Television Watching is popular throughout the whole world. At the early stage of television in 1931, the chairman of the Radio Corporation of American said “the potential audience of television in its ultimate development may reasonably be expected to be limited only by the population of the earth itself”. The numbers of television worldwide is estimated to stand at 1.5 billion, with many more viewers, love it or hate it; television plays a major i.e. in people’s life.

Television Watching can be a powerful teaching tool. By means of it, we learn about lands and people we may never visit, “we travel” to tropical jungles and polar ice caps, to mountain peaks and ocean depths. We pee into the intriguing worlds of both atom and stars. We watch news as to happen in the other side of the world. We gain insights into politics, history, current events and culture. Television Watching captures the lives of people in both tragedy and triumph.

The time that many people devote to Television Watching is astonishing. Recently, global study showed that, on average; Television Watching per person is about three hours each day. North Americans watch four and a half hours daily. While the Japanese top the list at five hours per day. These hours add up. If we watch four hours daily, by age 60, we will have spent ten years in front of the screen. Yet, none of us would want inscribed on our tombstone “Here lies our beloved friend, who devoted one sixth of his/her life on Television Watching.”

How are Television Viewers affected by a steady diet of Television violence and sex? Critics charge that Television violence causes people to act aggressively and to be less sympathetic towards victims of real-life violence. They also assert that the portrayal of sex promotes promiscuity and undermines rival standards.

Similarly, it has been difficult to prove that violence seen through Television Watching causes crime and antisocial behavior. Many studies do suggest that there is such a link. It is hardly surprising, then that there are opposing points of view. A Canadian psychologist wrote. “The scientific evidence simply does not show that watching violence either produces violence in people or desensitizes them to it.” “However, the American psychological Association Committee on Media and Society said. “There is absolutely no doubt that higher levels of Television Watching of violence are correlated with increased acceptance of aggressive attitudes and increased aggressive behavior.”

Increasing number of Television viewers are becoming addicts. Though Television Watching offer much that is worthwhile, heavy Television Watching can cut into family time, hinder reading and academic performance in children and contribute to obesity. According to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, “Based on the cumulative evidence of studies conducted over several decades, the scientific and public health communities overwhelmingly conclude the viewing violence poses a harmful risk to children.”

The National Institute on Media and the Family puts it this way. “We agree with the American Academy of Pediatrics that there should be ‘NO TELEVISION WATCHING for children ages two and under.’ These children, who are undergoing tremendous brain development, need active play and real people interactions to promote their developmental, physical and social skills”

Verizon FiOS TV (fiber-optic television) is the fastest and largest growing network in the United States! And it keeps spreading becoming even more popular as people stand in the showrooms to find out just how well FiOS stands up against regular television.

People are discovering how clear and close to life Verizon FiOS TV really is. Once you see it for yourself, you will never want to go back to your old TV service providers. The perfectly clear picture is not the only great thing about Verizon FiOS; you get over 200 all digital channels and a very unique home media DVR that offers multi room functions.

The one DVR can record a movie while the family watches TV, then you can set it up at a later date to play the movie in any room in the house. This will save you a lot of money because you only have to have one DVR. You will be able to watch 3 different recorded shows on three different TV sets at once. The plus to having the DVR is that you can record 80 hours of SD programming and 20 hours of High Definition programming. You can also choose the HD Receiver, which allows you to access Verizon FiOS TV’s HD programming. Or you could choose the SD Receiver as an option as well.

You can also view over 14,000 movies every month with the On Demand Options. If you are tired of watching the same old boring TV stations that you see over and over, the On Demand will allow you to watch movies 24/7 if you choose to.

When it comes to the installation, you are treated with the utmost respect and the skilled technicians will be more than happy to set up your entire home and they will not leave until you are completely satisfied. They will explain the process of the installations and everything that you get with it, all for no extra charge.

Verizon FiOS TV gives you several convenient plans, plus you can customize a package to meet your desire. If you prefer, or are unsure what sort of programming you want, you can start with the basic package and customize it at any time in the future. The bundled package include the Verizon FiOS Triple Play and Double Play where you package more than 1 service up to get a better discount. These FiOS packages are most popular because of the maximum savings you will achieve!

Why wait to have the greatest TV set in town, join the rest of the Verizon FiOS community. You can be the talk of your town with your big screen TV and FiOS – which make a great combo. Get the thrill of your life. You will be glad you did. Check to see if you can get Verizon FiOS in your area right now.

A major international conference on agricultural biotechnology starts in Melbourne, Australia, today (August 6, 2006).The Agricultural Biotech International Conference (ABIC) brings together representatives of biotech companies, agricultural researchers and policy makers from across the world.

The theme of this conference is Unlocking the Potential of Agricultural Biotechnology. Some of the topics to be discussed include:

* Importance of biotechnology in meeting global food requirements.

* Application of agricultural biotechnology in biomedicine.

* Commercialization of innovative biotechnology.

* Practical applications of genomics to cereal crops.

* Using biotechnology to protect and enhance food supply.

* Biotechnology in developing countries.

Unlocking the potential of agricultural biotechnology is an issue that has been with us since the commercialization of the first genetically modified crop a decade ago. Developed countries, notably the U.S. and Canada, appreciate that agricultural biotechnology has been a prime mover of their economies. They have massively invested in it, effectively eclipsing the so-called conventional agriculture. The gains have been innumerable.

Farmers in these countries have almost doubled their income from cultivating genetically modified crops, that are usually high yielding and pest resistant.

In developing countries, the picture is different. Agricultural biotechnology remains a contested issue. Many developing countries would not embrace because of their distrust for the developed countries. Others have been fed with lies that agricultural biotechnology, and in particular Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), pose danger to the environment and the health of consumers.

