TeamWorx and Leadership

May 22, 2008 at 9:56 pm · Comment
Wordcount: 182

My friend Erica was telling me about this team building thing that her company put on for all of the employees not long ago. She kept going on and on about how great it was, and how the team building allowed for everyone in the office to get to know their co-workers on a different level and to kind of bond. Basically she said that a company called TeamWorx put together this team building event where groups put together puzzles and then with every correct puzzle piece they put together, they got parts for a bicycle. The end result is that the group builds a bicycle together, and then donates the bicycle. The theory of team building is based off of Kouzes and Posner leadership model. Participants in the model and the team building events learn and acquire leadership skills that will help them to achieve their goals of excellence in their chosen career path. Leadership skills are imperative to a quality company and a well-run office environment. The workshops are also a lot of fun. My friend Erica sure enjoyed it.

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Magic Sand

May 22, 2008 at 9:39 pm · Comments (2)
Wordcount: 267

I am a subscriber to the Steve Spangler Experiment of the Week. Basically every week I get an email with a new fun and interesting experiment. This week I got an email on Magic Sand. Eric got some magic sand for christmas with a little science experiment kit I got him. It came with some test tubes and a bunch of really cool and fun experiments that kids could try. Basically what magic sand is, is sand that is coated with a special “water repellent” so that even if you submerge the sand in water, it remains dry. It’s cool cause you can actually build a sandcastle underwater and after you pour out the water, the sand is still completely try. Magic sand is a great way to demonstrate to your children the difference between hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties. Hydrophobic means “water-fearing”, while hydrophilic substances are “water-loving”. To demonstrate further the difference between the two, try this little experiment with your kid(s).

1. Fill a plastic soda bottle about 3/4 full with water.
2. Add vegetable oil until the bottle is basically filled up.
3. You will notice right away that the oil and water do not mix together.
4. Add a few drops of your favorite color of food coloring. Notice how the color only colors the water? Try shaking the bottle. The oil and the water still don’t mix.

The vegetable oil is a hydrophobic substance. What substances are hydrophilic? What other substances are hydrophobic? Discuss with your child the differences between the two.

In case you were interested, you can buy magic sand on the Steve Spangler website.

Commenters: Irene, Julie

Medical Records Software

May 22, 2008 at 6:19 pm · Comment
Wordcount: 175

My son has GERD, which for those of you who don’t know is gastro esophogial reflux disease. Recently, due to issues with his current insurance provider, we had to switch pediatricians. The new pediatrician wouldn’t prescribe him prevacid, which is what he takes for reflux, until he got the medical records from his previous doctor. The problem is, for some reason it’s taking forever for them to get his file sent over so he’s having to do without his medication. If they used an e-Prescribing software like NextGen, powered by VirMedice, they could easily keep track of all of their files and records electronically and it would be a snap to transfer them from one Doctor to another. Using a medical records software to keep track of your patients files is more practical and safer now than the old method of simply keeping paper files. What if there were a fire and all files were destroyed? Also consider the amount of space that would be saved and all the paper usage that would be reduced.

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