"Birth Order Trait"..Does It Really Represent Our Personality and Characteristic?

“We continue to shape our personality all our life. If we knew ourselves perfectly, we should die.”

-  Albert Camus

Psychologists claim that our birth order determines our character. Previous studies claim, among others, that:

1. the eldest child: more responsible, mature, often a perfectionist, a good leader, higher IQ, low self-esteem.
2. the middle child (any child born in between the eldest and the youngest): not an over achiever, creative, artistically inclined, often felt neglected, lack of direction. 
3. the youngest child: often get away with anything, not independent, often not taken seriously. 

Although this fact is being stated by the expert that is been carried out from an observation and research, but for me its not fully true. Being the youngest child in the family myself, I don't think the fact that is being stated above represent the character of the youngest child as a whole. It is true that the child at this position do act a little more lenient towards their family, but it is not to the point where they were being spoiled by it.

The first character that being specified by the psychologist which state about the youngest often get away with anything are totally not true. We still get the nagging every time anything bad happen. The beaten are still getting to us if  we do something wrong .  Its not like the world is in our hand by being the youngest child in the family. The punishment are still there, no matter in what position you are. As for the independent part, it depend on the peoples it selves. honestly, the youngest do depend a lot on their family. But as they grown up, they gradually become more independent as they got the taste of the real world, outside of their own family's world.

As the youngest family member, I do agree on the fact that we often not being taken seriously. Like if something  happen, an opinion from us are mostly being neglected as they keep thinking that we're not matured enough to handle a serious matter. People always treat us as a child no matter how old we are, as long as we are the youngest member in the family. And that is something to be depressed about. Even as the youngest, we still can be a matured and a responsible person. Our opinion should be counted as well, just like any other people.

The fact that the eldest child being labeled as having a higher IQ are not entirely true, as the IQ level does not depend on someone position in their siblings. It depends on their life routine, eating habit, environment and perhaps genetic as well. But I have to agree on the fact that the eldest has the good leadership in them as they been trained since little to take care of the other younger sibling. This goes to the middle child as well as they were mostly will be assisting the eldest child on handling the siblings, thus making the fact that the middle child lack of leadership and direction are not entirely true.

All of the statement and point above shows that the birth order traits do not determine our character entirely. Only a small part of it are true. But then again, as being stated by Albert Camus, the birth order can't really reflect one's personality and character as it is being develop along with the growing process, and it can be change from time to time.

Super best friend

1.   Be your own best friend first.

Learn how to respect yourself. Decide what boundaries are important to you and respect them. Understand what values are important to you, stick by them and seek others who honor those values.

2.   Be loyal.

Stick up for your friend when they need it. Respect those times when they need to stick up for themselves. Trust your friend and allow yourself to be vulnerable with them. Also come to understand their limits and say "no" when you need to while still being their friend. A friend of integrity is of great value. It is the fact that through ups, downs, and disagreements you still seek to work things out and be their friend that truly demonstrates your loyalty.

3.   Listen.

Nobody likes a best friend who just talks and talks, but never listens. If you're a chatterbox, it's okay if you're also a good listener. Whenever your best friend says something, listen carefully and say something. Don't just say "yeah" and move on. Don't interrupt or fidget continually while they're talking to you. If they ask for advice, listen carefully and give them the best advice you can. It'll earn you respect and of course, make them come to you more.

4.   Be trustworthy.

If they tell you a secret, keep it, never ever, ever, tell someone a secret your friend wanted you to keep. Don't even leak it out to someone you know you can trust. A secret is a secret.

5.   Stick up for them.

Sitting and watching your best friend get picked on or teased is definitely not going to earn you a brownie badge!! In best friends.

6.   Spend time together.

Hang out on the weekends or plan activities together every now and then, do some homework together, and chat during break at school. You don't have to live in each others' pockets, but make sure you spend some quality time together with your best friend to make the friendship grow and become stronger.

