Motivation
Why do we care about the problem and the results? If the problem isn’t obviously “interesting” it might be better to put motivation first; but if your work is incremental progress on a problem that is widely recognized as important, then it is probably better to put the problem statement first to indicate which piece of the larger problem you are breaking off to work on. This section should include the importance of your work, the difficulty of the area, and the impact it might have if successful.

Problem statement
What problem are you trying to solve? What is the scope of your work (a generalized approach, or for a specific situation)? Be careful not to use too much jargon. In some cases it is appropriate to put the problem statement before the motivation, but usually this only works if most readers already understand why the problem is important.

Approach
How did you go about solving or making progress on the problem? Did you use simulation, analytic models, prototype construction, or analysis of field data for an actual product? What was the extent of your work (did you look at one application program or a hundred programs in twenty different programming languages?) What important variables did you control, ignore, or measure?

Results
What’s the answer? Specifically, most good computer architecture papers conclude that something is so many percent faster, cheaper, smaller, or otherwise better than something else. Put the result there, in numbers. Avoid vague, hand-waving results such as “very”, “small”, or “significant.” If you must be vague, you are only given license to do so when you can talk about orders-of-magnitude improvement. There is a tension here in that you should not provide numbers that can be easily misinterpreted, but on the other hand you don’t have room for all the caveats.

Conclusions
What are the implications of your answer? Is it going to change the world (unlikely), be a significant “win”, be a nice hack, or simply serve as a road sign indicating that this path is a waste of time (all of the previous results are useful). Are your results general, potentially generalizable, or specific to a particular case?

Avoid the nitty-gritty details
Be truthful about why you’ve been out of work, but don’t go on ad nauseam about your trials and tribulations. For example, if you vacated a position to tend to personal matters, consider offering a brief sentence or two in your cover letter explaining the circumstances. This job seeker efficiently and succinctly addressed a résumé gap: “I have served as an in-home caretaker for my ailing mother for the last year. Fortunately, she has recovered and is once again self-sufficient, and I now am ready, willing and able to re-enter the workforce.”

On the other side of the coin, this person’s explanation invites questions instead of answers: “My long period of unemployment had to do with a variety of time-consuming events, in particular, an IRS audit of my financial dealings.”

If you were fired or left a job on bad terms, explain the details during the employment interview, if asked.

Explain how you remained connected
It’s wise to describe how you stayed sharp and kept up with developments in your field during your time away. For example, did you attend any industry-specific conferences or seminars, join a professional association or take an online or classroom-based continuing-education course. Did you work with a staffing firm as a consultant or temporary professional?  If so, include that information in your job-application materials. Demonstrating that you remained professionally engaged will show that you have both initiative and up-to-date skills.

Don’t overlook transferable skills
Even if you didn’t spend your time away from the office focusing on your career, you may still have gained experience that gives you an edge in the employment market. For example, after a decade-long absence from the traditional work world, the following candidate took a lighthearted yet savvy approach to describing her time as a stay-at-home mom. “As Domestic Engineer, I’m responsible for managing the lives of my husband and six children,” she wrote. “My position requires organization, diplomacy, honesty, communication, patience and self-motivation.”  While written with tongue in cheek, the applicant highlighted skills that employers find valuable.

Consider noting in your résumé or cover letter any activity you took part in that allowed you to hone your professional abilities. If, for example, you served as president of your homeowners association, you likely enhanced your organizational, budgeting and conflict-management skills. Citing these types of “unofficial” positions shows that you haven’t been stagnant or let your skills become rusty.

Life can take you in unexpected directions, and prospective employers understand that most workers will have periods in their careers when they’re out of work. To address an employment gap, be proactive. That way you’ll ease any concerns a hiring manager might have right away. By demonstrating that you’ve remained connected to your field and committed to building your skills while out of work, you’ll reduce the chance your résumé falls through the gap.

The technology could also lead to flexible computer screens that can be folded up and carried around like a piece of paper. And it could even be used to create ‘electric clothes’ that charge up as a person moves around and which slowly release heat when the weather gets cold.

