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Aleksandr Karelin was the Most Un-beatable Man3 in the Games. One glance at his intimidating4presence and one just knew that the Russian's fourth gold medal was inevitable5. The shaven head, the jutting brow and the blank, mean eyes insisted that no one would stand in his way6. Or, if they did, they would look decidedly the worse for wear7 afterwards.

Only three Olympians had ever won four successive gold medals in the same individual event and Juan An¬tonio Samaranch had shuffled into the front row of dignitaries to honour the next8. Karelin, the most celebrated Greco-Roman super-heavyweight of all time, had not been beaten for 14 years. He had won 12 European and nine world championships. In the past seven years he had not conceded9a single point. After rupturing'°a chest muscle he had won gold in Atlanta virtually one-handed.

Attempts had been made to soften Karelin's image. He is an intelligent man, a member of the Russian government. He plays chess, goes to the ballet and writes poetry. He relaxes to Pavarotti and Gershwin. He is a gentle soul, disturbed by the fearful way that people look at him in the street.

That is mere detail. This man is 20 stones" of terror. He trains in waist-deep Siberian snowdrifts and, when it melts, he probably rails against12the effects of global warming. When he bought himself a fridge, he himself lugged it up to his eighth-floor apartment. If his face really is on cartons of fruit juice, it is a brave Russian child who is getting his recommended intake of Vitamin C13.

Most disturbingly of all, he resembles Clive James, but only as James must look in the sweat-laden nightmares of a bad TV producer. His hands are like diggers, capable of inflicting what shaken opponents term the "death grip". He has a habit of lifting and throwing fighters in a manner that, in the 130kg category, is impossible for lesser contestants. You did not have to understand the complexities of Greco-Roman scoring to know that, for his gold-medal opponent, surrender was the only option.

What happened next was beyond comprehension. Karelin lost. He lost to possibly the flabbiest14athlete in the Games. Rulon Gardner, a wrestler from the Nebraska plains, is the youngest of nine children of a dairy farmer. He was teased for being fat at school from eight years old but he was already growing so strong that he could soon lift a sick calf upon his shoulders. For all that, it looked a mismatch.

"When did I think I could beat him? About 10 minutes ago," Gardner said. "He is so big and nasty. It's like a horse pushing you. He is much stronger than me. I'm not even close. "

Greco-Roman wrestling suits the immobile fighter. Upper-body strength is all. Greco-Roman wrestlers are prohibited from using or attacking the legs. They score by turning their opponents on their back, lifting them off their feet or throwing them. To score points, one must initiate the action, take the risk. There is an awful lot of leaning.

The first of two three-minute periods was scoreless. After 30 seconds Karelin panicked15and sought to adjust his hold. A judge sensed a momentary release of his grip. For more than a minute the bout16 was suspended until TV evidence proved as much and the first point was Gardner's.

Karelin's shoulders slumped. Every attempt to throw or turn Gardner proved impossible. With seven seconds remaining he abandoned hope.

Gardner's toughest test was still to come. Gold medallists in the lighter categories had all turned a cartwheel'7in celebration. He fulfilled it pluckily and then pulled off a forward role for good measure. 18 Karelin stood on the side of the mat, shoulders hunched, aware that he had failed to join the three competitors to have won four successive individual golds in the same event. The medal ceremony was like a wake19. Gardner grinned, an impostor in what had become a wake. Karelin collected his silver medal with so much displeasure that one feared he might ram it into someone's forehead, and muttered a few token words of congratulation that Gardner did not understand. Samaranch shuffled out again. Burly20 Russians in the auditorium could barely suppress their tears.

Then Judah stepped up to him and said, "O my ^Hr lord, let your servant please speak a word in my lord's ears, and do not be angry with your servant; for you are like Pharaoh himself. 19My lord asked his servants, saying, 'Have you a father or a brother?' 2oAnd we said to my lord, 'We have a father, an old man, and a young brother, the child of his old age. His brother is dead; he alone is left of his mother's children, and his father loves him. ' 2lThen you said to your servants, 'Bring him down to me, so that I may set my eyes on him. ' 22We said to my lord, 'The boy cannot leave his father, for if he should leave his father, his father would die. ' "-SoNow therefore, when I come to your servant my father and the boy is not with us, then, as his life is bound up in the boy's life, Slwhen he sees that the boy is not with us, he will die; and your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant our father with sorrow to Sheol. 32For

your servant became surety for the boy to my father, saying, 'If I do not bring him back to you , then I will bear the blame in the sight of my father all my life. ' 33Now therefore, please let your servant remain as a slave to my lord in place of the boy 5 and let the boy go back with his brothers. 34For how can I go back to my father if the boy is not with me? I fear to see the suffering that would come upon my father. "

