The New York Times bestseller that is revolutionizing the way Americans educate their kids-"Rafe Esquith is a genius and a saint" (The New York Times)
Perhaps the most famous fifth-grade teacher in America, Rafe Esquith has won numerous awards and even honorary citizenship in the British Empire for his outstandingly successful methods. In his Los Angeles public school classroom, he helps impoverished immigrant children understand Shakespeare, play Vivaldi, and become happy, self-confident people. This bestseller gives any teacher or parent all the techniques, exercises, and innovations that have made its author an educational icon, from personal codes of behavior to tips on tackling literature and algebra. The result is a powerful book for anyone concerned about the future of our children.
Rafe Esquith has taught at Hobart Elementary School for twenty-two years. He is the only teacher in history to receive the National Medal of Arts. He has also been made a Member of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth. His many other honors include the American Teacher Award, Parents magazine’s As You Grow Award, Oprah Winfrey’s Use Your Life Award, and the Compassion in Action Award from the Dalai Lama. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Barbara Tong. Read CBS's news story on Rafe Esquith.
"Esquith is a modern-day Thoreau, preaching the value of good work, honest self- reflection, and the courage to go one's own way."
"Politicians, burbling over how to educate the underclass, would do well to stop by Rafe Esquith's fifth-grade class."
An incredible one million new species of sea life has been discovered by just one small research vessel.
Called the Tara, she set sail two and a half years ago to probe the health of the world’s oceans and seas and her 70,000-mile expedition gave our understanding of marine life a massive boost.
As the schooner sailed the globe 30,000 sea water samples were taken, which revealed a huge diversity of tiny plankton.
These microscopic organisms are crucial sustenance for fish and whales and help regulate atmospheric carbon dioxide levels.
Remarkably, more marine micro-organisms were recorded than scientists believed existed - 1.5 million in total, with their sizes ranging from around one centimetre to those too small to be seen with the naked eye.
Dr Chris Bowler, the scientific co-ordinator of the expedition, told The Independent that the study provided a "snapshot and health check" of the world's oceans.
He said: "Nobody has ever done this on the scale that we have before. The task now is to understand the physical and climactic constraints that have created these ecosystems.
"How much is pollution affecting them, how much is temperature change affecting them? If a species of plankton sensitive to temperature migrates, it could devastate that food chain and therefore local fisheries.
"We want to find out the role of each species within an ecosystem so that we can better predict what the oceans could be like in 50 or 100 years' time if we continue to change them."
A crew is hoping to sail her through the Arctic Ocean by the infamous northwest and northeast passages in May 2013, providing the ice pack can be penetrated.
Are you off to yet another f***ing music festival? Then watch our handy video guide, made for HuffPost UK Comedy by Handface and David Schneider.
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 30: Diego Costa of Club Atletico de Madrid celebrates his goal with team mates during the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg match between Chelsea and Club Atletico de Madrid at Stamford Bridge on April 30, 2014 in London, England. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)
Three sides have failed to make the Champions League final after a goalless first leg since the turn of the century, and three times now it has happened to Chelsea. There was no ghost goal or refereeing incompetence to taint their ejection this time, though, as Atlético Madrid's stratospheric rise under Diego Simeone culminated in a first European Cup final in 40 years.
Diego Costa may prove to be the antidote to Chelsea's striker dilemma next season, but it was his right foot which secured a fourth consecutive semi-final disappointment for Mourinho, and his third last four failure at Stamford Bridge. Once a magnet for trophies, he could now experience a second barren campaign in succession and, despite his two European Cup winner's medals, is beginning to resemble a nearly man in the competition. Managers have got sacked for far less under Roman Abramovich's ownership.
Simeone greeted Arda Turan's 72nd minute goal with a jog down the touchline reminiscent of Mourinho's dash at Old Trafford 10 years ago. The new gunslinger in town had outgunned the sheriff again.
"José Mourinho, hijo de puta," - son of a whore - bellowed Atléti's following. Simeone ended Mourinho's tenure at Real - and lifted Atlético's derby hex - with a first win in 14 years in the Copa del Rey final last season, and their supporters partied like it was 1999 again in London.