Dr Emile Greenhalgh, from Imperial College London’s Department of Aeronautics, said the material is not really a battery, but a supercapacitor  -  similar to those found in typical electrical circuits.

His team’s prototype  -  which is around five inches square and wafer-thin  -  takes five seconds to charge from a normal power supply and can light an LED for 20 minutes.

Dr Greenhalgh, who is working with car company Volvo on a three-year, £3million project to use the material in hybrid petrol-electric cars, said: ‘We think the car of the future could be drawing power from its roof or even the door, thanks to our material.

‘The applications for this material don’t stop there  -  you might have a mobile that is as thin as a credit card because it no longer needs a bulky battery, or a laptop that can draw energy from its casing so it can run for longer.’

The material charges and discharges electricity quicker than a conventional battery, and does not use chemical processes  -  giving it a longer lifespan, he added.

The scientists plan to use it to replace the metal floor of a Volvo car’s boot which holds the spare wheel.

High levels of glucose in the blood damage nerves and blood vessels. This can lead to complications such as heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, blindness, and lower-limb amputation.

About 18.2 million Americans have diabetes. More than 8 million people 60 years or older suffer from the disease. A small percentage of diabetics have type 1 diabetes, which usually occurs in people under age 30. Diabetics with this form of the disease cannot produce insulin.

About 90 percent of Americans with diabetes have type 2 diabetes. It is most common in adults over age 40, and the risk of getting it increases with age. With this form of diabetes, the body does not always produce enough insulin or does not use insulin efficiently. Being overweight and inactive increases the chances of developing type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes can be prevented in people who are at an increased risk or have pre-diabetes, a condition in which glucose levels are higher than normal but not yet high enough for a diagnosis of diabetes. People with pre-diabetes are more likely to develop diabetes within 10 years and are also more likely to have a heart attack or stroke.

A recent study showed that people with pre-diabetes can sharply lower their chances of developing the disease through modest weight loss with diet and exercise. That same study showed that changes in diet and exercise were especially effective in curbing the development of diabetes in older people. In fact, the development of diabetes dropped by 71 percent in adults 60 and older who were enrolled in the study.

Because type 2 diabetes is more common in older people, especially in people who are overweight, doctors recommend that anyone 45 years of age or older be tested for diabetes.

However, other studies show that consuming more than one or two alcoholic beverages a day may be, overall, bad for health. The take-home message for the casual drinker: “Choose the beer you enjoy. Drink it in moderation,” lead researcher Charles Bamforth of the University of California, Davis, told LiveScience. “It is contributing silicon (and more) to your good health.”

Bamforth and his colleague Troy Casey, both of the university’s Department of Food Science and Technology, detail their findings in the February issue of the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture. The silicon levels of beer types, on average:

• Indian Pale Ale (IPA): 41.2 mg/L
• Ales: 32.8 mg/L
• Pale Ale: 36.5 mg/L
• Sorghum: 27.3 mg/L
• Lagers: 23.7 mg/L
• Wheat: 18.9 mg/L
• Light lagers: 17.2 mg/L
• Non Alcoholic: 16.3 mg/L

Their research showed the malting process didn’t affect barley’s silicon content, which is mostly in the grain’s husk. However, pale-colored malts had more silicon than the darker products, such as the chocolate, roasted barley and black malt, which all have substantial roasting. The scientists aren’t sure why these darker malts have less silicon than other malts.

Hops were the stars of the beer ingredients, showing as much as four times more silicon than was found in malt. The downside: Hops make up a much smaller portion of beer compared with grain. Some beers, such as IPAs are hoppier, while wheat beers tend to have fewer hops than other brews, the researchers say.

“Beers containing high levels of malted barley and hops are richest in silicon,” Bamforth said. “Wheat contains less silicon than barley because it is the husk of the barley that is rich in this element. While most of the silicon remains in the husk during brewing, significant quantities of silicon nonetheless are extracted into wort and much of this survives into beer.”

(Wort is the sweet liquid that comes from mashing the grains and eventually becomes beer.)

