How to Choose the Right Career

Choosing the right career can be difficult, but having a defined career direction will help you with getting. But with a little hard work, some planning, and some serious self-reflection, you can set yourself on a path towards a fruitful, fulfilling career that can provide for you and your family.

Method 1: Consider Your Interests

Consider your dream career. There is an old saying that if you’re trying to choose a career, you should think about what you would do if you didn’t have to work. If you had a million dollars and you could do anything, what would you do? Your answer to that question, while maybe not literally the best career choice for you, may give you insight into what you should do.

If you want to be a music star, consider going into audio engineering or music composition. These careers are easier to pursue and you will be much more likely to succeed and provide for yourself in the future.

If you want to be an actor, consider going into media broadcasting. You can get a degree in communications or work your way up the chain of command in a local news or other television studio.

If you want to travel the world, consider becoming an airline steward or stewardess. This is a great way to make a living and pursue your dream of traveling the globe.

Consider your hobbies. It is very easy to turn your hobbies or something you love doing into a future career. Many hobbies correspond to real world needs and positions. Consider what you like to do and how that might fit into a career.

For example, if you like playing video games, consider becoming a video game designer, programmer, or QA specialist.

If you like drawing or art, consider becoming a graphic designer.

If you like sports, consider going into teaching and getting certified as a coach.

Consider what you enjoy or enjoyed in school. Academic subjects translate well into future careers but may require more schooling than other types of careers. Your favorite class in high school could very well launch you into your future career but you have to be willing to work for it.

For example, if you loved chemistry, you could look forward to a future career as a lab technician or a pharmacist.

If you liked English class, consider becoming an editor or a copywriter.

If you enjoyed math, consider becoming an actuary or an accountant.

Method 2: Consider Your Skills

Think about what you are or were good at in school. Think about the subjects you excelled in in school. Though it may not be your favorite thing to do, choosing a career based on something you are skilled at can help you excel and provide yourself a secure future.

Look at the examples from the previous step if you need ideas.

Consider what skills you excel in. If you are particularly good at certain skills, such as fixing things or making things, this can provide you with a great future career. Schooling may or may not be necessary, but skilled labor is often in demand and you will find it fairly easy to find work.

For example, carpentry, auto repair, construction, and electrical work all benefit from people who are good at fixing things or working with their hands. These also tend to be stable, well-paying jobs.

Other skills, such as a skill for cooking, can also be easily turned into a career.

Consider your interpersonal skills. If your skills lie more in helping and communicating with other people, there are jobs for you as well. People who communicate and interact with others well can easily get careers as social workers or in marketing and similar business positions.

If you’re more the type to take care of others, consider nursing or work as an administrative assistant or office manager.

If you don’t know, ask! Sometimes it’s hard for us to see the areas in life where we excel. If you don’t think you’re good at anything, ask your parents, other family members, friends, or teachers what they think you’d be good at. Their ideas might surprise you!

Method 3: Consider Your Current State

Explore yourself. Figuring out what you should do with your life may sometimes require you to get to know yourself better. If you want a career that will really make you happy, you have to have a very good understanding of what you want and what you enjoy. For some people, this means taking some time off to decide what’s important to them.

There is nothing wrong with this, so don’t feel bad. It’s more important that you figure your life out as early as possible, rather than getting knee deep in a career which makes you hate your life.

Consider your financial situation. Your ability to pursue or change careers may hinge on your financial situation. Some career paths require special schooling and this is sometimes expensive. However, you should not feel that being poor bars you from getting the education you want. There are lots of government programs to help you pay for schools, as well as scholarships, grants, and apprenticeship programs.

Think about the education you will have as you enter a career. It is important to consider what education you already have or will have as you begin pursuing a career. If finances may bar you from pursuing more schooling, you may need to consider what you already have. It may also be necessary to stick with your existing high school or college degree if there are time limitations or other restrictions. If you find that you are limited to jobs relating to the degree you already have, consult with a career counselor to find out what options are available to you.

Think about returning to school. If restrictions do not bar you from pursuing more schooling, you may want to consider this option. Not everybody excels in school or needs a traditional college education, but most career paths have associated training which you can do and will help you advance more quickly.

Technical colleges, for example, may be a good option for those who would prefer not to pursue a traditional education.

