Smile | Jotup

The Tunesmith Is a Must Read Biography on Prolific Songwriter M.K. Jerome, Recently Released by His Grandson Dr. Gary May

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

For movie and music lovers, this is an inside look at how some of America's best-loved songs came to be.

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For movie and music lovers, this is an inside look at how some of America's best-loved songs came to be.
Jerome, or Moe for short, was a composer who worked with some of the best-known lyricists to churn out music at an astounding pace.
The most moving section of the book, however, takes place in the period where the author's life overlapped with his grandfather's.
Gary May was born in Los Angeles and reared in a family of composers and writers.

Travel companies operating in Canada complicit in Taiji dolphin hunts, new report reveals

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, April 9, 2024

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The annual dolphin hunt, off the coast of Taiji, Japan has received worldwide condemnation for the cruelty it causes.

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The annual dolphin hunt, off the coast of Taiji, Japan has received worldwide condemnation for the cruelty it causes.
After World Animal Protection Canada's urging, the federal government and several Canadian travel companies have shown leadership in ending the dolphin entertainment industry.
Canadian airline vacation companies Air Transat, Air Canada, WestJet and Sunwing committed to phase out their sale and promotion of captive dolphin venues globally.
The full report, Waves of Profit: How the Tourism Industry Profits from the Taiji Dolphin Hunts can be found here.

Cracker Jack® "Cracks Open" the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and Enlists Dave Winfield as Honorary Curator

Retrieved on:

Thursday, April 4, 2024

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PLANO, Texas, April 4, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Enshrined in the lyrics of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," Cracker Jack® popcorn has been a staple at ballparks for more than a century. Now, the fan-favorite snack is teaming up with the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum to celebrate how deeply engrained Cracker Jack is in the sport with the debut of the "Cracker Jack at the Ballpark" exhibit opening today.

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Now, the fan-favorite snack is teaming up with the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum to celebrate how deeply engrained Cracker Jack is in the sport with the debut of the "Cracker Jack at the Ballpark" exhibit opening today.
The Hall of Fame worked with Cracker Jack to identify the most meaningful artifacts from the Cracker Jack archives to highlight the brand's legacy in baseball.
In his role as honorary curator, 2001 Hall of Fame inductee Dave Winfield helped Cracker Jack capture the passion and excitement athletes and fans feel toward both the game and the brand.
"'Cracker Jack at the Ballpark' allows visitors of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum to once again experience those cheerful moments associated with both the brand and the sport."

Colgate Wants Everyone to Know Your Smile is Your Superpower with New Campaign

Retrieved on:

Monday, March 25, 2024

Health, Pressure, Health equity, Smile, Beauty, SVP, Research, Superpower, Generation Z, Music, Work, Gen, Entertainment

NEW YORK, March 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Colgate believes in celebrating differences—in people and their smiles. But today's media landscape tends to tell a different story, as most online and TV personalities boast nearly identical sets of straight, gleaming teeth with no gaps. It's no wonder why 65% of Gen Z respondents reported that pressure to have a perfect smile negatively impacts their confidence, and 85% would like to change their smiles.*

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Colgate wants to remind people everywhere, especially Gen Z, that the most beautiful smile is the one they own.
That's why today, Colgate is launching the My Smile is My Superpower campaign by unveiling an original music video: "The Beauty of Gaps."
Through this campaign, Colgate aims to show everyone, once and for all, that all smiles are beautiful smiles, no matter their size, shape or shade.
"We at Colgate know that there is power in every smile, and I am proud that with this initiative we are providing resources to help kids smile with confidence wherever they go."

Daniel Kahneman changed how we think about human nature – the psychologist remembered by a former student

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, April 3, 2024

His scientific contributions, many made in collaboration with cognitive psychologist Amos Tversky, transformed the disciplines of psychology and economics.