Chelsea looked laboured, and the experimental formation, although doubtlessly worked on fastidiously in training, did not reckon with Atlético's vibrancy. "I want to thank the mothers of the players," Simeone declared, "they gave them big balls to play."
Mourinho paid homage to the London tube strike with his own form of congestion - six defenders. The fit again John Terry was joined by Branislav Ivanović, Gary Cahill, Ashley Cole, David Luíz and César Azpilicueta, with the versatile Spaniard moved to the right wing, while the indisciplined Luíz started alongside Ramires in midfield.
Atlético almost breached the rearguard inside five minutes when Koke's cross looped over a startled Mark Schwarzer and onto the crossbar, with the rebound off Cahill nestling onto the top of the net. Referee Nicola Rizzoli might have incurred the wrath of Mourinho's attack dog, Rui Faria, having missed a handball in the build-up. Mourinho jumped out of his seat but his son, sat six rows behind the dugout, was the more animated and even raised his middle finger at Atléti's fans during their derogatory ditty.
Perhaps a tad lethargic still from his bug, Mourinho was sanguine on the touchline. He shook the fourth official's hand randomly, as if to complete the pleasantries early ahead of a potential post-match diatribe, whereas Simeone was jittery and frantic, virtually trying to move his players into the preferred positions.
Atlético captain Tiago Mendes was signed by Mourinho during his first season at Chelsea and rejected the MC's attempt to publicly welcome him back to west London. Didier Drogba fell for such romantic gamesmanship but Tiago didn't, and he forced Chelsea to attack the Matthew Harding Stand in the first-half, rather than in the second 45.
Luíz's acrobatic effort in the 23rd minute was a rare glimpse of Thibaut Courtois' goal as the teams continued to cancel each other out beyond the two-hour mark in the tie. Costa was again marshalled authoritatively by Terry while it looked as though Fernando Torres was continuing his barren tribute act to Diego Forlán. And then he did it again.
The man who scored the clincher in the semi-final at Camp Nou two years ago, Torres crowned Willian's skilful industry and Azpilicueta's cross with an effort Courtois looked to have covered until it deflected off Mario Suárez. Predictably, the Spaniard opted for a muted celebration against his beloved. Even when he scores for the first time in over two months, Torres is unable to savour it.
Atlético seized the advantage one minute before half-time. Tiago pitched his pass perfectly towards Schwarzer's far post, where Juanfran knocked the ball back for Adrián López to finish past a scurrying Luíz. Brought to his knees by the away goal, Tiago slid past a taciturn Mourinho to embrace the jubilant Atlético huddle on the sidelines.
Mourinho decided against introducing an attacker at the interval despite Samuel Eto'o's name being aired, and two minutes after the re-start, Schwarzer was tested by Turan. The shrill from the Rojiblancos intensified with belief in the Shed End as their blue counterparts' frustration grew.
Eto'o was introduced for Cole with the second 45 eight minutes old, but not before Courtois repelled a Terry header. "The difference was one minute in the second half where the Atlético goalkeeper makes an impossible save from Terry's header," Mourinho opined. It was a grand overstatement.
Overly eager to effect the game, Eto'o did just that, only at the wrong end, as he blatantly tripped Costa to concede a penalty. Costa might not have had the chance to take it, as he took an eternity to settle the ball on the spot, received a booking, and then squared up to Terry, shoving him away. When he regained his composure, the Brazilian-born striker smashed the ball into the top right-hand corner of Schwarzer's net.
Luíz headed the ball against a beaten Courtois' post and Ba was thrown on in desperation, but Turan finished a quickfire counter-attack to dash any hopes of a Paris Saint-Germain-style comeback.
Decide that you are going to get a job and eliminate all other options. Treat unemployment benefits like the plague and a non-option.