7.   Care for your best friend.

Best friends care for each other. Show them you appreciate their presence in your life. If your best friend is ever upset then ask them what's wrong. They might not tell you straight away but they will in the end, you just have to comfort them and let them know that you are there no matter what.

8.   Avoid expectations.

If you assume what best friends' roles are, you will get disappointed and frustrated. Best friends are one of the most valuable friends you have, but they cannot help or support you in every aspect of your life. Do not expect them to always be there, or expect them to say the thing you want to hear. If there are expectations your best friends need to reach, that will only leave you in a disappointing defeat. Be nice, do not email them saying they are a liar or you won't feel so good.

9.   Share laughs.

There is nothing like laughing and smiling to bring people together. Besides, when they're really friends, you guys can laugh at the dumbest and funniest stuff.

10. Be yourself.

You are who you are, and your best friend will accept that. Being "fake" could lead you to losing your best friend.

11. Maybe you weren't meant to be best friends.

If neither of you make an effort to get together, or if you get into fights with them for no reason, then maybe you weren't meant to be best friends. It's natural to stop having chemistry with a certain person, and if you grow apart, just be happy for the good times, and know how lucky you were to have that great person have a part in your life.

12. Never leave them.

I've done this many times before and i regret it a lot. Never say "yeah, i'll walk home with you!" or "i'll meet up with you tomorrow" and then you don't do it. That makes your friend think do i really trust her? Never do this.

13. If they pick another friend over you, just try to be friends with her friend too.

Maybe you guys can be a group of friends!

"Do you think we should give monetary incentives to the KP2 students to motivate them to get better grades?"

 the third topic that has been assigned to us for this week is "Do you think we should give monetary incentives to the KP2 students to motivate them to get better grades?".. quiet a tough topic i must say.. it gets me almost a week to think about it, and yet i didn't come with any idea at all..haha..and now since the time almost up, i must quickly think some idea or else, i might just facing a trouble with this course..*sigh*..okay, enough with all the ramble talk, and lets enter the serious mode..

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 A KP2 student can be defined as a student who had a low grade (in this case below 2.0 gpa) for two consecutive semester. If at the next semester they still get the KP title, they will be ask to quit their study. thats mean this is a serious deal. As it is a serious deal that involve someone's future, a lot of idea and suggestion has been brought in order to reduce the number of student in this category and help those student to improve. Among the suggestion was the incentives in form of money to motivate them to get a better grades. as it seems promising to some, but for me it is not an appropriate act to do. Yes, i do acknowledge that money can surely boost someone motivation and spirit, but how long can it last?  There are several points that can support my objection to this suggestion, which is it that the incentive can only last for short term, it cannot really make them set their goal and mind straight, and can even lead someone else to the wrong path.

 As I said before, the incentive given (in a form of money) can only last for a short period. This is because, it is a common behavior for students (which majority of them are teenagers) to only have their spirit lift up the moment they got the money, but after that? What does the money could really do to them for a long term? this statement doesn't come out of nowhere, because it comes from personal experiences and observations. Most of the students, when they got money on their hand, it quickly hype up their mood and they will start to think about a lot of way to spending them. The same thing will happen if the KP2 students gets the monetary incentives.  Although the main purposes of providing them with such incentives was to motivate them to get a better result, but this things doesn't seem like can be achieves. The monetary incentives can surely boost their spirit on achieving a better grade, but mostly on just the first few week after getting the money. After the money given has been fully spend, they will lost their will again. That happen all the time with the teenagers, which can easily be affected by money and losing focus when things happen.

 Another point that can be consider as the reason on why the monetary incentives is irrelevant to motivate the KP2 student in their study is that it won't make them set their goal and mind straight. By getting money in order to improve their grade doesn't seem like a right way to do, because it only seems like they study for the sake of money, not themselves. This way, it will make them thinking that money can be used to boost one's will, and not by depending on their own self and work for it. this is surely a wrong way of thinking for a student that suppose to achieve a good grade for their own self, by their own.

