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Best Practices for Extending the Range of Your Wireless Network

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Having a stable Internet connection in your home or office is about so much more than just easily visiting your favorite websites. It’s how we communicate and collaborate with others. It’s how we keep in touch with those who matter most to us. It’s what allows all of our devices access to the Internet, regardless of where we’re using them or what we’re trying to do.

If you’ve recently set up a network in your own home but are running into connectivity issues, there are a few key tips that you’ll definitely want to take advantage of moving forward.

How to Extend the Range of Your Wireless Network: Breaking Things Down

One of the most important things to understand about extending the range of your wireless network is that router placement is of paramount importance.

The Wi-Fi signal being broadcast by your router doesn’t go out into your home or office in a straight line. Instead, it is transmitted in a circle around the device itself. The farther away you get from the router, the weaker (and thus slower) the signal will be.

Therefore, rather than putting that router in a closet on one side of your house (and therefore experiencing signal degradation problems on the other), try to place your router in a centralized location. Doing so can help make sure that the entire environment is covered, including any basements or second floor spaces that you might be dealing with.

If you have a particularly large home and are experiencing network issues, investing in a mesh Wi-Fi system would likely be the best bet for you. Here, you’ll still have a primary router that is responsible for bringing your Internet connection into your home and broadcasting it to all of your devices. However, you’ll also have one to two satellite routers that you can place in strategic locations for maximum coverage.

So if you’re experiencing issues in your master bedroom on the second floor, you can place one of the satellite routers in that space. It will pick up the connection from the primary router and amplify it, making sure that all devices in the area have equal coverage. Many popular hardware manufacturers offer mesh Wi-Fi hardware, with Netgear and Google being just two examples.

In the event that you need to employ a series of Wi-Fi extenders throughout your home (which are different from mesh Wi-Fi), there are a few things you’ll likely want to keep in mind. An extender simply takes a signal and “boosts” it in terms of range – but you’re still dealing with the fact that the farther you get from the primary router, the slower your connection will be. For the best results, you’ll likely want to contact your Internet service provider and increase the speed of your connection before network extenders are employed. That way, you can still make sure that the devices that are the farthest away from the network have a stable connection to function as intended.

The Many Uses for Bodies Donated to Science

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Most people think of medical schools when they think of donating their body to science. And that is very common. However, there are other ways that a cadaver can be used when it is donated. Some are very surprising!

What happens when you donate your body to science?

The body donation process usually begins while the person is still alive. The choose an accredited donation program that can be through a university or nonprofit. The program screens the person while they are still living.

During this screening they go over the person’s medical history including illnesses, surgeries, drug use, and other issues. Age is not a factor in body donation, but if the body is too thin or too obese it can bar them from donating. Diseases like HIV and Hepatitis can also be dealbreakers.

The organization keeps the file on the person until they pass away. Then they conduct a second medical assessment before approving the donation. If the body meets the requirements of the program, its accepted.

A donated is not embalmed like it would be for a funeral home. It undergoes a special process that will preserve it for several years. Once the donor’s time is up, the remains are cremated. If the family wants the ashes, they are returned to them with a death certificate.

How is a Donated Body Used?

There are actually many ways that a donated body can be used. It all depends on where they make the donation. These are a few of the most common.

The Medical Industry

Medical professionals, researchers, and students have long used cadavers to train future doctors, further research, and more. It has come a long way since the grave robbing days when the bodies were in short supply for training and research.

Here are some of the more common ways that cadavers are used in medical environments.

  • Train medical students
  • Further medical research
  • Advance surgery procedures
  • Train surgeons
  • Test laser treatments
  • Train first responders

The Crash Test Cadaver

The Wayne State University School of Medicine fields the donations, but if the person wants their body to be part of the safety testing, they are sent to the Bio-Mechanics lab. Then their body can be used to provide information on crashes and how they impact the human body in ways that plastic crash test dummies simply cannot.

The Museum Exhibit

Mutter Museum in Philadelphia or the University of New Mexico’s Maxwell Museum of Anthropology will use donated bodies for their exhibits. The Maxwell Museum has a large skeleton collection.