Do more research. If you're still confused, consider doing more research on this topic and consult with your adviser or college of choice.

Method 4: Consider Your Future

Consider the careers you have easy access to. Consider what career options are available for you to easily move into. These would be careers in which you have both the necessary skills and an “in”. Examples would be working for the same company as one of your parents, working for a family business, or working for a friend. If your options are limited, choosing a career in which you can quickly enter may be your best option.

Consider your future financial security. One of the most important things to consider is if the career path you’re choosing will provide you with an acceptable level of financial security. In other words, will you be able to make enough money to support yourself and your family?

Remember, this doesn’t have to be a lot of money or enough money by somebody else’s standards. All that matters is that it’s enough for you and what you want for your life.

Consider your future job stability. It is also important to consider a future career’s stability. Job markets fluctuate as society needs different things at different times. Certain jobs are also always in demand or frequently unstable. You will need to consider if the career you choose is stable enough for you and your desires for the future.

For example, many people recently went into law school and racked up often in excess of $100,000 in school debt because they thought they’d be making a very high wage in the future. However, law positions are not in demand as much the last few years and now those people have huge debts and no way to pay them.

Another example is working as a writer or any career based on freelance work. You may sometimes have plenty of work but there may be years when you have almost nothing. Working in this way requires a certain level of determination and discipline and is not for everybody.

Look at the Occupational Outlook Handbook. One way for you to gauge if a career option is a good idea is to look it up in the Occupational Outlook Handbook. This is a guide, compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which looks at what kind of education is required for different jobs, how much people in those careers make on average, and how much the demand for that job is likely to increase or decrease.

What fast food does to your brain

Here’s one way to get cultured: kick your McDonald’s habit. Exposure to fast food makes it harder to appreciate beautiful art and music, finds a new University of Toronto study. Researchers found that just seeing fast-food restaurants and logos—not even necessarily eating it—can trigger impatience and make it more difficult to savor enjoyable experiences, like listening to an opera or looking at photos of nature. How come? Fast food brings to mind speed and instant gratification, both of which make you more restless.

We don't need to remind you what fast food can do to your body, but you might not know these surprising ways it can screw with your brain:

Simply walking by a fast food joint can mess with your financial sense. In another study from the same Toronto researchers, participants were offered the choice between choosing a cash reward the next day and a slightly bigger one the next week. Those who were asked to pick while standing next to a fast-food restaurant were 40 percent more likely to opt for the smaller, speedier payout than those who were questioned near a full-service eatery. Four similar experiments all linked the presence of fast-food places to impatient, I-want-it-now! financial decisions.

why so many fast-food chains use the same colors in their logos? The marketing scheme is no coincidence. Studies have found that seeing the combination of red and yellow helps kick start your metabolism, increasing hunger. 

Canadian researchers found that followed a high-fat diet felt more anxious after 6 weeks than rodents on a low-fat plan. That’s because eating foods high in sugar and fat actually changes the chemical activity in your brain, causing signs of withdrawal and depression if you stop consuming them, according to the study.

A Scripps Research Institute study found that when rats eat fatty, sugar-laden foods—like those found on fast-food menus—in large enough quantities, it can lead to compulsive overeating habits that are similar to drug addiction. In another recent study at Connecticut College, lab rats crawled just as close to Oreos as they did toward cocaine or morphine injections. When scientists peered into the animals’ brains, they found rodents that munched on the cream-filled cookies showed even greater activation in their pleasure centers than those that received drugs.

How sunlight lowers your blood pressure

Hypertension and cardiovascular disease correlate with latitude and rise in winter. Scientists have learned how exposure to sunlight reduces blood pressure.

A study from the U.K. has now shown the mechanism by which exposing the skin to sunlight helps reduce blood pressure and thereby reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke. The study – shows that sunlight accomplishes this feat in the human body by lowering levels of a small messenger molecule, nitric oxide (NO), in the skin and blood.

Martin Feelisch, a professor and medical researcher at the University of Southampton, said in:

Nitric oxide, along with its breakdown products, known to be abundant in skin, is involved in the regulation of blood pressure. When exposed to sunlight, small amounts of NO are transferred from the skin to the circulation, lowering blood vessel tone; as blood pressure drops, so does the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Limiting sunlight exposure is important to prevent skin cancer. On the other hand, however, minimizing sun exposure might increase the risk of conditions related to cardiovascular disease, according to Richard Weller of the University of Edinburgh points out:

The incidence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease correlates with latitude and rises in winter.