The last point that can support the argument on this topic is that money as the influence on achieving a better grade can lead student to the wrong path. Most of the people are aware that students are mostly facing with the financial issues as the allowance that been given to them is not enough to support their life. There are a lot to be thinking about by the students nowadays, such as the transportation cost, house rental, books, finishing projects and so on. Most of the time, all of this can't be handle by the amount of the students' allowance. All of this can bring a tense and pressure to their life, as well as might make them thinking of a lot of way to gain extra money. So, imagine if the monetary incentive is being held, what is the consequences that can occur from it? Student that usually get a good or average grade can purposely lower down their grade, just to get the incentive money. As this think seem rather nonsense to some, it does has it possibility to happen as the pressure on having short of money can really make people do a lot of think out of normal thinking.

Three major point have been stated in order to bring out  a clearer view on the disadvantages that can be bring by having a monetary as the incentives for KP2 students to motivate them to get better grades. There is a lot of other way to motivate them, such as assign them to a study group that consist of a student with a good grade to discuss the problem on their study together. A counseling session can also be held to help them gain their confidence on getting a better academic result. As being said by the Nelson Mandela, “It always seems impossible until its done.”

Chocolate

Chocolate has been used as a drink for nearly all of its history. The earliest record of using chocolate dates back before the Olmec.

The first chocolate house opened in London in 1657. In 1689, noted physician and collector Hans Sloane developed a milk chocolate drink in Jamalca which was initially used by apothecarles, but later sold to the Cadbury brothers in 1897.

Did you know?? Although chocolate is known for its rich taste, there are also many health benefits of eating chocolate. With a high cocoa content, dark chocolate is a great source of flavonoids, gallic acid, and epicatechin and is thought to be very good for the heart. Here are some other key benefits of dark chocolate. 

1. Chocolate may be good for your heart:

Preliminary research studies claim that chocolate and other cocoa products may have circulatory benefits. A study presented at the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s claimed that eating flavonoid-rich foods, including chocolate, ensured low risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Dark chocolate contains higher amounts of flavonoids than milk chocolate. However, through the manufacturing process chocolate syrups and processed cocoa powder removes much of the antioxidants. To experience chocolate in its unadulterated form, you'd have to by cocoa beans or raw, unprocessed cocoa powder.

2. Chocolate lowers LDL cholesterol:

Studies have suggested that eating dark chocolate can reduce bad cholesterol ( LDL  Cholesterol). An Italian study published in the August 2005 issue of the Hypertension Journal revealed that eating dark chocolate can lower LDL cholesterol levels by 10 percent. In a study, Pennsylvania State University researchers have also found that people who consumed flavonoid-rich dark chocolate have higher levels of good cholesterol compared with people in the control group.

3. Eating Chocolate may lower your blood pressure:

One of the key benefits of dark chocolate is healthy blood pressure. Cocoa contains a substance that processes a compound called nitric oxide. This substance helps in maintaining healthy blood pressure and blood flow.

Moreover, the flavonoids in chocolates prevent blood clots as they do not allow fatty substances in the bloodstream to oxidize the arteries.

4. Eating chocolate reduces stress:  

Eating a bar of chocolate may lift your mood. Many researchers confirm the  anti-depressant qualities of chocolates. A study conducted on 3,000 subjects by the Black Dog Institute found that almost 45 percent people with depression improved their mood after having chocolate. The main component behind chocolate’s anti-depressant properties is serotonin, a neurotransmitter. Chocolate also stimulates the production of endorphins, which can induce feeling of pleasure. Scientists have found that the endorphins and opoids in chocolates makes people feel less anxious and worried and makes them relaxed.

5. Chocolate is rich in Antioxidants:

The high flavonoid content in chocolate, particularly dark chocolate and cocoa powder, can not only relax blood pressure, but also may protect your body from aging. A study conducted by researchers of the University of Scranton confirms the high antioxidant content in chocolate. Flavonoids (or flavonols) in chocolate acts as antioxidants and fights against free radicals.