The Body Farm

The University of Tennessee Forensic Anthropology Center, called “The Body Farm,” has hundreds of skeletons and cadavers that is uses to research the stages of decay in various environments. The 2 ½ acre farm helps law enforcement and anthropologists answer vital questions about determining time of death and body identification.

If you want to live on after you pass and make a contribution to humanity by donating your body, you have many options. Before you make the decision though, you should talk to your loved ones and iron out any details because some donations require that the donor foots the transport bill. So, make sure you understand the program and all of its requirements and processes so your donation can go smoothly.

 

 

Helping Someone Else Can Relieve Depression

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You’ve probably heard the saying that when you are down in the dumps the quickest way to feel better is to help someone else.

Turns out, there’s some truth to that.

The Low Self-Esteem and Depression Link

Research shows that there is a major link between low self-esteem and depression. In fact, low self-esteem is often a predictor of depression later in life. However, while a poor self-image can lead to depression, when depression improves so does self-image. It is a strange and difficult cycle.

Counseling that focuses on increasing self-esteem can help to prevent depression but finding ways to do that is a bit tricky. Outside validation is fickle and fleeting. One day people could have a positive opinion of a person and the next day it could flip to negative. So, it seems that the best way to accomplish this is to raise self-esteem internally and not worry about outer influences.

This is easier said than done though because if a person is already feeling depressed, they are likely going to have a hard time building themselves up.

This is where intrinsic rewards become valuable.

The Self-Image and Compassion Study

A 2017 study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology looked at how interpersonal goals can shape relationships as well as depression and anxiety symptoms. The researchers theorized that trying to maintain certain self-image goals can create problems in relationships while increasing depression and anxiety symptoms. On the other hand, pursuing compassionate goals such as helping others may have the opposite effect.

The participants in the study found that when they focused on extrinsic rewards such as gaining status or approval of others while avoiding vulnerability while interacting socially, they experienced conflict in their relationships and experienced more depression and anxiety symptoms.

On the other hand, when they focused on intrinsic rewards such as pursuing compassionate goals which included helping others and avoiding behavior that was self-centered or selfish, their relationships were better, and they experience fewer depression and anxiety symptoms.

The message is clear. When you help others and practice compassion, you are happier, and it can lessen your depression and anxiety symptoms.

Ways to Practice Compassion and Help Others

When you turn your attention to others and help them you not only make yourself feel better, but you also make the other person feel better. Here are some ways to practice compassion.

  • Let others know you care about them.
  • Be supportive of other people.
  • Lend a helping hand whenever you can.
  • Encourage others with your words.
  • Avoid self-centeredness.
  • Do something nice for someone.
  • Avoid doing something that would hurt another person.
  • Have compassion when someone makes a mistake.
  • Mind your words and avoid saying hurtful things.

Helping others does not mean spending money on them or doing something expensive. It can be as simple as sending a handwritten note to someone who is ill or visiting someone who is socially isolated. It could mean complimenting someone or helping them put their groceries in their car. There are so many opportunities to help others – all we have to do is look around.

 

 

Why Setting Goals and Achieving Them Isn’t Working for You

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Goals.

How many times in your life have you heard that you just need to “set a goal”, work at it, and you will achieve it! 

Need to lose weight? Set a goal.

Want to start a garden in your backyard? Set a goal.

Want to graduate from college? Set a goal.

No matter what it is you want to do, it seems like all you need to do is master goal setting, and you can do it!

If you’ve been taken in by the idea of goal setting and achievement, this article is for you. Read on to learn more.

Why Goals Don’t Work

The first question we have for you concerning goals is: “How’s it been going for you so far?”

That is, How many specific goals have you set and achieved so far in your life?

Not many, you say?

Hmm.

In fact, that isn’t very surprising. 

Now, this isn’t to say that if you haven’t been able to “set attainable goals and achieve them” you’re a failure. Not at all. In fact, what we are saying is that the way you were taught to go about improving your life (with goals) doesn’t work.

Why? Because goal setting doesn’t identify the messy stuff that’s required for change.. 

Learning anything new, developing any type of new habit … it’s messy. If you want to attain a new skill, stop yourself from repeating bad habits, or alter the physical world around you, you have to slow everything down and actually change the way you think and make decisions.