That is, higher blood pressures – and an increased incidence of cardiovascular disease – are observed in winter and in countries further from the equator, where ultraviolet radiation from the sun is lower. Cardiovascular disease is often associated with high blood pressure and accounts for 30 per cent of deaths globally each year, according to the press release, which explained:

During the study, the skin of 24 healthy individuals was exposed to ultraviolet (UVA) light from tanning lamps for two sessions of 20 minutes each. In one session, the volunteers were exposed to both the UVA rays and the heat of the lamps. In another, the UV rays were blocked so that only the heat of the lamps affected the skin.

The results suggest that UVA exposure dilates blood vessels, significantly lowers blood pressure, and alters NO metabolite levels in the circulation, without changing vitamin D levels. Further experiments indicate that pre-formed stores of NO in the upper skin layers are involved in mediating these effects. The data are consistent with the seasonal variation of blood pressure and cardiovascular risk at temperate latitudes.

Professor Feelisch further said:

These results are significant to the ongoing debate about potential health benefits of sunlight and the role of Vitamin D in this process. It may be an opportune time to reassess the risks and benefits of sunlight for human health and to take a fresh look at current public health advice. Avoiding excess sunlight exposure is critical to prevent skin cancer, but not being exposed to it at all, out of fear or as a result of a certain lifestyle, could increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. Perhaps with the exception of bone health, the effects of oral vitamin D supplementation have been disappointing.

We believe that NO from the skin is an important, so far overlooked contributor to cardiovascular health. In future studies we intend to test whether the effects hold true in a more chronic setting and identify new nutritional strategies targeted at maximizing the skin’s ability to store NO and deliver it to the circulation more efficiently.

Bottom line: The incidence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease correlates with latitude and rises in winter. Scientists have now learned the mechanism by which exposure to sunlight reduces blood pressure and reduces the risk of cardio vascular disease.

Leonardo DiCaprio Says 'The Wolf Of Wall Street' Is "Not Condoning This Behavior...We’re Indicting It"

As Movies.com notes, "The Counselor," "The Family," "The Last Exorcism Part II," "Movie 43," "The Purge," "Runner Runner" and "Scary Movie 5" are the only movies this year that managed a lower grade than the C+ CinemaScore recently earned by "The Wolf Of Wall Street." It's hardly the kind of company you'd expect to find the latest film from Martin Scorsese included with, but then again, nothing about 'Wolf' meets ordinary expectations.
Despite largely positive reviews from critics, a backlash of sorts has started to greet the movie for its party atmosphere that does much to shine the light on the antics of Jordan Belfort and his fellow Wall Street sleazebags, and little on the actual victims of his frauds. The daughter of one of Belfort's real life colleagues even penned an open letter recently, shaming the filmmakers for turning Belfort's crimes into R-rated entertainment, for what she perceived was very little consideration for the innocent people who wound up paying the price.
And with some criticism now swirling, Leonardo DiCaprio has responded, insisting that the three hour movie doesn't celebrate the actions of the man he portrays. “This film may be misunderstood by some; I hope people understand we’re not condoning this behavior, that we’re indicting it," he told Variety. "The book was a cautionary tale and if you sit through the end of the film, you’ll realize what we’re saying about these people and this world, because it’s an intoxicating one. I think it’s amazing somebody like Martin Scorsese is still making films that are vital and talked about, and have an element of controversy about them and are appealing to people of my generation. We grew up watching his films and he’s still making stuff that’s punk rock. It’s an amazing achievement.”
Speaking with Deadline, DiCaprio—who is also a producer on the picture—elaborated on why so much of the film is spent on sex, drugs and debauchery. "Number one, because we didn’t want to take a traditional approach to this film. Number two, we very consciously wanted this to be an analysis of the temptation and intoxication of the world of money and indulgence and hedonism," the actor explained. "We wanted to take the audience on that journey, and so we don’t ever see the wake of that destruction until the very end, where they implode. It was a very conscious decision on our part, so the experience would be almost like taking a drug. To me, if you’re an audience member, you want to be completely submerged in the actual film."
And if you are one of the bros who totally loves the movie because of its wild ways, you might not be getting it. "We wanted it to be from these peoples’ perspective, an understanding of the very nature of who these people are, and why this can be so intoxicating and so exciting for them. By no means is this film a glorification or some sort of promotion of this lifestyle and those who say it is are missing the point entirely," DiCaprio stated.
So, when does the movie pause to acknowledge that Jordan Belfort's methods have horrifying repercussions? Even Leonardo DiCaprio missed it at first. "We wanted people specifically to understand the mindset. During that time period, none of those guys gave a crap about who they were screwing over. They only cared about themselves and their own hedonistic enjoyment and the accumulation of more wealth, and giving into any possible indulgence. Yes, Marty brilliantly holds onto that shot of the woman, holding a bundle of money in her hand with half of her head shaved off. He kept holding on that and only after the fifth viewing did I say, wow, those are his subtle ways of reminding us about our actions," the actor revealed, before once again adding that 'Wolf' does not make any apologies for what it depicts.
"We’ve seen hundreds of movies that have a much more traditional approach to this [kind of material]. I’m sorry for anyone who may misinterpret that, but this is absolutely an indictment of this world and a cautionary tale. More than that, it’s something that is in the very fabric of our culture, the very fabric of the United States. That, to me, is a powerful film. It is exploring human nature."
Thoughts? Does "The Wolf Of Wall Street" spend enough time showing the consequences or is it too caught up in throwing midgets and doing blow? Let us know below after this latest clip from the film.