Got beer?

While the researchers are not recommending gulping beer to meet your silicon intake needs, their study does add to others on the potential health benefits of this cold beverage. The type of silicon in beer, called orthosilicic acid, has a 50 percent bioavailability, meaning that much is available for use in the body. Some foods, like bananas are rich in silicon but only 5 percent is bioavailable. This soluble form of silica found in beer could be important for the growth and development of bone and connective tissue, according to the National Institutes of Health. Past research has suggested that moderate beer consumption may help fight osteoporosis, a disease characterized by low bone mass and deterioration of bone tissue.

Another past study involving nearly 1,700 women reported last year in the journal Nutrition showed participants who were light to moderate beer drinkers had much better bone density than non-drinkers. The researchers suggested the beer’s plant hormones, not the alcohol, could be responsible for the bone boost.

1. Ask the important questions
“One thing I always ask at the end of the interview is, ‘Have I said anything that would lead you to believe I’m not the best person for this position?’ This gives me an opportunity to clear up any misunderstandings and it also gives me a chance to redeem myself or explain where I am coming from on something. It also shows that if there’s a problem, I am capable of fixing it.” – Brooke Kelley, magazine editor

“During an interview, you are always told to have a set of questions to ask. A question that is helpful, that they do not expect: ‘I know you are interviewing a lot of candidates for this position and I’d like to leave this interview feeling like I’ve done my absolute best. Where do I stand in comparison to the other candidates so far?’ shows boldness and that you are aggressive in your job search.” – Jeannie Lee, PR manager

2. It’s not all about you
“The interview is not about the candidate, it’s about the job. No matter how great you are as a person or employee, the interviewer is trying to fill a position. Hence, talk about the job as much as possible. Ask what a perfect candidate would be like. Only occasionally talk about yourself and only to show how you suit their requirements.” – Dave Field

3. Research the company — and the interviewer
“Find out some information about your interviewer(s). See if you share anything in common and understand that they’re a person, too, with interests, background and hobbies. Whether or not you know who will interview you, you’d better make sure you know as much as possible about the company and don’t be afraid to let them know what you know.” – Josh Bob, regional manager

4. Can you take the heat?
“I’ve found that saying that I can take constructive criticism has a big impact on employers. They need to know that you are not going to fold under scrutiny. Especially with the younger generation, where we have been coddled quite a bit with excessive praise and self-esteem boasters, you need to show you are resilient.” – Liz Cauley, teacher

5. Make a list
List five things you’ve accomplished during your previous job and concentrate on those items during your interview. “Each time I prepared for an interview, I was reminded of five things that I had accomplished under my last employer. That gave me a boost of confidence when going to the interview. It helped me to decide how I wanted to frame the answers that I gave to the interviewer.” – Sue Chehrenegar

6. Make it personal
“One thing that I do that has gotten positive feedback is I send a handwritten thank-you note. I have had numerous people comment and thank me for doing this.” – Danny Kofke, teacher

7. Show your research
“Print out a couple pages of the Web site from the company you’re interviewing with and bring it with you to the interview. Keep it on top of your résumé … when you open up your notebook or binder to take notes or pull out your résumé, the interviewer will see the printed company materials and assume you’ve done your research. Of course, ideally have you have actually researched the company … in which case you’re showcasing that fact.” – Katherine Opie, senior executive recruiter

8. Know the job description
“Reviewing the job description will help you customize your answers by addressing the specific needs of the organization and requirements of the position to your skill set. Many people have no idea what the job entails or how their skill set makes them better qualified.” – Cristina Castro, director of marketing and communications

9. Keep your answers to questions short and to the point
“Don’t volunteer extra information. In my case, I talked about my children. We discussed that I had been a stay-at-home mom. Even though I had impressive writing credentials, he told me that I wasn’t a ‘corporate person.’ (His exact words.) Of course, I never learned if this was why a job offer wasn’t forthcoming but I’m 99.9 percent sure I said too much.” – Marilyn Pincus, author and ghostwriter

