Jay Barr

• Most volcanoes are formed when the boundaries of our planet's tectonic plates collide and overlap, eventually sinking deep inside.
• Many get life by ‘hotspot volcanism’ which is the magmatic activity at the center of the tectonic plate.
• Volcanoes have created the foundation of the land on our planet, crafting mountains, craters, soil beds and eventually making up to 80 percent of our surface.
• About 1500 of them are active as of 2018.

75 percent of the active volcanoes of our planet are around the ring of fire, which is a horseshoe-shaped zone starting from South to North America, then moving towards Japan and New Zealand. Apart from the flowing molten lava, an active volcano produces avalanches of hot rocks, ash and toxic gas through superfast explosions.

The volcanic mudflows, or ‘lahars’ are capable of wiping out entire towns.

Scientists closely monitor volcanoes that are near a large population for signs of probable eruption, like increased gas emission. Like the weather, the signs can be misleading and unpredictable.

At least a dozen eruptions happen daily and increased network footprint and media coverage ensures that no such eruptions go unreported.

The 1815 Indonesian explosion in Mount Tambora is considered the largest and deadliest known volcanic eruption, killing 10,000 people right away and about 82,000 more eventually due to starvation and disease.

Every single one of us experiences stress on a daily basis. It is the mental and emotional strain that comes from needing to resolve demanding circumstances.

We have the capability to look into the future by anticipating behaviors and studying patterns, unlike any living creature. The power to imagine entire realities is both a curse and a blessing that motivates us and makes us behave in strange ways. But, we are not doomed to be in an eternal state of constant stress.

Since the stress that we experience is based on our own perspective of anticipating the next events, we must then understand that every time we anticipate a threatening situation the body releases stress hormones in order for us to prepare and face the threat.

However, if we believe that we have control over the threatening stimulus then we won't need to prepare the survival response that we rely on.

The most important thing when it comes to wanting to regain a sense of control within ourselves is that we must practice how to change our focus from the things we are unable to control to the ones that we can.

We have the tendency to focus on the threats and the problems that we've been given but we must remember that for the sake of our emotional wellbeing, our perception of reality is created by the focus of our attention.

Our beliefs about stress is also a factor we have to consider. Since we see stress as a negative thing that we must avoid, it's only going to continue to threaten our health instead of perceiving it as something that is a normal part of life.

If we halt from the perception of it as being abnormal and choose to see it in a different light as something that empowers us to do our best and to be our best version of ourselves.

There is a way for us to be able to use stress as an element for our success. When we intentionally push ourselves outside of our comfort zone and then set days where we rest, our capacity for stress actually increases therefore future difficulties would not seem like a bother, but instead as a fun and thrilling adventure.

This then becomes what's normal to our bodies and therefore creating an environment where we experience less stress because we have control over the stressors.

• Envision your ideal end result. What are you going to achieve?
• Write it down. It will serve as a powerful motivation, especially if you include why you want it.
• Create a detailed vision you're compelled to chase.
• Research people who have reached your goals.

• Regular Aerobic Exercise: Great for both your physical and mental health. Increases the production of dopamine and boosts creativity.
• Preparing Your Own Meals. It’ll take some getting used to, but it’s a habit that’ll boost your health, wealth and productivity. 

• Create a Household Budget: the best habit to help you save money. A household budget helps to encourage frugality and discourage impulse spending. You’ll feel more motivated to engage in other good financial habits once you’ve got this in place.
• Financial Audits. This involves frequent checks as to whether you’re spending your money as wisely as possible.

• Waking Up Early: Your productivity levels will be boosted by the lack of distractions at this time. It gives you a headstart on the day, creating a sense of added control in your life.
• Meditation: You’ll train your mind to remain focused and not to wander into daydreams. Meditation has also been known to help improve sleep quality and decrease stress.

• Cue — The scenario that triggers the desire to engage in the habit. It’s usually a time of day, a set of surroundings, a specific emotion or a set of ritualized behaviors
• Routine — The action itself
• Reward — The reason you feel good having engaged in the habit. This is usually the satisfaction of a specific craving.

The development of most good habits involves cutting and replacing bad ones.

• Losing weight involves cutting out snacking
• Productivity involves cutting procrastination and focusing on Deep Work
• Financial prosperity involves cutting your impulse spending

Set achievable goals and build them.

Small wins make you feel good about setting targets, highlight your progression and prove that success is possible. Without these stepping stones, it’s easy to get disheartened and give up.

Long-term goals are your most powerful motivators. If your ‘why’ is strong enough, you’ll find your ‘how’.

Create a vision board. Make affirmations. Put it on your phone’s lock screen. Whatever it takes.

Baby Yoda is the star of the television series, The Mandalorian, in the Star Wars film universe. It is a small, green-skinned, big-eared alien who can wield "the force."

The ways in which Baby Yoda's creators have modelled him on human attributes can give us insights into how and why people think certain beings and behaviours lovable.

Baby Yoda's features are similar to human babies, such as his big, beautiful eyes, oversized ears, and clumsy short limbs.

However, his charms reach beyond his adorable appearance. His behaviour and the responses he draws out are what melts the hearts of people.

The narrative of The Mandalorian series centres around the unlikely bond between a hardened bounty hunter, known as Mando, and the seemingly helpless Baby Yoda.

Baby Yoda is similar to a 14-month-old human. He's mobile and mostly nonverbal, and copies behaviour from adults. Actions such as making eye contact and giggling, sharing toys or other items, waving, and reaching out, make people feel more attached to babies.