Justin Bieber's iPhone seized in egging probe, cop says

Los Angeles (CNN) -- Justin Bieber's iPhone is being searched for clues about his alleged involvement in an egg attack on his neighbor's house, a detective told CNN Thursday.

Sheriff's deputies took Bieber's personal smart phone when they used a felony search warrant to raid his mansion Tuesday morning, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Lt. David Thompson said.

The sheriff's technical crew, which is also examining security video seized in the search, are looking for any evidence of Bieber "bragging or making fun of" the incident, Thompson said.

Bieber should not worry about any nude photos or "drug talk" that may be among his text messages, he said. "It's just the egg matter."

"We're looking for anything that has to do with this particular incident," the detective said.

The security video system in Bieber's mansion could be the best witness to alleged egg attack. "It was extensive," Thompson said of the system. "I believe it was installed very well and covered all areas of Mr. Bieber's house. His security system was well operated." Deputies seized the computer that recorded the video, he said.

The alleged egg-tossing attack happened on the evening of Thursday, January 9, in the exclusive double-gated Oaks community of Calabasas, California. It is home to A-listers from entertainment and sports, including the mother and children of Michael Jackson.

Deputies at the Lost Hills Sheriff's Station, which serves an affluent section of Los Angeles County just east of Malibu, have become familiar with Bieber, 19, since he moved into a $6.4 million home two years ago.

Neighbors have dialed 911 several times to complain that the teenage multimillionaire was speeding down their residential streets in his high-performance cars. One neighbor accused Bieber of spitting in his face during a heated confrontation last March. Deputies have responded to complaints about loud parties at Bieber's place.

Except for warnings, nothing was done. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's office concluded that they couldn't prove the spitting or speeding cases in court, so they declined to prosecute.

Prosecutors also rejected a misdemeanor battery complaint from a photographer who accused Bieber of attacking him in the parking lot of a Calabasas shopping center as he was taking photos of Bieber and his then-girlfriend, Selena Gomez, in May 2012.

"We didn't do this search warrant to send a message," Thompson said Tuesday. "That's not what we do, but we hope maybe that understanding the gravity of this will change some of the behavior."

If detectives find evidence that Justin Bieber attacked his neighbor with eggs, they will present their findings to the district attorney for possible prosecution. This could happen in a few days or weeks, Thompson said.

The estimated $20,000 in damage to the neighbor's house would make it felony vandalism, which could carry prison time.

Lil Za's lament

Bieber house guest Lil Za -- a 20-year-old rapper whose real name is Xavier Smith -- is steaming over the media attention and legal troubles that followed his abrupt awakening Tuesday morning.

Deputies found suspected illegal drugs "in plain view" of Lil Za when they entered his bedroom in Bieber's home, Thompson said. He was arrested on a felony drug charge. To make his bad day worse, he was also charged with felony vandalism after allegedly busting the telephone in the jail while he was waiting to be bailed out.

