Gray Hair is Beautiful

This is about sex appeal in the strictest sense of the phrase. Health and beauty Tip #1 – Gray hair can be beautiful!

In searching the internet for photos of glamour girls with anything from a sprinkling of gray to the whole nine yards – there are four results. They are Emmy Lou Harris, Meryl Streep, Nichelle Nichols, and Dame Helen Mirren.

We don’t have sexy, gray-haired women running around because they’re all dying their hair.

How are we supposed to view graying or gray-haired women as sexy if the only visual we have is 90 year old Aunt Martha? The media could be blamed for this, but, women who touch grays up every week only let them know you don’t really want to see any sexy gray-haired women. Not in the mirror and not in the media.

As we age, we want to retain our youth. A lot of us have used eye-cream since our early 20’s – we’re all about retaining our looks as long as possible.

Health and Beauty Facts About Gray Hair
Gray hair represents the loss of pigmentation. It’s wiry because it’s sheathed in more cuticle than most hair. How good you look with gray hair is determined by its texture vis-à-vis the rest of your hair; plus how it goes with the tone of your skin and eyes.

Graying hair is the start of a natural lightening process to which you should adapt the colors of your clothes and makeup.

Here are some beauty instructions for your gray hair:
Leave-in conditioners and moisturizers will soften coarseness.
Consider having a professional add “low lights” streaking of your original color to give shading to gray areas.
Observe the pattern of graying. Some heads gray all over, some acquire streaks, some gray grows in to frame the face. Have your stylist shape and celebrate it.
If you color your hair, pick a tone one or two shades lighter than your original color.
Going too light or too dark will make you look older.
To test the look, try a semi-permanent solution that lasts 6-12 shampoos before going for lasting color.
There are health and beauty things you can do to naturally boost your grays:

Give yourself a regular scalp massage. This will keep your circulation healthy and supply your roots with the nourishment they need.
Use a shampoo and conditioner specially formulated to keep your grays in line. Vitamins and supplements will keep them from getting too wiry, dry, and haggard. These can also help keep your hair from going bronze.
Increase your protein intake. Not a lot, just enough to feed your hair. It’s not a miracle cure, but it helps.
Makeup Tips for Gray Hair

Gray hair can change the way you look. If you’ve decided to go gray, or you already have gray hair, you need to look at what you’re doing with makeup. And, if you don’t wear makeup, now may be a good time to start.

Gray hair will definitely make your complexion look more pale and could give you a washed-out look. You need more colorful makeup to boost your skin tones and define your features. Here’s six simple makeup tips for a great new look with your gray hair.

Don’t just stick with the same old makeup base – check-out your current color in the daylight with a mirror and move up a shade if it’s too pale.
Brown Eyes – use a gray or brown palette of eyeshadows.
Blue Eyes – use a trio palette of gray, slate, and navy.
Blush is a must – Use rose tones and pastels. Cream or cream-powder is best to avoid a powdery look.
For lips – use rose, red, apricot, or peach but NOT brown shades. Brown looks too muddy and dull with your gray hair.
Give definition to your brows – keep them shaped and add a boost of subtle color with a brow shaper or brow pencil. If you’re using a pencil, apply it against the direction of the hair growth for a more natural look. Then gently smooth back I place with brow brush or your finger.
In summary, try these new tips at home and experiment until you find the look that works. With the right makeup, you and your gray hair will look fabulous!

Health and Beauty Tips You Need to Know

Listed below are some home-remedy health and beauty tips:

Beauty Tips
To heal dry skin, a rash, or eczema - wash in your breakfast. Although oatmeal is a century old skin smoother, researchers recently documented the avenanthramides in oats as the key compound that smoothes inflamed, itchy skin. Put whole oats in a clean, dry sock, seal the opened end with a rubber band, and drop the sock into a warm hot bath and soak in it for 20 minutes.

Relieve Puffy, Tired Eyes – Black tea is full of astringent compounds called tannins that can help deflate and tighten the bags under your eyes. Activate the tannins in the tea bag by dipping it in a cup of hot water for several minutes, cool it in the fridge, then apply the damp bag as a compress to closed eyes for 10 minutes.