With almost 16 million people out of work, more and more people are finding themselves in the job market having to land a job in a market where more jobs are being lost. This is the toughest environment in 50 years to get a job in and you better have your best game on to do so. While the consensus is that no one is hiring, apply the tips in this article exactly as they are written and I assure you that you will not just get a job but get the job you want!
1.	Decide that you are going to get a job and eliminate all other options. Treat unemployment benefits like the plague and a non-option. Unemployment benefits will not prove beneficial to you in the future as they will ultimately destroy your job prospects going forward.
2.	Spend more time replacing the lost job than you spent at the job you lost! Take the attitude that getting a job is your job and if you have to spend 50 hours a week doing so do it!
3.	Even if you have to take something you consider beneath you, it is better to stay connected in the workforce with less pay than disconnected from the workforce with unemployment benefits! (Refer to #1 again.)
4.	Disregard all the talk that no one is hiring! There are always companies looking for productive-solution oriented people that can help their company grow. While there are 16 million people without work, most companies have not gone out of business. Have the attitude that you will find a job and stay away from other unemployed people, as they are likely to contaminate your attitude.
5.	Do NOT rely on your resume. While it needs to be current and list all of your accomplishments, do not rely on it to land your job -- it won't! Companies don't hire resumes they hire people that can help move the company forward. A resume will not get you a job!
6.	Do NOT rely on others to get you your next job. Headhunters and recruiters are representing many people and no one is going to present you better than you will. Go into this endeavor with the belief that you are the ONLY one that will make this happen!
7.	Do NOT rely on the HR department and do every thing to bypass them even though this is not politically correct. Find out who knows the players in the company and get your story in front of the decision makers of the company. It is the decision makers that have the most invested in moving the company forward.
8.	Do NOT depend on the Internet or on social networking sites. They may be a good place to get a date or play poker but it will not get you a job. Let the other 16 million depend on the 'net' while you get yourself, your resume and your story in front of decision makers.
9.	In the interview do NOT talk about what you have done in the past, talk about what you can do to create for the company in the future. Make big claims as to what you will and can do for the company.
10.	Do NOT go into an interview to be interviewed, go in to sell your self. Avoid communicating from the viewpoint of what the company can do for you but rather what you can do for the company. Check out my book, Sell to Survive as it will show you exactly how to sell yourself to decision makers about why you are 'The One'.
11.	Approach every opportunity understanding that the only thing a company is interested in today is REVENUE. Anyone that can directly or indirectly assist in revenue creation is desirable! Those that can sell their ability and willingness to do whatever it takes to assist in adding revenue to the company are always desirable regardless of the overall job market. Things like being a team player, loyallty, and dependability may be some of your attributes, but they will not land you a job in this environment.
12.	Do NOT go into any interview talking about how you have been let go wrongly. Nor do you ever want to mention anything negative about your last employer or position. Approach your current situation as a new opportunity to create a new life for yourself and carry that attitude with you into every interview. It takes a lot of pressure to create a diamond and this may be the very thing that it takes so that you hit your full potential! Take this time to bury yourself in positive books and audio programs so that you bring the best you to every interview. Check out my "The Rules of Success" audio program to get your head right because your attitude is going to be 90% of the interview.