Fortunately it is no longer necessary that every lecture or every book about this subject has to start with the proof of this idea. At present, it is generally accepted, although more as- a self - evident statement than on the basis of a closely - reasoned scientific proof. The recognition of the importance of greenspaces in the urban environment is a first step on the right way, this does not mean, however, that sufficient details are known about the functions of greenspace in towns and about the way. In which the inhabitants are using these spaces. As to this rather complex subject I shall, within the scope of this lecture, enter into one aspect only, namely the recreative function of greenspace facilities.

The theoretical separation of living, working, traffic and recreation which, for many years has been used in town - and - country planning, has in my opinion resulted in disproportionate attention to forms of recreation far from home, whereas there was relatively little attention for improvement of recreative possibilities in the direct neighbourhood of the home. We- have come to the conclusion that this is not right, because an important part of the time which we do not pass in sleeping or working is used for activities at and around home. So it is obvious that recreation in the open air has to begin at the street - door of the house. The urban environment has to offer as many recreation activities as possible, and the design of these has to be such that more obligatory activities can also have a recreative aspect,

The very best standard of living is nothing if it is not possible to take a pleasant walk in the district, if the children cannot be allowed to play in the streets, because the risks of traffic are too great, if during shopping you can nowhere find a spot for enjoying for a moment the nice weather, in short, if you only feel yourself at home after the street - door of your house is closed after you.

Yet, at least in developed Western countries, both women and men express a desire for greater equality in family life. It is evident that in terms of attitudes and beliefs, the problem cannot simply be thought of in terms of women wanting men to share more equally and men being reluctant to do so. The challenge now is to develop policies and practices based on a presumption of shared responsibility between men and women, and a presumption that there are potential benefits for men and women, as well as for families and the community, if there is greater gender equality in the responsibilities and pleasures of family life. These are becoming key concerns of researchers, policy makers, community workers and, more importantly, family members themselves.

Section B .

Despite the significant increase in the number of women with dependent children who are in the paid workforce, Australian research studies over the last 15 years are consistent in showing that divisions of labor for family work are very rigid indeed (Watson 1991) . In terms of time, women perform approximately 90 per cent of child care tasks and 70 per cent of all family work, and only 14 per cent of fathers are highly participant in terms of time spent on family work (Russell 1983). Demo and Acock (1993), in a recent US study, also found that women continue to per¬form a constant and major proportion of household labor (68 per cent to 95 per cent) across all family types (first marriage, divorced, step - family or never married), regardless of whether they are employed or unemployed in paid work.

Section C

Divisions of labor for family work are particularly problematic in families in which both parents are employed outside the home ( dual - worker families). Employed mothers adjust their jobs and personal lives to accommodate family commitments more than employed fathers do. Mothers are less likely to work overtime and are more likely to take time off work to attend to children' s needs (VandenHeuvel 1993), Mothers spend less time on personal leisure activities than their partners, a factor that often leads to resentment (Demo and Acock 1993) .

Section D .

The parental role is central to the stress related anxiety reported by employed mothers, and a major contributor to such stress is their taking a greater role in child care (VandenHeuve 1993). Edgar and Glezer (1992) found that close to 90 per cent of both husbands and wives agreed that the man should share equally in child care, yet 55 per cent of husbands and wives claimed that the men actually did this (These claims are despite the findings mentioned earlier that point to a much lower participation rate by fathers). A mother's wanting her partner to do more housework and child care is a better predictor of poor family adjustment than is actual time spent by fathers in these tasks (Demo and Acock 1993). It is this desire, together with its lack of fulfillment in most families, that bring about stress in the female parent.

Section E

Family therapists and social work researchers are increasingly defining family problems in terms of a lack of involvement and support from fathers and are concerned with difficulties involved in having fathers take responsibility for the solution of family and child behaviour problems (Edgar and Glezer 1986) . Yet, a father accepting responsibility for behaviour problems is linked with positive outcomes.