Za tweeted this Thursday: "Honestly, the media is making me someone I'm not. But only those in my shoes can relate. ... These ppl get paid to make you look bad. Some stuff I've done has been wrong yes. but look at the position I'm in and the color of my skin. Cocaine? Really? All this time I was home in tx nobody gave a f--k about what Za is doing ..soon as he gets to La he's all over the news."

Thompson initially said the Texas native was found with cocaine, but later said the drugs were suspected to be Ecstasy -- aka Molly -- and Xanax.

'You Want A Hot Body': Britney Spears Works Out With Boyfriend David Lucado

Britney Spears clearly means the lyrics in her hit song 'Work B****' as she is spotted leaving the gym after a punishing dance class work out with her boyfriend David Lucado in Santa Monica.Pop's princess Britney is clearly serious about getting into shape as she hits the gym with her boyfriend of one year.The 32-year-old is probably working on her fitness due to the physically demanding routines in her Las Vegas show, Britney: Piece of Me at the Planet Hollywood Resort &Casino.Britney made sure she and her beau were fully hydrated for the dance class as she was seen carrying two bottles of water as she exitted the building.

Unlike other celebs who manage to look perfect whilst working, Britney looked just like us in her baggy black sweatpants and worn out looking grey t-shirt. Ms Spears still brought some glamour to the occasion with bright pink trainers and some visible eye make-up.Perhaps she was trying out some new stage choreography?

Britney had support during the gym sesh, in the shape of her boyfriend Lucado. The loved up pair left the buidling together before driving off in Brit's swanky convertable.

A source revealed to E! News: “They are totally in love and they make a good pair,” adding, “He's from a small town and she is very sheltered. It's a good mix.”And it looks as though David is even happy to move his work to Las Vegas whilst Brit's two-year residency is under way. “He is extremely happy and doing very well,” the source added. “He is still doing his business but now in Las Vegas.”

David is so supportive of his girlfriend, he even took the time to chat to her fans whilst attending a dress rehearsal. Whilst taking photos with the crowd Lucado told fans that the Piece of Me singer had worked "very very hard on the show" and that he was "very very proud" of his beautiful lady.How cute!

Britney Spears clearly means the lyrics in her hit song 'Work B****' as she is spotted leaving the gym after a punishing dance class work out with her boyfriend David Lucado in Santa Monica.
Pop's princess Britney is clearly serious about getting into shape as she hits the gym with her boyfriend of one year.The 32-year-old is probably working on her fitness due to the physically demanding routines in her Las Vegas show, Britney: Piece of Me at the Planet Hollywood Resort &Casino.
Britney made sure she and her beau were fully hydrated for the dance class as she was seen carrying two bottles of water as she exitted the building.

Read more at http://www.entertainmentwise.com/news/137966/You-Want-A-Hot-Body-Britney-Spears-Works-Out-With-Boyfriend-David-Lucado#PSAzpEsJvQfK4KAC.99

Britney Spears clearly means the lyrics in her hit song 'Work B****' as she is spotted leaving the gym after a punishing dance class work out with her boyfriend David Lucado in Santa Monica.
Pop's princess Britney is clearly serious about getting into shape as she hits the gym with her boyfriend of one year.The 32-year-old is probably working on her fitness due to the physically demanding routines in her Las Vegas show, Britney: Piece of Me at the Planet Hollywood Resort &Casino.
Britney made sure she and her beau were fully hydrated for the dance class as she was seen carrying two bottles of water as she exitted the building.

Read more at http://www.entertainmentwise.com/news/137966/You-Want-A-Hot-Body-Britney-Spears-Works-Out-With-Boyfriend-David-Lucado#PSAzpEsJvQfK4KAC.99

Britney Spears clearly means the lyrics in her hit song 'Work B****' as she is spotted leaving the gym after a punishing dance class work out with her boyfriend David Lucado in Santa Monica.
Pop's princess Britney is clearly serious about getting into shape as she hits the gym with her boyfriend of one year.The 32-year-old is probably working on her fitness due to the physically demanding routines in her Las Vegas show, Britney: Piece of Me at the Planet Hollywood Resort &Casino.
Britney made sure she and her beau were fully hydrated for the dance class as she was seen carrying two bottles of water as she exitted the building.