10. Be gracious
“Be polite to absolutely everybody. If someone gets you a cup of coffee, thank them; hold the door for someone else — that kind of thing. Give the receptionist or the last person you see a cheery goodbye. You want to leave a good impression.” – Phyllis Harber-Murphy, executive assistant

11. Assume the position
“Steal a page from the presidential candidates and talk if as if you already have the job. Say ‘I will,” not ‘I would.’ ‘I can,’ not ‘I could.’ This will remove doubt instead of inject it. Bosses like someone confident and proactive.” – Josh Schwartzberg, director of new media

12. Use social networks
“I get a lot of my job interviews through social networks. I get recommended through others and it is significantly better than applying and actually interviewing. They basically feel like they interviewed you already!” – Albert Ko, business owner

Myth: Women and men need equal sleep
Tossing and turning not only causes women more psychological distress, it also raises their insulin and inflammation levels — risk factors for compromised health, found a 2008 study of 210 people led by Edward Suarez at Duke University.

A study of more than 6,000 participants, led by researchers at the University of Warwick in 2007, found that women who slept five or less hours a night were twice as likely to suffer from hypertension than women who slept for seven or more hours. Among men, there was no such relationship. Sleeping Beauty may be better off waking up on her own watch.

Myth: Antibiotics make birth control pills unreliable
“Many physicians even believe this,” Carroll said. Alone, birth control pills fail about one percent of the time. And that failure rate is unchanged when taken with the vast majority of antibiotics, Carroll said.

A possible exception is rifampin, the antibiotic prescribed for tuberculosis. Rifampin does lower pregnancy-protecting hormone levels induced by birth control pills, but whether the effect is large enough to increase pregnancy risk is unclear. Carroll thinks rifampin research spurred the antibiotic/birth control rumor. “Sometimes people say things and they just take off,” he said.

Myth: Menopause causes sex drive to nosedive
The Change is not necessarily one that happens in the bedroom. A comprehensive survey of sexual habits in the United States, completed by Edward Laumann and colleagues in 1994, found that roughly half of women in their fifties have sex several times a month.

While hot flashes and other discomforts may make a women temporarily not in the mood, there is not a direct link between menopause and sexual desire, Vreeman said. So if you are entering the Big M, there is no reason to say good-bye to the Big O.

Myth: A women can’t get pregnant during her period
While a woman is unlikely to conceive during menstruation, “nothing, when it comes to pregnancy, is impossible,” said Aaron Carroll of Indiana University and co-author of “Don’t Swallow Your Gum: Myths, Half-truths and Outright Lies About Your Body and Health” (St. Martin’s Griffin, 2009).

Once inside a woman, sperm can wait for an egg for up to a week. Ovulation can occur soon after, or even during, the bleeding phase of a woman’s menstrual cycle, giving patient sperm the chance to get lucky. The timing method of birth control doesn’t work well, Carroll said, agreeing that couples who practice it are often called: parents.

“The routines were protective even among groups that typically have a high risk for obesity,” said Sarah Anderson, assistant professor of epidemiology at Ohio State University and lead author of the study. “This is important because it suggests that there’s a potential for these routines to be useful targets for obesity prevention in all children.”

Anderson and Robert Whitaker, professor of public health and pediatrics at Temple University, will detail their findings in the March issue of the journal Pediatrics.

Previous studies have conclusively linked poor diet to obesity. Increased consumption of fast food, sugary cereals, soda and other highly processed foods, at the expense of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean meats is considered a key cause of weight gain and poor overall health.

The new research was based on data collected in 2005 on 8,550 4-year-olds around the United States. Benchmarks for healthier children were set at: eating the evening meal as a family more than five times per week; obtaining at least 10.5 hours of sleep per night; and watching less than two hours per day of TV on weekdays.

Based on body mass index (BMI), 14.3 percent of the children whose households practiced all three routines were obese. In contrast, 24.5 percent living in households without any of the routines were obese. None of the three routines seemed to offer more health benefits than the others.

“Each one appears to be associated with a lower risk of obesity, and having more of these routines appears to lower the risk further,” Anderson said.