Section F

Research studies lend strong support to the argument that there are benefits for families considering a change to a fairer or more equitable division of the pleasures and pains of family life. Greater equality in the performance of family work is associated with lower levels of family stress and higher self esteem, better health, and higher marital satisfaction for mothers. There is also higher marital satisfaction for fathers, especially when they take more responsibility for the needs of their children—fathers are happier when they are more involved (Russell 1984) .

He smokes cigarettes, spends long hours in an old laboratory at the US National Institute of Health, and in his free time climbs up cliffs and points his skis down steep slopes, [e also happens to be openly, matter-of-factly gay.

What is it that makes Hamer who he is? What, for that latter, accounts for the talents and traits that make up anyone' s personality? Hamer is not content merely to ask such questions is trying to answer them as well. A pioneer in the field of mocular psychology, Hamer is exploring the role genes play in ifs; iverning the very core of our individuality. To a remarkable exnt, his work on what might be called the gay, thrill-seeking id quit-smoking genes reflects how own genetic predispositions. That work, which has appeared mostly in scientific jour-Is, has been gathered into an accessible and quite readable

rm in Hamer's creative new book, Living with Our Genes. " You have about as much oice in some aspect of your personality," Hamer and co-author Peter Copeland write in the iroductory chapter, "as you do in the shape of your nose or the size of your feet. "

Until recently, research into behavioral genetics was dominated by psychiatrists and psy-alogists, who based their most compelling conclusions about the importance of genes on [dies of identical twins. For example, psychologist Michael Bailey of Northwestern Universi-famously demonstrated that if one identical twin is gay, there is about a 50% likelihood that ! other will be too. Seven years ago, Hamer picked up where the twin studies left off, hom-; in on specific strips of DNA that appear to influence everything from mood to sexual orien-ion.

Hamer switched to behavioral genetics from basic research; after receiving his doctorate m Harvard, he spent more than a decade studying the biochemistry of a protein, the cells ;d to metabolize heavy metals like copper and zinc. As he was about to turn 40, however, mer suddenly realized he had learned as much about the protein as he cared to. "Frankly, as bored," he remembers, "and ready for something new. "

Homosexual behavior, in particular, seemed ripe for exploration because few scientists i dared tackle such an emotionally and politically charged subject. "I'm gay," Hamer 3 with a shrug, " but that was not a major motivation. \It was more of a question of intellec-curiosity—and the fact that no one else was doing this sort of research. "

ln the thirty-seventh year of the exile of King Jehoiachin of Judah,in the twelfth month,on the twenty-seventh day of the month, King Evil-merodach of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, released King Jehoiachin of Judah from prison; 28 he spoke kindly to him, and gave him a seat above the other seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 29 So Jehoiachin put aside his prison clothes. Every day of his life he dined regularly in the king's presence. 30 For his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, a portion every day,as long as he lived.

Following a schedule and doing things on time is extremely important in today's busy world. Using time effectively is a valuable skill that everyone must master. Catching a bus, getting to work or school on time, and even meeting friends requires managing time. Unfortunately, not everyone is very good at doing this. Many people are procrastinators; they put off doing things that they need to until it's too late.

We all procrastinate sometimes. Statistics show that 90 percent of university students will often put off studying for a test or writing an important paper until the night before. Twenty-five percent of university students can be defined as chronic procrastinators. This more serious form of procrastination can result in a student dropping out1 of school. Students who persistently2 delay doing their assignments get further and further behind in their studies. Before long, they feel completely overwhelmed. For the chronic procrastinator, often the only way to solve this problem is 25 to quit school.

According to recent studies, there are three main reasons that students procrastinate. First, many have poor time-management skills and often try to do too much in too little time. In the end, these students often feel overwhelmed and will put off doing many things they need to.

so Another reason that students procrastinate is because they feel a subject is boring or because they have difficulty concentrating3 on an assignment. These students will often avoid4 doing something because they don't like it. A third reason that many students procrastinate is because they are very anxious about doing assignments well enough.

35 These students often worry that their work will never be as good as it should be and fear failure of any kind. Unfortunately, trying to do everything perfectly can often cause these students to put off doing-any work at all.