Read more at http://www.entertainmentwise.com/news/137966/You-Want-A-Hot-Body-Britney-Spears-Works-Out-With-Boyfriend-David-Lucado#PSAzpEsJvQfK4KAC.99

Vin Diesel makes plans for further Fast and Furious films

Vin Diesel is meeting studio bosses to discuss the future of the Fast and Furious franchise in the wake of star Paul Walker’s death.
Taking to his Facebook page, the actor posted a picture of himself with Walker as he revealed he would be discussing the completion of the seventh FF film.
He wrote: ‘We always took pride in trying to make each one better than the last…
‘P.s. Tomorrow we meet with the studio, regarding the future of the Fast saga…and the completion of Seven.’

Hollywood Kicks Off 2014 Awards Season with Golden Globes

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA — In a year widely regarded as a bountiful one for high-quality films and acting, the Golden Globes weigh in on Sunday with the first big honors of the Hollywood awards season, which  culminates in seven weeks with the Oscars.

Two starkly different American stories lead nominations for the 71st Annual Golden Globe Awards with seven nods apiece - the brutal depiction of pre-Civil War slavery 12 Years a Slave and 1970s corruption caper American Hustle. They will compete for best motion picture in different categories, drama and comedy or musical, respectively.

Gravity, starring Sandra Bullock as an astronaut lost in space and life, also ranks high in experts' predictions and could give 12 Years a Slave a challenge for the night's most coveted award, best drama.

Golden Globes are also given out for television, where established dramas like Breaking Bad and Downton Abbey will compete with the likes of Netflix newcomer House of Cards.

The Golden Globes, under the purview of some 90 journalists in the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, have outsized clout in the awards race as buzz around these first honors influences members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in their voting for the Oscars, which will be handed out March 2.

"You can just see the Oscar voter who starts to hear the buzz build for '12 Years a Slave,' and has been dreading picking up the (DVD) screener to watch the movie," said Keith Simanton, managing editor for the IMDB movie site.

"But he reaches for it, and says to his wife, 'Maybe we ought to watch it.'"

Oscar nominations will be announced on Thursday, but voting has already concluded. The Globes have a mixed record when it comes to predicting the Oscar best picture, though last year's best drama winner, Argo, did go on to win the Academy Award for best movie.

The Golden Globes follow a very good year for film, both commercially and critically. North American box office receipts totaled a record $10.9 billion in 2013 and top performers went beyond the typical blockbuster action movies to include acclaimed films such as Gravity.

Sunday night could also boost the fortunes of smaller films that have fared well among critics, including Joel and Ethan Coen's paean to 1960s folk music Inside Llewyn Davis, Spike Jonze's quirky computer-age romance Her, and Alexander Payne's homage to the heartland Nebraska.

Oscar-winning women compete

The intense competition extends to the acting races, where Britain's Chiwetel Ejiofor will compete for best actor in a drama for his role as the free man sold into slavery in 12 Years a Slave. Matthew McConaughey is also considered a frontrunner for his portrayal of an unlikely AIDS activist in Dallas Buyers Club, for which he lost 50 pounds.

Leonardo DiCaprio will get his shot at best actor in a comedy or musical for his turn as a swindling stockbroker in Martin Scorsese's tale of American greed, The Wolf of Wall Street. He has stiff competition from veteran actor Bruce Dern as a cantankerous and delusional father in Nebraska.

For best actress in a drama, it's a battle between Oscar winners, with Bullock going up against Cate Blanchett for her riches-to-rags role in Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine and Judi Dench for her turn as a mother looking for a long-lost son in adoption drama Philomena.

The HFPA will also honor Woody Allen with the Cecil B DeMille award recognizing outstanding contribution to the entertainment field. Allen, famously averse to awards shows, is not expected to collect the honor, but one of his favorite actresses, Diane Keaton, will reportedly stand in for him.

While considered a warm-up for the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes live telecast on Comcast Corp's NBC network offers many of the same ingredients, such as the glamor of the red carpet for Hollywood's leading ladies and the dense concentration of Tinseltown's top talent in one room.

But the Globes serve up cocktails and an air of whimsy and unpredictability in contrast to the more tightly scripted Academy Awards.