Goal setting only talks about the end result. 

For example, if you want to lose 50 pounds, the goal is a 50-pound weight loss. But what goes into that? 

This type of achievement is way more complicated than just stating that you want to lose 50 pounds.

If you want to lose 50 pounds, you’re going to have to change the way you eat. This will mean taking a multitude of extremely small, detailed, and well thought-out actions. 

For example, you may need to start taking your lunch to work, which will mean you’ll need to change your nighttime routine to incorporate lunch-making. You may need to start buying different foods at the grocery store, which will mean researching which foods you’ll need and which foods you shouldn’t get. You may need to stop going to Thursday Night Happy Hour with your coworkers, which will mean explaining to everyone why you aren’t going.

And what does all of this come down to: Problem solving

Problem Solving: Opening Up Space to Make Different Decisions

Instead of worrying about your goals and goal achievement, it’s time to start focusing on solving your problems. What are the problems that are continually keeping you away from progress and away from your “goals”?

Identifying and solving each of these issues — no matter how small — ultimately means pausing when you come up against one and deciding consciously to change your behaviors, thoughts, and actions.

The way to start is with a pause. From there, you can see what problem or issue lies before you. And after that, you can decide to either do the thing that will get you closer to your “goal” or do the other thing that will keep you further away from your “goal”. 

Slow down, pause, realize, and make a new decision. Then repeat. Your life will change for the better in ways you cannot even imagine.

When Life Gets Stressful and You Want to Quit, Here’s What to Do

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Here’s a scenario: Have you ever woken up in the morning to your alarm clock blaring … bleary eyed from lack of sleep, staring at the ceiling, thinking about the day ahead … and what you’re really doing is wondering how in the world you’re going to get through the day because you have so much to do and so many people who are going to want things from you?

Perhaps you already have a few voicemails or texts on your phone from people at work. Maybe you just saw a negative balance alert on your bank account, along with several NSF fees. Maybe you can hear your children crying in the next room. They need to get up. They need their diapers changed. They need breakfast. Perhaps you just realized that you completely forgot you had a dentist appointment yesterday and that it’s your mom’s birthday today and you have no gift.

These moments can feel … overwhelming. It’s easy to get lost in this haze of stress and to feel like you’re drowning. It’s easy to want to quit and walk away from it all.

When this happens to you, here’s what to do.

What to Tell Yourself When Life Gets Too Stressful and You Want to Quit

Tell yourself this:

Life is always going to be stressful.

Let us say that again: Life will always be stressful.

Like a punch to the gut, isn’t it?

Get ready because here’s another one: You’re never going to get it all done.

That’s right. We said it.

It’s not what you want to hear, is it?

You want to hear that there is some time in the future where you are finally going to “get it all together”. You’re going to pay off your debt, lose the weight, organize your basement, have the perfect home, make $1 million, find “The One”, and have the ideal job that lets you take all the time off you need and is super rewarding and fun. Moreover, at this point, you will never feel stressed because nothing will ever go wrong, and you will die peacefully in your sleep at the age of 110.

This little story above is not something that we tell ourselves explicitly. It’s not something that clearly runs through our minds because if it did, we’d instantly realize how foolish it is. Has any of this cascade of wonderful events ever happened to you before? To anyone you know? Have you ever known a time period in your life where absolutely nothing went wrong? Do you always get what you want?

Chances are, the answer to these questions is no across-the-board.

Why are we saying all this? Because the sooner you understand it, the sooner you can get to work on improving what you can and letting go of what you can’t.

Life will always be stressful. If you feel that “life is just stressful right now,” you will imagine a dream in which it’s not stressful, and this is what will really mess with you.

It is when you can accept the current state of things and work on what you can while not letting the small stuff bother you, that you can really make progress. You, and millions of other people, have daily challenges, all of which threaten to take you down. It is those among us who rise to the occasion and accept these challenges — doing their best to combat and work with problems that arise — who will overcome and learn to enjoy and cherish life as it is … not as it “should be”.