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His scientific contributions, many made in collaboration with cognitive psychologist Amos Tversky, transformed the disciplines of psychology and economics.
I moved to Vancouver, Canada to study in his lab at University of British Columbia, which he shared with psychologist Ann Triesman.
Although Danny was not yet as famous as he was to become, his genius was widely recognised.
But Danny and Tversky showed that incorporating important psychological principles into economics could explain many puzzling observations about human nature.

Nudge psychology

Teachers (like myself) still use these demonstrations in the classroom, so reliable are the results they reported.
A simple example: given a choice between £100 for sure and a 50/50 chance of gaining £200, most people will take the £100.
But given a choice between losing £100 for sure and a 50/50 chance of losing £200, people will take the 50/50 chance.
Nudge theory is the notion that our behaviour can be successfully influenced through “soft” interventions.

The science of wellbeing

Danny also pioneered the analysis of wellbeing.
Our reflections about an experience are more likely to be influenced by our interpretation of them than the positive or negative feelings we have during an experience.
That is why his research, even published many decades ago, continues to act as the basis for new ideas and debates.
At one point during the evening Danny said that people were coming to see him to say goodbye.

Daniel Read does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

Dunkin’® & Ben Affleck Team Up Again to Debut “The DunKings,” Featuring Matt Damon and Tom Brady, in Two-Part Ad Culminating in Super Bowl LVIII Commercial

Retrieved on:

Monday, February 12, 2024

Premiered during Super Bowl LVIII, “The DunKings" features Ben Affleck, Matt Damon and Tom Brady.

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Premiered during Super Bowl LVIII, “The DunKings" features Ben Affleck, Matt Damon and Tom Brady.
In the brand’s first-ever Super Bowl spot, he took a surprise order from his wife, Jennifer Lopez.
After leaving fans on a major cliffhanger, Dunkin’s Super Bowl LVIII commercial opened in a quintessentially full-circle moment.
With seven Super Bowl wins to his name, Super Bowl LVIII was the ideal moment for his debut as a member of The DunKings.

Nylabone Extends Two Chew Toy Lines with New Flavors and Shapes

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, February 6, 2024

Consumer, Retail, Toys, Pets, Specialty, Filet mignon, Multimedia, Parent, Smile, Dog, Collection, Love

Nylabone®, an iconic brand in the Central Garden & Pet portfolio (NASDAQ: CENT) (NASDAQ: CENTA), is growing two of its chew toy product lines with the addition of unique shapes and flavors.

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Nylabone®, an iconic brand in the Central Garden & Pet portfolio (NASDAQ: CENT) (NASDAQ: CENTA), is growing two of its chew toy product lines with the addition of unique shapes and flavors.
View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240206113579/en/
Nylabone Extends Two Chew Toy Lines with New Flavors and Shapes (Photo: Business Wire)
“We at Nylabone are not only dedicated to satisfying dogs’ natural chewing instincts—but satisfying them in new and exciting ways,” said Glen S. Axelrod, President and CEO of Nylabone Products.
“These unique chew toy options build upon the indulgent flavors that dogs love, plus original and fun shapes that pet parents can appreciate, too.”
The new Nylabone® products include:
New Gourmet Style Chew Toy Flavors and Shapes – Made to wow flavor-obsessed dogs who crave a new type of chewing experience, Gourmet Style chew toys are uniquely crafted with bold bits of gourmet flavor you can see.
The new shapes come in two chew strengths Power Chew for extreme chewers and Strong Chew for tough chewers.

New Partnership Between Precious Sound and Apple Corps Ltd Celebrates Beatlemania

Retrieved on:

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

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February 7th will mark the 60th anniversary of their arrival in the United States – and the begining of Beatlemania.

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February 7th will mark the 60th anniversary of their arrival in the United States – and the begining of Beatlemania.
And to celebrate the momentous moment, Precious Sound has teamed up with the Beatles' company, Apple Corps Ltd, to release a limited edition Beatles vinyl record stabilizer set.
The stabilizer set - three silver-coated inserts which can be swapped as a 'lid' to the aluminum stabilizer - is the first offering from Apple Corp and Precious Sound's new partnership.
The stabilizer set will be available for pre-sale on the Beatles website and Precious Sound website on January 17, 2024.