Comedians Tina Fey and Amy Poehler will return to host the Golden Globes for the second consecutive year.

Daily coffee might enhance memory

Swarms of morning commuters clutch cups of coffee to kick-start the workday. But a new study suggests caffeine might do more for the brain than boost alertness — it may help memory too.
Researchers from Johns Hopkins University looked at caffeine’s impact on memory while excluding its other brain-enhancing factors. The study showed that caffeine enhances certain memories for up to 24 hours after it’s consumed.
“The finding that caffeine has an effect on this process in humans — the process of making memories more permanent, less forgettable — was one of the big novelties,” said study author Michael Yassa, an assistant professor of neurobiology and behavior at the University of California, Irvine.
The study included more than 100 participants who were “caffeine naive,” meaning they were not big coffee, tea or cola drinkers, Yassa said.
“We picked people who were getting less than 500 milligrams of caffeine a week,” he said. “Most weren’t coffee drinkers. Most had a soda once or twice a week.”
Coffee’s caffeine content varies greatly. Most average-size cups contain 160 milligrams. But a 16-ounce cup of Starbucks coffee packs 330 milligrams of caffeine.
A dose of at least 200 milligrams of caffeine was needed to enhance memory consolidation, the researchers said.
For the study, which was published online Jan.­12 in the journal Nature Neuroscience, the researchers asked the participants to look at hundreds of common, everyday images on a computer screen: shoes, a chair, a rubber duck, etc.
“We asked them to tell us if it was an indoor or an outdoor object, but we didn’t really care about what they said,” Yassa said. “We just wanted them to attend to the object, to get that object into their brains.”
Five minutes after the participants looked at the images, half were given 200 mg of caffeine and half received a placebo. They returned 24 hours later, after the caffeine was out of their system, and looked at more images of objects. They were asked to label the pictures as either old, new or similar to the original images they’d seen (for example, a picture of a duck they viewed the day before, but taken from a slightly different angle).
People who had taken the caffeine were better at distinguishing the similar pictures from the original ones, and those who had received the placebo were more likely to incorrectly identify the similar images as the old images, the researchers said.
Yassa said the caffeine-induced ability to recognize similar, but not identical, images did not occur when people were given smaller doses of caffeine or when caffeine was ingested an hour before the picture test.
“On caffeine, the participants were more likely to identify the similar items correctly as similar and not old,” he said. “In doing so, This demonstrates that the caffeine enhanced the brain’s consolidation process — the process of making those items more permanent in their memory,” Yassa said.
The idea, Yassa said, is that outside the lab, you could have the same benefit from your caffeine habit.
“It might allow you to remember things —to retain memories —for a longer period of time and with more precision, even if you eliminate the other benefits of caffeine, like attention, alertness and vigilance,” Yassa said.
Dr. David Knopman, a professor of neurology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., said the results are interesting from a pharmacologic perspective. “Taking it at face value, it’s interesting research,” Knopman said. “It raises some questions about what’s involved in learning and how certain drugs might enhance learning in normal people.”
But Knopman said he doesn’t think the finding has any practical significance for people with memory loss due to Alzheimer’s disease.
Yassa, who also studies aging and Alzheimer’s, said more research is needed to figure out why caffeine might enhance memory.
The study didn’t actually prove that caffeine improves memory, however. One limitation of the study is that participants knew they were involved in caffeine research, the researchers said.
In the United States, 80 percent of adults consume caffeine every day, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Vin Diesel back in the sound booth