Here’s Everything You Need to Do When You Bring Home a New Computer

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Bringing home a new computer can certainly be a fun experience, especially if you’ve been working on an older machine for quite some time. In a lot of situations, you just don’t realize how sluggish your legacy equipment has been until you have the chance to use something that has been manufactured more recently.

While that new computer is likely ready-to-go out of the box, there are still a few important steps that you should take to help make sure you’re getting every last bit of the performance that you’ve paid for.

Breaking in a New Computer: An Overview

When you bring home a brand new computer for the first time, one step that you should take immediately involves removing all of those pre-installed programs that you don’t actually need.

Those applications go by many names, with "bloatware" being among the most common. This is especially true if your new computer is running the Windows operating system, which is notorious for this kind of thing.

Go into the Control Panel in Windows and select the option labeled "Programs and Features." This will give you a detailed overview of everything installed on your machine. Select the applications you have no intention of using and click the "Uninstall" option. Not only can this give you an almost instant performance boost, but you can free up quite a bit of valuable hard drive space as well.

Note that this issue isn’t quite as prominent on a computer running the MacOS operating system. Still, you can open "Finder" and head to "Applications" to achieve largely the same effect. Just drag any programs you don’t plan on using it into the Recycle Bin.

Next, you’ll want to check to see if any updates are available for your new machine. On a Windows computer, you will once again do this via the Control Panel. On a MacOS machine, you can click the "Apple" button in the top left corner of the screen and select the option labeled "System Preferences."

Keep in mind that just because you bought a new computer doesn’t mean it was manufactured yesterday. There’s no telling how long it had been sitting on a store’s shelf and, in that time, important operating system and other software upgrades may have been released that you don’t have access to quite yet.

In addition to bringing new features to your computer, these updates often include bug fixes, security patches and other essential changes that you don’t want to go without. So make sure that everything is fully updated before you start adding new software or using the computer in earnest. 

Finally, you’ll want to choose a backup solution to keep all of your important files and documents protected. On a MacOS machine, you can go into the "System Preferences" menu and set up an external hard drive to be used for backup purposes via Time Machine. Windows computers have a similar feature that will once again be in the Control Panel. Make sure that backups are set to occur at least once a day so that you don’t need to worry about data loss or other issues moving forward. 

Having Internet Issues With Your Devices? Here’s How to Troubleshoot Your Router

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One of the great things about wireless Internet connectivity is that, with the right equipment, you can achieve stable, high-speed coverage from virtually any location in your home. Do you have a home office that you spend a lot of time in during the day? You won’t have to worry about dropouts or other connectivity issues. Do you want to be able to enjoy a good book on your patio as you relax one evening after work? You can easily do that, too.

Having said that, technology is inherently fragile and regardless of how expensive your equipment is, it’s still possible to run into issues with your Wi-Fi from time to time. This is especially true if you’ve already embraced the concept of the "smart home" or the Internet of Things, as you probably have dozens of devices that are all actively utilizing your network’s bandwidth. Thankfully, all hope is not lost. If you want to fix whatever issue you’re having with your router, there are a number of important things to keep in mind.

Troubleshooting Your Router: An Overview

If you’re having issues with the Wi-Fi in your home or office, the first step you should take always involves rebooting the router that is maintaining your connection. Although this may sound overly simplistic, it’s actually quite effective for a few reasons.

for starters, just like a computer, sometimes a router will need to be rebooted to clear any issues that are being stored in its internal memory. Secondly, doing this will disconnect all devices from your network temporarily and will allow them to essentially "start fresh" once the router comes back online. In a lot of situations, this can fix the lion’s share of issues that you’re dealing with.

Some routers have dedicated apps that can allow you to go through this reboot process. Netgear’s Orbi routers, for example, can allow you to reboot the hardware even if you’re away from the home. It will then automatically start back up again. But in most situations, all you have to do is unplug the router for about 30 seconds and plug it back in to achieve the same effect.

Likewise, you’ll want to carefully consider the placement of your router if you’re experiencing connectivity issues. That is to say, if your router is on one side of your house and most of the devices that are experiencing issues are on the opposite end, it may simply be a matter of the signal not being able to reach everything you’re trying to use. For the best results, your router should always be in a centralized location in your home. The farther you get away from the router, the more issues you’re likely to run into.