The Seven Secrets to eBook Publishing Success | HuffPost , an ebook publishing and distribution platform. He's also the host of the SMART AUTHOR podcast, where he guides writers on the best practices of professional ebook publishing. Mark's an author, entrepreneur, angel investor and advisor to technology startups.\n\nMark and his wife Lesleyann co-authored Boob Tube, a novel that explores the wacky world of daytime television soap operas. Their book was rejected by every major New York publisher of commercial women’s fiction, despite representation by a top NYC literary agency. The experience inspired him to start Smashwords, a free publishing platform that allows authors to instantly publish their work online.\n\nToday, Smashwords is the world's largest distributor of self-published ebooks. The company has helped over 130,000 authors around the world publish and distribute over 450,000 ebooks to major retailers such as the Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Scribd and Kobo.\n\nMark has authored three ebooks about ebook self-publishing, including the Smashwords Style Guide (how to create and publish an ebook), The Smashwords Book Marketing Guide (how to market any book), and The Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success (29 best practices of the most successful ebook authors). The books have been downloaded over 750,000 times.\n\nMark received his marketing degree from the Haas School of Business at U.C. Berkeley. He tweets at http://www.twitter.com/markcoker and blogs at http://blog.smashwords.com","url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.com/author/mc-713"},"creator":{"@context":"http://schema.org","@type":"Person","name":"Mark Coker","jobTitle":"Founder, Smashwords","description":"Mark Coker is the founder of Smashwords, an ebook publishing and distribution platform. He's also the host of the SMART AUTHOR podcast, where he guides writers on the best practices of professional ebook publishing. Mark's an author, entrepreneur, angel investor and advisor to technology startups.\n\nMark and his wife Lesleyann co-authored Boob Tube, a novel that explores the wacky world of daytime television soap operas. Their book was rejected by every major New York publisher of commercial women’s fiction, despite representation by a top NYC literary agency. The experience inspired him to start Smashwords, a free publishing platform that allows authors to instantly publish their work online.\n\nToday, Smashwords is the world's largest distributor of self-published ebooks. The company has helped over 130,000 authors around the world publish and distribute over 450,000 ebooks to major retailers such as the Apple iBooks, Barnes & Noble, Scribd and Kobo.\n\nMark has authored three ebooks about ebook self-publishing, including the Smashwords Style Guide (how to create and publish an ebook), The Smashwords Book Marketing Guide (how to market any book), and The Secrets to Ebook Publishing Success (29 best practices of the most successful ebook authors). The books have been downloaded over 750,000 times.\n\nMark received his marketing degree from the Haas School of Business at U.C. Berkeley. He tweets at http://www.twitter.com/markcoker and blogs at http://blog.smashwords.com","url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.com/author/mc-713"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"HuffPost","url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.com","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://s.m.huffpost.com/assets/hp-amp-101ecf8047b044dce5f3122c63056162580f1c26994c73ae90dbd1c5d1545a71.gif","width":600,"height":60}},"description":"Whether you're a self-published indie author or a large traditional publisher, the opportunity to reach readers with books has never been greater.","keywords":["books","news","ebooks","type: contributor"],"inLanguage":"en_US","thumbnailUrl":"https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/default-entry.jpg?ops=200_150","url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-coker/the-seven-secrets-to-eboo_b_751743.html","headline":"The Seven Secrets to eBook Publishing Success","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/default-entry.jpg?ops=1910_1000","width":2000,"height":1000},"mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-coker/the-seven-secrets-to-eboo_b_751743.html"}}
Whether you're a self-published indie author or a large traditional publisher, the opportunity to reach readers with books has never been greater.
In July, the Association of American Publishers reported that for the first five months of 2010, eBooks accounted for 8.5 percent of a trade book sales, up from about 3 percent for all of 2009.
How do you reach these readers? Obviously, the first step is to release all your books as eBooks. But then what?
This past weekend at the Self Publishing Book Expo in New York, I presented my Seven Secrets to eBook Publishing Success. I embedded the presentation below for your Powerpointing pleasure.
The presentation builds on a previous presentation (and blog post here) I gave at NYU on how the rise of indie eBooks will transform the future the future of publishing.
For the SPBE session, I added new material, including the all-new seven secrets plus one bonus secret that covers how authors can maximize the virality of their books.
Write a great book -- Your reader's time is more valuable than their wallet, so respect the reader's time by publishing the highest quality book possible. Although free self-publishing tools make publishing fast, free and easy, some authors jump the gun by releasing books before they're ready for prime time. Readers have unlimited choice for alternative high-quality sources for entertainment, escapism and knowledge, so competition for their eyeshare is steep. If you're an indie author, it means you're also the publisher so it's your responsibility to do what many traditional publishers have always done so well, and that's to honor the editing and revision process if you want to make your good book great.
