mtembo

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Black melanin has been shrouded in racial controversy and dismissed as body waste and belonging to pseudo-science. It has numerous myths but facts about it have hardly been properly explained. Black melanin is described and its major functions, facts, and myths explained in the context of the historical European racist ideology directed at Africans. The major functions and advantages for melanin for all humans are discussed including he author's views on the relationship between levels of black melanin in the human body and physio-social rhythmic movements in relation to dance, sports, sex, and even walking.

Homo sapiens or Africans are the origins of humans from whom 7 billion people descend today. Black Africans or Bantu created the Egyptian civilization in antiquity thousands of years before the European Dark Ages and the Greek Civilization. White racism directed at Africans started during the Industrial Revolution as Europe was seeking cheap labor to grow raw materials for industrialization. Europeans enslaved millions of Africans to the New World and colonized the African continent. Europeans created the brutal ideology of racism, the White Man's Burden, the myth of the primitive African to justify the tragic treatment of Africans.

Obesity and being overweight are serious health problems that are spreading from the West to other newly affluent populations in the Third World due to globalization. Strategies for fighting obesity have focused on dieting that promotes cutting down daily calorie intake. These strategies have largely failed as obesity levels continue to rise. The Nshima diet that has existed among the 13 million people in Zambia in Southern Africa for hundreds of years maintains slim bodies in spite eating large amounts of calories. The article discusses why adopting this little known diet may help fight obesity and being overweight.

The traditional Zambian/African game of Nsolo is played under shady trees in villages and towns. The game is similar to the smaller Mankala commercial board game. The Nsolo game is described including its rules, the language players use, and some of the basic strategies of the game. The possible mathematical qualities are briefly discussed including the suggestion that the game may be more complex and challenging than chess. The fundamental reason being that there may be too many complex simultaneous moves required based on conditional probability especially when the game is played on a 4 x 100 structure.

We experience situations in which we focus intensely on finding solutions to a difficult problem but are frustrated because we cannot find any answers during that moment. We are sometimes aware that we are just on the verge of the answer. But as soon as we stop thinking about it sometime later, the answer suddenly pops into our minds. This is what Philosopher Michael Polanyi calls the Tacit Dimension of Knowledge. The article discusses the significance, challenges, and the contradictions of tacit knowing in society's goal of discovery and finding new knowledge.

Fathers come from different socio-economic backgrounds. Most good fathers support their children and families every day. What separates average fathers from those fathers who create great childhood memories for their children? Two great childhood memories are described. Memories are not necessarily created by just doing great fun things, spoiling the child, or spending money on expensive things and activities for the child. Ten ways are suggested in which fathers can create once in a lifetime great memories for their child.

The role of being a father is much more difficult to fulfill to day compared to several generations ago. The challenges and obstacles to fatherhood have stemmed from radical feminism, high rates of divorce, single motherhood combined with public assistance, and high unemployment. Fathers who cannot play the role in their children's lives can be very frustrated. Good fathers need to be there for their children and provide food and shelter and physical security. If a father cannot be there at least he can provide child support and send his child presents on special holidays and other occasions.

After a sleep apnea diagnosis in his late forties, for almost a decade a fifty six year old exercised, dieted, lost weight, and did everything he could to maintain his health. He tried more than a dozen anti-snoring devices available and other strategies. His marriage suffered as his wife complained that she could not sleep well due to his loud snoring. When he sung aloud in his basement, suddenly his snoring stopped and he got the best restful sleep in years. Digital communication may be contributing to sleep apnea and snoring especially those in their forties and older.

Father-Son conflicts have existed since biblical times. Some of the unresolved confrontations may result into adult sons who may grow up bitter and later become physically abusive of their children, intimate women, and other family members. Father-Son conflict worst cases results into physical confrontation like in the case of author Joe Queenan in his memoir: "Closing Time". Senior students in Tembo's Social Inequality sociology class had heated discussions in class after reading the provocative memoir. Tembo proposes a possible permanent solution to father-son conflict that may have existed in other cultures for ages. American and Western society could benefit from such a custom.