Finally, always make sure that your router’s firmware is up-to-date. If your router has a dedicated app (as was true in the Orbi example), go to the "Administrator" screen and select an option that will no doubt be labeled some variation of the phrase "Check for Updates." Otherwise, type your IP address into a web browser, log into your router’s configuration screen (your username and password will be listed on the router itself) and check for updates that way. This, too, can solve a significant amount of the problems you’re likely experiencing. 

3 Hacks Remote Workers Can Use To Improve Mindfulness

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The once-prevalent drive to possess financial security has been tempered by a growing need to reduce stress and create a healthier work-life balance. According to the American Stress Institute, daily office grinds and unpleasant environments are driving forces behind the following statistics.

  • Approximately 75 percent of employees believe that workers have more on-the-job stress than a generation ago.
  • Upwards of 40 percent of workers reported their job was very or extremely stressful.
  • About 25 percent view their jobs as the number one stressor in their lives.

Shifting away from annoying commutes and seemingly hostile offices to work-from-home positions has reduced or eliminated some of the emotional hardships. But transitioning to life as a remote worker presents a new set of challenges. Getting to a low-stress place where you feel more mindfully present may require a few tweaks. These are ways newly-minted remote workers are adapting, overcoming, and feeling more comfortable.

1: Setting Boundaries Around Work From Home

It’s not uncommon for employees to grow reliant on workplace structure. For instance, you may go through your morning routine, punch in at 9 am, take scheduled breaks, and leave at 5 pm. Daily schedules are established, so staff members don’t have to think about it. They fall into a routine and focus on tasks.

Remote workers sometimes lose structure. People start to perform routine household tasks such as throwing a load of laundry in the washer or doing the dishes. After a while, remote employees have integrated salaried work with household chores, and life becomes one big to-do list. The solution for many remote workers is to sit down and write out a structured work schedule. Include a start time, breaks, and end of the day. Focusing on one item at a time supports healthy mindfulness.

2: Overcoming Feelings of Isolation

Human beings are social creatures by nature and too much time alone as a remote worker is not necessarily healthy. Regularly scheduled video conferences can help take the edge off feeling alone. Online meetings allow professionals to interact with colleagues and reinforce the idea you are part of a team. It may also prove comforting to have a weekly coffee hour with your former officemates before the regular workday begins.

People who go remote also lose the spontaneous after-work get-togethers. That’s why it’s essential to seek out evening and weekend social activities as well. Consider joining a walking group, taking outdoor yoga classes, or pursuing a niche activity that helps build a sense of fellowship. It’s impossible to be mindfully present if you’re feeling blue.

3: Practice Mindful Meditation In Everyday Life

There are two basic ways to improve your mindfulness. The first involves setting aside quiet time to practice it as a discipline each day, usually before you get busy. These are simple steps you can follow.

  • Place your body in a comfortable sitting position.
  • Breathe steadily and focus on each breath.
  • Sit quietly and experience the moment.
  • Be kind to yourself by not self-criticizing when thoughts crop up.
  • Let judgments pass by.

As you practice traditional mindful meditation over time, the second element usually emerges. You find yourself focused on the task at hand, whether it’s completing a work-related project or preparing a salad. Mindfulness is something of a mental health lifestyle, and remote workers are uniquely positioned to reduce stress and improve happiness.

Scientists Tried Arming White Blood Cells to Battle Cancer, and It Worked

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Imagine there’s a war waging inside your body between two types of white blood cells. However, this war is not cancer. In reality, it’s a relatively new type of cancer treatment scientists have developed that fights infection from the inside out. Instead of using measured doses of radiation to kill cancerous cells, this treatment, called CAR-T cell therapy, uses white blood cells that have been harvested from your own body, modified to contain a cancer-fighting receptor, and then infused back into your blood stream. Once back in the game, these new super-cells basically hunt down cancer cells and blast them with fatal cytotoxins. 