Write another great book -- The best selling eBook authors at Smashwords (the ebook publishing and distribution platform I founded) offer deep backlists. Think of each eBook as a fish hook in the ocean. When each eBook cross references the other books with simple hyperlinks (both inside the book and within the retailer's merchandising systems), you create a net. A deep backlist also offers you the opportunity to earn the trust of the reader. Once the reader trusts you'll respect their time with a great read, they'll be more inclined to sample and purchase your other titles.
Maximize distribution -- Availability is the precursor to discoverability. If your book isn't serendipitously discoverable in multiple places via topical or themed search engine queries, or via keyword or categories searches at retailers, it might as well be invisible. Get your books distributed in as many online bookstores as possible. Many readers go to a bookstore with the goal to find a great read, and they're not necessarily looking for a specific title, so if your book isn't there it's not discoverable or purchasable. Some of the same rules of print publishing apply to eBook publishing. The more bookstores that carry your book, the more chances you have to connect with a reader.
Give (some of) your books away for FREE -- Our highest grossing authors offer eBook marketing secrets. Free works best if you have a deep backlist. If you only wrote one full-length book, consider issuing some of your unpublished short form writing as free eBooks.
Trust your readers -- Some authors don't publish eBooks due to fear of piracy. Piracy cannot be prevented, and often when an author or publisher takes steps to prevent piracy, they only encourage it. J.K. Rowling doesn't publish eBooks, yet within hours of each release of her Harry Potter series, her books were available online as pirated eBooks. Don't make it difficult for your fans to purchase legitimate copies of your book. Trust your readers to honor your copyright. Yes, some readers will breach this trust, but this cannot be prevented. If you limit the accessibility of your book by infecting your book with DRM (for more on DRM, see "Protect eBooks, or Trust Customers to Do The Right Thing"), then you'll limit your ability to connect with readers. The only 100 percent reliable method of preventing piracy is to never publish. Last week during a trip to Brazil, I spoke at an eBook publishing presentation sponsored by Singular Digital alongside Rodrigo Paranhos Velloso, the director of business development for Google Latin America. He made a brilliant observation about DRM. He said, "when you DRM something, you make the non-DRM'd versions more valuable." In other words, when you apply DRM, you encourage piracy. DRM-free eBooks give your reader greater freedom to enjoy your book across multiple devices and platforms.
Have patience -- It takes time to build your publishing business. Unlike traditionally published print books that hit store shelves and usually go out of print soon after, eBooks are immortal. When your book lands at a new retailer, think of it as a seedling. With time and proper nourishment, it has the chance to build deep roots (customer reviews, sales rank, SEO). Never remove your book from a retailer's shelves because you're dissatisfied with its sales compared to other retailers (see distribution above).
Marketing starts yesterday -- Start building your marketing platform before you finish your book, and then invest time every day to build that platform. Implement a solid social media strategy. Participate in social networks, and more importantly, contribute to your social networks. If you view your Facebook and Twitter followers as people to be sold to, you'll hurt yourself. Instead, contribute to your networks. Help your fellow authors be successful. When it comes time for you to launch your book, your social network friends will return the favor by opening unexpected doors of opportunity.
Bonus. Architect for virality -- The seven secrets above will help you maximize the virality, or word-of-mouth, of your book. In the presentation, I described my concept of "first reader," the person you convince to purchase your book. In a sense, every reader is a first reader, because they have the power to drive more sales through their word-of-mouth, or they can kill sales with bad reviews. If your book resonates with them, they'll become your book's best sales person. Since readers will determine the ultimate success of your book, you, as the author/publisher, can take steps to facilitate the virality by making it easy for readers to access, enjoy and talk about your books. Eliminate friction that impedes discoverability, accessibility, purchasing and sample sharing. For example, if a reader has to enter a password to read your book, that's friction. If they can't click a button to share a free sample of the book with a friend, that's friction too. If the book is priced too high, or is only offered in a limited number of eBook formats, that's more friction.
Mark Coker last wrote about serialized eBooks. He's also the author of The Smashwords Book Marketing Guide (how to market a book) and The Smashwords Style Guide (how to format and publish an eBook).