Do you recognize any of these signs in yourself? If so, you may want to do something about your tendency to procrastinate. The following five tips may be helpful. First, list the things in life that are important to you, then, list the reasons that you are at school or university. Look at the two lists and see where they match. Is there something you need to do in order to achieve a life goal? Second, choose realistic goals for 45 yourself; don't try to do more than you can. Decide how hard you can work and what you can do.

Behaviorists, who study the relation between actions and their consequences, argue that rewards can improve performance at work and school. Cognitive researchers, who study various aspects of mental life, maintain that rewards often destroy creativity by encouraging dependence on approval and gifts from others.

The latter view has gained many supporters, especially among educators. But the careful use of small monetary rewards sparks creativity in grade-school children, suggesting that properly presented inducements indeed aid inventiveness, according to a study in the June Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

" If kids know they're working for a reward and can focus on a relatively challenging task, they show the most creativity," says Robert Eisenberger of the University of Delaware in Newark. "But it's easy to kill creativity by giving rewards for poor performance or creating too much anticipation for rewards. "

A teacher who continually draws attention to rewards or who hands out high grades for ordinary achievement ends up with uninspired students, Eisenberger holds. As an example of the latter point, he notes growing efforts at major universities to tighten grading standards and restore failing grades.

In earlier grades, the use of so-called token economies, in which students handle challenging problems and receive performance-based points toward valued rewards, shows promise in raising effort and creativity, the Delaware psychologist claims.

Americans are pound of their variety and individuality, yet they love and respect few things more than a uniform, whether it is the uniform of an elevator operator or the uniform of a five-star general. Why are uniforms so popular in the United States?

Among the arguments for uniforms, one of the first is that in the eyes of most people they look more professional than civilian clothes. People have become conditioned to expect superior quality from a man who wears a uniform. The television repairman who wears uniform tends to inspire more trust than one who appears in civilian clothes. Faith in the skill of a garage mechanic is increased by a uniform. What easier way is there for a nurse, a policeman, a barber, or a waiter to lose professional identity than to step out of uniform?

Uniforms also have many practical benefits. They save on other clothes. They save on laundry bills. They are tax-deductible. They are often more comfortable and more durable than civilian clothes.

Primary among the arguments against uniforms is their lack of variety and the consequent loss of individuality experienced by people who must wear them. Though there are many types of uniforms, the wearer of any particular type is generally stuck with it, without change, until retirement. When people look alike, they tend to think, speak, and act similarly, on the job at least.

Uniforms also give rise to some practical problems. Though they are long-lasting, often their initial expense is greater than the cost of civilian clothes. Some uniforms are also expensive to maintain, requiring professional dry cleaning rather than the home laundering possible with many types of civilian clothes.

One of the most strikingly apparent instances of extrasensory perception is the precognitive experience, when a person has a compelling perception of an coming disaster, news of death of a loved one, or a communication from a long-lost friend and the predicted e-vent then happens. Many who have had such experiences report that the emotional intensity of the precognition and its subsequent verification provide an overpowering sense of contact with another realm of reality. I have had such an experience myself. Many years ago, I awoke in the dead of night in a cold sweat, with a certain knowledge that a close relative had suddenly died. I was so gripped with the haunting intensity of the experience that I was afraid to place a long-distance phone call (for fear that the relative would trip over the telephone cord or something and make the experience a self-fulfilling prediction). In fact, the relative is alive and well, and whatever psychological roots the experience may have, it was not a reflection of an imminent event in the real world.

However, suppose the relative had in fact died that night. You would have had a difficult time convincing me that it was merely coincidence. But it is easy to calculate that if each American has such a premonitory experience a few times in his lifetime, the actuarial statistics alone will produce a few apparent precognitive events somewhere in America each year. We can calculate that this must occur fairly frequently, but to the rare person who dreams of disaster, followed rapidly by its realization, it is uncanny and awesome. Such a coincidence must happen to someone every few months. But those who experience a correct precognition understandably resist its explanation by coincidence.

After my experience I did not write a letter to an institute of parapsychology relating a compelling predictive dream which was not borne out by reality. That is not a memorable letter. But had the death I dreamt actually occurred, such a letter would have been marked down as evidence for precognition. The hits are recorded; the misses are not. Thus human nature unconsciously conspires to produce a biased reporting of the frequency of such e-vents.