Not a Perfect Cancer Treatment, But a Better One

If it sounds too good to be true, it really isn’t. CAR-T cell therapy has been around for several years now. And during this time, scientists have labored to work out the kinks. It’s still not perfect, but it’s getting better all the time. In 2017, it was first approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a legitimate treatment for certain forms of cancer. Since that time, this revolutionary new form of immunotherapy has helped thousands of patients go into remission from illnesses such as acute lymphoblastic leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma. 

A Living Drug to Fight Cancer

Doctors at Memorial Sloane Kettering Cancer Center in New York have referred to CAR-T cell therapy as the equivalent of a "living drug," given to patients to help their own bodies ward off the devastating effects of cancer. To begin the process, doctors harvest healthy T-cells from the affected patient, modify the cells by adding a Chimeric Antigen Receptor, or CAR, and then reinfuse the modified cells back into the patient’s body. Once inside, the CAR-T cells bind to a specific type of protein, or antigen, that is only present in cancerous cells. Once bound, the CAR-Ts release cytotoxins which then kill the cancerous cells. 

But Does It Make the Patient Sick? 

Unfortunately, there can be a serious side-effect of CAR-T cell therapy, called Cytokine Release Syndrome (CRS), that’s potentially fatal. However, when caught in time, it’s usually treatable. CRS causes symptoms such as high fevers and flu-like symptoms. But it can also prompt major organs, such as the heart, brain, and liver, to stop functioning. 

The good news is that scientists have been working on ways to prevent CRS during CAR-T cell therapy, and they’ve recently made breakthroughs with a drug commonly used to treat hepatitis. This has proven effective in toggling the modified T-cells on and off in laboratory mice. And researchers hope to begin human trials within the next year. 

So, the next time someone you know is diagnosed with blood cancer, remember — there is much more hope now than there was just a decade ago. And a year from now, things may look even brighter, thanks to the dedicated scientists and doctors who thought to arm a single white blood cell and send it into battle.

What Can Worms Teach Us About Sleep?

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The next time you curl up in your bed for a good night’s rest, you may want to think about how the worms in your yard might be sleeping. A recent study by researchers at Japan’s University of Tsukuba has used the humble worm to discover a key that may unlock the door to better sleep for human beings.

 

The nematode worm known to scientists as Caenorhabditis elegans has been a mainstay of laboratory research since the 1960s. Known as something of a model organism, this worm is very easy to breed and care for. But, more significantly, many of the genes in its DNA have functional counterparts in the DNA of humans.

 

These facts make the recent study by the University of Tsukuba incredibly noteworthy. Under the leadership of Professor Yu Hayashi, the University of Tsukuba research team published “Lessons on how to sleep: What we can learn from worms” in the May 2022 issue of iScience.

 

The researchers began with the hypothesis that the neuron ALA (a specific nerve cell in the central nervous system) plays a key role in the homeostatic regulation of sleep, both in worms and in human beings. “Our sleep is homeostatically regulated,” explains Professor Yu Hayashi. “In other words, the more we stay awake, the more we subsequently sleep…. C. elegans also exhibits alternating cycles of wake and sleep that are homeostatically regulated. Thus, we expected that studies using C. elegans might give us hints regarding the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the homeostatic regulation of sleep."

 

By isolating the ALA neuron in Caenorhabditis elegans, the University of Tsukuba discovered that it contained substantially more calcium ions when the worms had been awake for a prolonged period of time, and substantially less calcium ions after they have slept. Although they will have to be repeated and confirmed through additional research, these results suggest a direct correlation between the worm’s natural ability to homeostatically regulate sleep and the amount of calcium in its ALA neurons. Specifically, the buildup of calcium ions in these central nervous cells seems to play a key role in making the worm feel “sleepy.”

 

As humans, we have ALA neurons that are similar to C. elegans and a similar "sleepiness" trigger encoded in our central nervous system. This means that, despite being one of the most basic lifeforms with a nervous system, the worm can tell human beings a great deal about our own patterns of sleep and wakefulness as well as which cells regulate them and how.

 

The groundbreaking University of Tsukuba study lays the foundation for any number of forthcoming studies that will likely involve mice and other small mammals. Ultimately, the simple nematode worm may lead to a far more thorough understanding of why and how people sleep as well as new guidelines and treatments that can help people sleep better.