who ever lived, according to The Guinness Book of World Records and other official documentation, was Jeanne Calment of Arles, France. She lived to be 122.  And many medical experts and scientists have wondered what it was that allowed Calment to live so long. Theories abound, but here are some of the […]

Researchers like Antigone Kouris-Blazos (Monash University, Australia) have long touted the benefits of eating a traditional Greekstyle diet. In 2003, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study of 22,000 adults in Greece conducted by Kouris-Blazos and her colleagues. In the study, a traditional Greek diet was defined as small amounts of red and […]

**  The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree has more than 25,000 lights strung on more than five miles of electric wire. **  In 1856, Franklin Pierce, the 14th President of the United States, was the first President to place a Christmas tree in the White House. **  In 2000, 31 percent of United States households had […]

Next time you’re in the mood for the luxury of a pedicure, you might want to hang up a “Gone Fishin’” sign. Then head out for what one creative shopkeeper is hoping will  become the latest beauty craze—a fish pedicure.   The practice first began in Turkey, and now an entrepreneurial salon owner has brought […]

Will Smith: Grammy-winning rapper. Accepted at (but did not attend) MIT. Star of a hit television sitcom. Oscar nominee for best actor. The only actor who’s had eight consecutive films gross more than $100 million. Film and television producer. What’s the secret to his success? Fear. He can’t run away from it. Whenever he feels […]