As babies grow older, they start to incorporate other behaviours, such as hugging and gifting, that help to create a bond between themselves and potential caregivers.

The cute looks may draw them in, but their social actions keep others interested. These are the behaviours that convince Mando to care, protect, and make Baby Yoda part of their tribe.

We tend to think that practice means endless repetition of the same task, where the goal is to progressively become an expert. The most efficient route to expertise is not mindless practice, but deliberate practice.

People believe that expert performance means the performer must be endowed with talent. This is only true for some individuals.

The difference between expert performers and regular people is that experts have spent a deliberate effort to improve their performance in a specific area. They practice with the objective of mastering it.

Deliberate practice is focused, systematic, and purposeful.

• It is designed specifically to improve performance.
• It can be repeated a lot.
• Feedback on results is continuously available.
• It's highly demanding mentally.
• It's not much fun.

Instead of mindlessly practicing a skill without improving, deliberate practice can result in better performance and in a shorter time.

• Measurement: Deliberate practice requires to objectively track and measure your progress. It can be done with a simple note-taking app or a spreadsheet.
• Metacognition. After measuring your progress, it's important to make space for self-reflection. Journaling can be a powerful metacognitive tool.
• Mentoring. Having a coach or teacher can vastly improve the impact of deliberate practice.

If you want to learn and grow, and lift, and expand, we need to stop doing stuff like playing games, or wasting time on our smartphones, as that is only a life of mediocrity.

We betray our genius, welling up the psychic pain inside us and start to disrespect ourselves when we hide our true potential and just tolerate life.

• We lose the sparkle in our eyes, not caring for anything and resigning ourselves in the cult of mediocrity as we live a so-called normal life.
• We need to up our game and become world-class at our work, using up our potential to the maximum.
• It is our choice if we want to live like everyone else or become the chosen one.

• Accepting vulnerability
• Embracing a learning mind
• Opening to new possibilities
• Prioritizing self-growth over reputation.

We default to being right all the time. Realizing that it's Ok to be wrong takes practice and the first step towards it is accepting the fact that we are humans and we will face failures many times during our lives.

We live in a culture where work demands our complete allegiance. At the same time, it can be extremely enriching. You feel challenged by your work, you're attached to it, you're learning new things.

But, it is harmful to live an unbalanced life with too much focus on work and never truly being 'off'. It is detrimental to your relationships, your health, and your productivity.

Reconsider how you define success. Workaholics are always aiming to get ahead. But you also need to draw a boundary line that shows respect for your family life, and your physical and spiritual well-being.

After you have redefined success, consider how you want to invest your time and energy. 

There will always be more work to be done, but make a choice to spend your time elsewhere: with family, friends, or in your community. And when you spend time with your family or friends, do so with undivided attention.

When trying to break an addiction, enlist the help of family, friends or colleagues for accountability and support.

Reset the expectations of your boss and coworkers. Be clear about the changes you are making and the reason for the change. 

For digital detoxing, experiment with different solutions.

• Put your smartphone away. Put your smartphone out of reach after the workday is done.
• Don't use your phone as a time-filler. It can be a tough habit to break but it will help you to live in the moment.
• Model better manners at the office. Tapping away on your phone while someone else is talking is disrespectful.

Mindfulness is practicing nonjudgmental awareness in the present moment.

Mindfulness can be helpful for trying to break addiction to work. It helps you to get a sense of control and be deliberate about your choices.

You can work productively in a creative way for only a certain number of hours per day. Even then, you need proper sleep, nutrition, and exercise for more energy and better focus.

Also consider your family, friends, coworkers, and clients, who count on you and your good health.

Do:

• Redefine personal success to be more about high-quality relationships, community engagement, and physical and spiritual wellness.
• Be intentional about how you choose to spend your time and with whom you spend it.
• Try mindfulness.

Don’t:

• Go it alone — enlist the help of colleagues, family, and friends.
• Automatically reach for your phone.
• Be sparing on exercise, sleep, and wholesome food.

Our inner critic is the voice from inside our heads, that always puts us under a microscope.

Its "job" is to find and accentuate our failures.

But it is in your power to develop a relationship with it.

Think of your inner critic as a part of you, not all of you. This gives you distance from it and keeps you from attacking yourself.

Give to the voice of Confidence more of the time you were giving to your inner Critic, letting it acknowledge your accomplishments and positive qualities.

You can try imagining Confidence sitting across from you in a chair, as you listen to what it has to say.

The number of students majoring in psychology has grown tremendously in recent decades. And that's because psychology really is fascinating

Psychology delves into a better understanding of who we are as individuals and societies.

Psychology holds much interest for college students. And that's because young adulthood is often a time in which people explore different facets of themselves and try to establish who they are as individuals.

Young adults often still work on forming their identity and finding out who they really are. They also struggle with the emotional turmoil of romantic relationships. And studying psychology can help offer insights and a greater understanding of the self.

Studying psychology contributes to a much better understanding of other people.

Psychology majors learn about the different aspects of the human mind and behavior, and the genetic and environmental influences that contribute to individual behavior. It helps students gain greater interpersonal and communication skills.

An undergraduate degree can serve as a stepping stone toward graduate study in psychology, counseling, law, business, or medicine.

You might opt to become a social worker, a health psychologist, a counselor working with kids who need academic, social, and emotional assistance, and work on public policy issues that impact people's well-being.