Plants and bookcases in, living rooms and blank walls out: how your Zoom background can make you seem more competent

Retrieved on:

Friday, January 5, 2024

Research, Smile, Face, Male, Personality, Plant, Coffee, Database, Disability, Shoulder, Time, Zoom, Man, Interview, Trust, Woman, Environment, Nightclub

Your home surroundings help show off your personality to the person on the other end of the Zoom call.

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Your home surroundings help show off your personality to the person on the other end of the Zoom call.
Anyone who judged the bookcases of politicians and celebrities during the early days of lockdown will be familiar with this.
My colleagues and I recently conducted a study that found the objects in your digital background can affect how people view you.
However, the male faces were rated as significantly less competent if in front of a living room, novelty background or blank wall.

Jaws turns 50: reading Peter Benchley's novel, you barely mind if its self-loathing characters are eaten by a 'genius' shark

Retrieved on:

Tuesday, January 2, 2024

But the reverse is often the case with popular fiction, which benefits from the immersive, visceral quality of the cinema.

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But the reverse is often the case with popular fiction, which benefits from the immersive, visceral quality of the cinema.
Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel Jaws, which turns 50 this year, was a smash.
Yet when we think of Jaws, images from Steven Spielberg’s 1975 film adaptation are what come to mind – along with John Williams’ iconic theme music.
Read more:
From Jaws to Star Wars to Harry Potter: John Williams, 90 today, is our greatest living composer

‘The shark material is brilliant’

A career journalist, Benchley is effective in describing actions, events and scenery: shark hunting, the ocean, Quint’s boat.
The shark material is brilliant – the few times it cuts to the shark’s point of view (recalling Spielberg’s redeployment of the creature’s point of view from Creature from the Black Lagoon), the writing becomes electric, effortless.
Benchley is at his best when describing the movements of the shark in the water.
But the material about people is less confident – the writing is uneven and trite in places, with moments between characters sometimes strained in order to generate the necessary action.

Characters ‘loathsome in places’

One of the great joys of the film is the developing friendship between Hooper and Brody, culminating in their delightful final exchange.
After the shark is dead and they are kicking their way back to shore, Brody laughs: “I used to hate the water.” Hooper replies, “I can’t imagine why”.

The characters in the novel are thus thoroughly unappealing – even loathsome in places.
In the novel, Brody is “jealous and injured, inadequate and outraged”, a chauvinistic beer-guzzling bully, an obsessive – and often self-loathing – jerk.
Ellen is also much less sympathetic in the novel (though admittedly in the film she’s a cardboard cutout of virtuous motherhood and wifedom).
Martin, the middle son, age twelve, lounged in an easy chair, his shoeless feet propped up on the coffee table.
Martin, the middle son, age twelve, lounged in an easy chair, his shoeless feet propped up on the coffee table.

Is ‘easy to swallow’ better?

At the same time, Benchley – despite occasional flaws in the writing – does capture something of the dismal inconsistencies and banalities of being human.
The complex self-loathing of the characters contrasts with the brutal and unthinking power – the genius for action and killing – of the shark.
The film redacts the frailties and faults of the characters, turning an adult (albeit imperfect) novel into family-friendly fodder.
It comes as no surprise that the film also excises much of the novel’s pointed class critique.
[…] Their bodies were lean, their muscles toned by boxing lessons at age nine, riding lessons at twelve, and tennis lessons ever since.

Benchley’s novel lingers longer

Benchley, horrified by the bad rap his novel gave sharks, would go on to become an ecological activist focused on shark protection.
Benchley’s Jaws may not immediately grab one as easily as Spielberg’s, and it’s certainly not as technically accomplished.

Ari Mattes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.