Vin Diesel has shared a first glimpse at his work in the recording booth for 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' providing the voice of the extra-terrestrial sentient tree Groot.
Given that the character is known for only being able to utter a single phrase in English - 'I Am Groot' - one does have to wonder how much Diesel needs the sheet of script in front of him...
[Vin Diesel officially cast in Guardians of the Galaxy]
Diesel's Facebook page has long since become a hotbed of 'Guardians of the Galaxy' news. It was here that the actor himself kick-started the rumours linking him to Groot, by posting a photograph of the larger-than-life Marvel Comics character.
Despite months of rumours, Diesel was only officially confirmed for the role in December - and again, he marked this with a photograph.
Now, Diesel has used Facebook to point out a link between 'Guardians of the Galaxy' and an earlier piece of voice work which remains quite probably the most praised performance of the actor's career.
Alongside the image of himself in the booth, Diesel notes "Some of you may remember the character I voiced back in 1998…
"Last month I had the opportunity to voice a new character, on the Disney lot… and I was shocked to see the same sound engineer, Doc, who was there when Brad Bird was directing me 15 years earlier, as the Iron Giant.
"As artists we are susceptible to clocking omens... and this was a great sign."
Engineer Doc Kane has been in the business for 30 years, clocking up well over 300 screen credits, as well as being Oscar-nominated for his work on 'Beauty and the Beast,' 'Aladdin,' and Brad Bird's other animated movies 'The Incredibles' and 'Ratatouille.'
[First official image of Guardians of the Galaxy ]
It was noted by Comic Book Movie that Diesel concluded the post by declaring "This summer's Guardians of the Galaxy, is not only going to blow you away, it could very well break Marvel records. Grateful for the opportunity to make magic."
However, this he has since edited this to simply say the film is "going to blow you away."
And well he might. While hopes are certainly high that 'Guardians of the Galaxy' will prove a worthy addition to the Marvel movie universe, all bets are off as to how it will perform at the box office.
However this latest ambitious Marvel movie goes down, we might keep in mind that this may not be the only role Diesel will portray for the studio. Rumours persist he may still be in line for the cosmic super-villain Thanos, teased by the ending of 'Avengers Assemble' and expected to be the big bad of the third 'Avengers' movie.
Do you think Diesel is a good fit for Groot? Think he was right or wrong to suggest that 'Guardians of the Galaxy' could be one of Marvel's biggest movies yet? Sound off in the comments below.
Ben Bussey is a freelance writer and comic book movie/sci-fi fantasy/horror enthusiast. He considers 'The Iron Giant' to be far and away the best thing Vin Diesel has ever done, and hopes his work as Groot will come close to recapturing that vibe.

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler: Dream Golden Globes double act

For many of their 71 years, the Golden Globes have been mostly thought of as not too much more than a big party and a kind of vague pointer to the Oscars, where the real business is.

But with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler presenting, the Hollywood Foreign Press' awards are rapidly becoming a piece of genuine television entertainment in their own right.
Indeed, such was quality of the wit of the two hosts, the award ceremony should be nominated for some sort of writing gong itself next year.
Fey and Poehler, who have a long-standing friendship and have worked together for years on Saturday Night Live, were dazzling on a night when, curiously, many of the other stars seemed to be suffering a collective bout of stage fright.
Maybe they knew whatever they said, it was going to face a fierce struggle to match the quality of Fey and Poehler's lines.

The opening dialogue was illustrative, crammed with great one-liners. Fey was straight off with: "Good evening to everyone in the audience and to all the women and gay men watching at home."

"We're going to get this done in three hours - or as Martin Scorsese calls it, act 1," she continued.
Poehler followed up with a comment on Netflix's hugely successful year: "Enjoy it while it lasts Netflix, because you're not going to feel so smug in a couple of years when Snapchat is up here accepting best drama."
Then a genuine showstopper of a line from Fey - that Gravity was "the story of how George Clooney would rather float away into space and die than spend one more minute with a woman his own age".
The audience, especially Clooney's co-star Sandra Bullock, was in hysterics. Showbiz journalist Boyd Hilton tweeted it was the funniest monologue joke he'd ever heard.
The crackers kept coming - introducing the star of The Wolf Of Wall Street, Fey urged: "Like a supermodel's vagina, let's say hello to Leonardo DiCaprio."
It was a line typical of the style of humour the pair deploy so well - funny but not fawning, clever but not caustic.
In contrast, there were comparatively few good lines from the rest of Hollywood's stars, although Jim Carrey got some good laughs with: "Dying is easy, comedy is hard. I believe it was Shia LaBeouf who said that."
The Golden Globes are generally a much more relaxed affair than the Oscars, but Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Adams and even veteran Jon Voight struggled to contain their emotions after picking up awards, all admitting to feeling strangely nervous.
However, as the evening wore on things got considerably more relaxed, signified by Emma Thompson arriving with her shoes in one hand and a martini glass in the other to present the award for best screenplay.
Cate Blanchett, collecting the award for best actress, admitted during the night she had been plied with vodka "in the same way Judy Garland was plied with barbiturates".