The term ‘Goldilocks planet’ refers to any planet in the Universe that lies within the habitable zone of a star. The habitable zone itself is an area of space around the star where temperatures are sufficient to permit the existence of liquid water on the planet’s surface. The idea is that if there is liquid water, life can exist.

The Copernican Principle

The notion is based on the Copernican Principle that the Earth is not unique in the Universe and that other Earth-like planets exist. Goldilocks comes from the fairy tale ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’. A little girl explores the bears’ cottage and chooses between three bowls of porridge, chairs and beds to find which item is “just right”.

The Goldilocks planet in the habitable zone should be similar to the Earth with a solid surface. Gaseous planets such as Saturn or Jupiter are not thought to be capable of sustaining life. Even if an Earth-like planet orbits within the habitable zone of a star, it may still not hold life. [Read more…]

We’re facing the highest prices at the pump we’ve ever seen and there doesn’t appear to be much relief in sight. That being said, there are a number of steps you can take to reduce your fuel usage. You’ll be conserving gasoline and saving yourself some money along the way!

1 – Don’t Run the Air Conditioning

This tip may or may not be practical for all drivers depending on where you live. This feature makes your car’s motor work harder which reduces fuel economy. If you are able, park your car in a covered garage or in the shade so the interior doesn’t get as hot.

Use open windows to circulate air through the car. When you do need to use the air conditioning, turn it off a few minutes before you reach your destination; it should remain comfortable until you get there. [Read more…]

I was the shy girl at school. While everyone else was out partying and enjoying the freedom of their college years, I was in the library. When I wasn’t studying in the library, I was alone in my dorm room while my roommate went on dates, made friends and made the most out of her college years.

My trouble was simple.

I wasn’t reclusive or introverted, I was overwhelmed. While other kids could get away with partying all night and studying a few hours a day, I had more trouble. It’s not that I was dumb. Studying and research were easy. It was the essays and papers that gave me trouble.

I had trouble figuring out what went where and what my professors wanted. Knowing that I had trouble gave me anxiety. So I ended up spending most of my time in front of my computer, taking weeks to hack through work that other students seemed to finish relatively quickly. [Read more…]

Advertising isn’t an industry famed for its honesty. We’ve all pretty much grown to accept that. We know that most washing powders make your laundry pretty much the same shade of grey after a while, that no amount of foul-smelling spray will cause women to stampede towards you ripping their clothes off, and that shampooing your hair is, in a lot of ways, completely non-sensual.

None of this really bothers us anymore. We just accept it as the rules of the game. But the trouble is advertisers have taken this as permission to go even further. It’s time to draw a line in the sand. It’s time to say:

Buying your product isn’t literally revolutionary.

In 1962 protest singer Malvina Reynolds wrote “Little Boxes”. It was a delightful little song with a lovely nursery-rhymish tune that was also a political satire mocking the conformity of middle-class suburbs.

Then O2 took that song, and put it in this advert:

Not content with simply taking a dead protest singers work and using it to sell phone contracts however, they “rewrote the lyrics for the last part of the song, to refer to the positivity and possibilities that we can create through changing things”. [Read more…]

If someone close to you is approaching a milestone birthday, you want to make sure the occasion is marked with an unforgettable gift, but it can be tricky to find that perfect present.

Whether your daughter is approaching her sweet sixteenth or your dad is turning 50 this year, take heed of these suggestions for a present that never fails to impress.

Sweet Sixteen

This is a really important birthday in a person’s life as you begin to feel and be treated as more of an adult than ever before. Celebrate a 16th birthday with a present that prepares them for the adult world, such as a driving course. [Read more…]