Positive attributes of agricultural biotechnology must be played out at the Melbourne meeting for all to listen.

It’s encouraging that delegates from developing countries such as Prof. Jennifer Thomson (South Africa), Dr. Jagadish Mittur (India), and Dr. Rangsun Parnpai (Thailand) are attending this conference. They have a chance to learn firsthand how agricultural biotechnology has revolutionized the economies of such countries as the U.S., Canada, New Zealand, and Australia. These delegates must explore how their countries can similarly benefit from agricultural biotechnology.

Since this is a gathering of experts in agricultural biotechnology, it’s expected that there will a productive debate on the potential of agricultural biotechnology. Delegates should conduct their deliberations with developing countries in mind. It’s here where agricultural biotechnology is in dire need.

Developing countries delegates are encouraged to view this conference as a window of opportunity to learn from as many experts as possible on the potential of agricultural biotechnology.

Once the curtains of this conference fall, delegates from developing countries must ensure that they share the lessons learnt with policy makers, scientists and farmers in their respective countries.

Caleb hangs his back-pack up everyday when he comes home from middle school. He kicks off his shoes, uses the bathroom, maybe fixes himself something to eat. The remote control gets grabbed, but mainstream TV is not what comes on the screen. Through the Sony Google Net Box, Caleb dials up a list of YouTube videos. He is absorbed as he watches one video after another and then another and another. By time his parents tell him to shut it off and get to his homework, not one single network program has been viewed. The sixth grader can’t tell you what’s on Nickelodeon. Cartoon Network has no influence. YouTube’s immense collection of videos about video games and random funny stuff are his poison.

Caleb’s parents are beginning to wonder about the benefits of keeping cable. Besides the diminishing cable TV interest of their son, the cable company recently decided to take away a few more channels and make them exclusive on the premium package. This came only too soon after another hike in their monthly rate. The combination of cable, Netflix and occasional Red Box now has the parents paying more on home entertainment than ever before. If the family can become more dependent on their Sony Box, then all they’ll have to pay for is the internet service (and possibly Netflix.) Ether way, the impact of YouTube and other video hosting platforms will probably serve as the tipping point in their decision.

Recent advantages in technology have added fuel to this video watching revolution. New video hosting platform websites have been popping up all over. HTML 5 and its built-in video player make it easy for anyone with server space to show off videos. Digital media distributors can provide and package the means for anyone to create their own video hosting platform website. Sites that used to just let you showcase photos are now bursting with video.

Because of all of this, marketing through digital channels now takes on a whole new look. Hundreds of thousands of businesses and other organizations now use video to increase results; and they do it by providing their content to video hosting platform sites like YouTube, Daily Motion, Metacafe and Vimeo. In turn, they share the content through the platform to other sites, apps and blogs, giving the good content out there legendary status. Internet celebrities are discovered overnight. Going viral is now a worthy quest.

The challenge for marketers is how to stand-out when sharing content. Successful ways have included the ever-present list making and interactive ranking. Through the convenient application of embed-able mark-up offered at these hosting platforms, website owners all around the WWW are listing and ranking their top video picks. Even the larger media outlets have joined in the game (see Fox News, Billboard, and USA Today.) Some of the sites doing a consistently good job at listing the best online videos are: mashable.com, Wikipedia and Huffington Post (now operating their own platform – aol.com.) For those not entertained by a mere list, there are ranking/rating sites that get viewers involved. In addition to the video platform hosts offering their own ways for visitors to interact, some of the more relevant high brow social media sites like Reddit, StumbleUpon and Digg use the power of collective judgment to filter up the best quality viral video. Other fun video watching sites like Funny or Die and Blip tv let their audiences select winners and losers of popular online videos.

The landscape of entertainment is changing. Soon the myopic conduits of television content will be replaced with the fluid and dynamic content channels that stem from the World Wide Web. With the influx of new devices and brilliantly easy HTML coding, the ability to provide better-than-ever variety and quality will become the standard norm.

Audio conferencing enables individuals from different locations to connect and speak with each other using the services of a secure telephone line. The process allows people who otherwise may not be able to physically meet each other to communicate and have meetings. This is a preferred mode of communication as it is more economical for businesses than to have their personnel travel across cities or countries to attend meetings. International voice conferencing allows people in different countries to communicate with each other at a pre-determined date and time.

This is more commonly known as teleconferencing or voice conferencing, any number of people can be connected at the same time. This form of communication is widely in use in commerce, education and business. It also saves time as traveling from one country to another can take time, and delays can always make such trips much longer. Traveling also causes disruption at work as the time it takes for an employee to travel means time away from the office.

An international audio con-call differs from an ordinary phone call in the sense that there are more than two people who make up a voice con-call. Callers are connected to what is known as a conference bridge which is a server that makes it possible for many people to communicate with one another.

There are different types of international voice conferencing services available today. The first type is the “dial in” which is simply dialing a number that has been pre-designated and given to all the participants of the conference to call. It is normally accompanied with a code or passkey that needs to be entered via a touch tone phone.

The second type is called the “reservation-less call” which is most commonly used for businesses that choose to allow participants in Canada and/or in the US to connect toll-free into the con-call. If the participant is outside the local dialing calling area, there is no long distance cost incurred as these are charges to the host of the con-call. This type of call also utilizes a passkey or pass-code.

The third type of voice conference call is “operator assisted.” Operator assisted con-calls uses services offered by a conference call company which normally includes the bringing of participants to the call (operator dial out), call moderator and live call monitoring, roll call, faxing or emailing of any documents to all the participants, services like translation, and many more services.

Such voice con-calls allow businesses to communicate with people in different locations or countries without incurring traveling, hotel costs, per dime costs, and any travel delays that can arise.