Improving the Vertical Jump

Volleyball is an incredibly complex sport. Requiring many physical attributes such as explosive reaction, precision body control, accurate ball handling, and controlled agility, the volleyball athlete’s number one concern is jumping – vertically, that is.

I’m often asked, “How does one go about enhancing their jumping ability?” Is jumping only gifted to those born with a high percentage of fast-twitch genes? Can the vertical jump really be increased?

I have had a lot of experience with jumping, and I know that with the proper training you can add at least 3 inches to your jump in less than 2 months. I’ve even seen increases exceeding 8 inches – I’m not kidding!

West Nile Virus in Florida

Health officials on Monday issued an alert for 14 north Florida counties after detecting the state’s first presumed case of the potentially deadly West Nile virus in a human.

The mosquito-borne virus killed nine people and infected dozens in the northeastern United States in 1999 and 2000.

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Hand Foot and Mouth Disease

Like many childhood illnesses, a virus causes hand-foot-and-mouth disease. Commonly spread by the feces-to-mouth route, the virus can also be inhaled.
Once it takes hold, symptoms — including painful mouth sores, and itchy rashes on the hands and feet — usually show up in three to six days. Read the rest of this entry »

Contraview

PINned Down?

As simple, efficient, and fast as iPIN’s new transaction service purports to be, it faces an equally simple, albeit enormous challenge: convincing a sufficient number of buyers (ISP-enabled consumers) and sellers (online content merchants) to try it out to create a valid marketplace. Read the rest of this entry »

Family! Part 2

Shii Ann said to the cameras (and I’m already concerned about how much screen-time she’s getting), “When I got here, it was like breathing for the first time. Or just, it just felt so good to make friends. It felt so nice to just meet new people who didn’t judge you.” Read the rest of this entry »

Virus Outbreak Continues in New York City

Health officials investigating the virus outbreak in the New York City area have confirmed that the infection, first identified as St. Louis encephalitis, is in fact West Nile-like virus, a pathogen previously unreported in the United States. Experts remain uncertain about how this rare virus arrived in New York, but suspect that it was introduced by migrating birds.

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Family! Part 1

When everyone got to their new home, they put their hands together and gave the same family cheer as Chuay Gahn did on their first day. They then saw grapes and and apples and noodles and cheese and crackers and wine and much rejoicing was done through the lands.

You know, it would really suck to be on a Reality TV show for people such as myself who can’t stand the taste of alcohol. Everything seems to be centered on wine or some other alcohol as the centerpoint for celebration. Big Brother, there always seems to be alcohol. The Mole serves only wine at dinner. Amazing Race – more wine. I’d be like, “Crap. Can I just get a Coke?” Read the rest of this entry »