To whiten stained teeth - crush a few fresh strawberries into a scrubbing pulp that you mix with a pinch of stain removing baking soda and enough water to make a paste. Apply the mixture to a soft bristled toothbrush, polish for a few minutes every 3 months. More often will erode tooth enamel. The astringent malic acid in strawberries helps buff coffee and red wine stains from the teeth.

Health Tips
Sweeten your bad breath – gargle with a small cup of acidic lemon juice to kill odor causing bacteria, then eat a cup of plain, unsweetened yogurt that contains the beneficial lactobacillus bacteria. These so-called probotics compete with and replace the reeking bacteria in your mouth. The lemon/yogurt combo instantly neutralizes odor and lasts 12-24 hours.

Prevent Headaches – try using magnesium (200-400 mg) to reduce the muscle tension and spasms that cause your head to throb. Not any type will do. The supplement must contain at least 200 mg. of active elemental magnesium because magnesium is more preventive then curative. The treatment works best on premenstrual headaches because you can predict when they’re coming and take a dose a day in advance. If you have kidney problems, consult a healthcare professional before taking magnesium.

Relieve menstrual cramps - take ½ to 1 teaspoon of crampbark pincture every two hours on the days of your worst cramps. Recent studies show that this North American plant works as a muscle relaxant to quickly relieve painful spasms.
In conclusion, your body can throw you for a loop any time and overextending may require quick health and beauty fresh-ups. It’s great to have home remedies available to tend to your every day aches and pains and provide quick pick-me-uppers. We’ve listed all natural, expert recommended, ways to treat ailments, provide cosmetic enhancers quickly, safely, and effectively at home. Clear some space in your bathroom cabinet, refrigerator, and kitchen for these surprisingly effective and inexpensive remedies.

4 Beautiful Skin Treatment Tips For Ageless Beauty

Every beautiful skin treatment program starts with skin texture and skin tone. Any beautiful skin treatment for skin texture starts with the understanding that skin texture naturally changes over time, which can lead to dry and rough textured skin. A beautiful skin treatment for skin tone starts with the knowledge that the environment and one’s lifestyle choices can affect skin tone, causing sun and age spots known as hyper-pigmentation.

Evenly toned and softly textured skin is the secret to the ageless, youthful appearance that most of us crave, however, the elements we’re exposed to regularly, coupled with our lifestyle choices, pose a challenge to our beautiful skin treatment. For the latest and most comprehensive skin care guide available, go to http://www.hormones-beauty-health.com/womens-guide.htm.

As we get older, the skin tends to get dull because the cell turnover rate slows. Sun damage, redness, and hyper-pigmentation won’t allow the skin to reflect light the same way it used to, causing it to look sallow. In-office treatments like lasers, peels, fillers, and injections, matched with at-home treatments and all-natural skin care products, can help to reverse damage.

The most important beautiful skin care treatment tip is to protect your skin from the sun and keep it well-hydrated.

Beautiful Skin Treatment Tip #1 – If you aren’t consistent about exfoliating or using a lightening cream, consider using a cleanser that contains high-performance, active ingredients like glycolic acid and salicylic acid. They help to encourage faster cell turnover in the skin, thereby potentially lightening, and possibly removing, superficial pigmentation.

Beautiful Skin Treatment Tip #2 – Exfoliation is a crucial step in maintaining healthy skin because it reduces dark spots and uneven skin tone. All exfoliation treatments work to the same objective: remove dead skin cells in the outermost layer of skin. It’s critical to keep the skin’s top layer exfoliated since discoloration, especially from the sun, can live here.

Beautiful Skin Treatment Tip #3 – Ashy skin is an extreme form of dry skin characterized by white flakes. Most people think this condition only affects very dark complexions but, in reality, it can affect every skin tone and type. While it may be more noticeable on darker skin types, even on Asian skin, the dryness and flakes are not naturally camouflaged. The best way to prevent ashy skin is to moisturize and stay out of the sun.

Beautiful Skin Treatment Tip #4 – Antioxidant rich foods, like raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries, as well as those with vitamin C, help heal and smooth weathered skin.

Health Care Oatmeal/Banana Soy Pancakes

Serving: 16
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes

Sneak nutrition into your family with delicious pancakes filled with oats, soy milk, and bananas. Serve the pancakes with maple syrup, fruit spread, or applesauce.

Ingredients
1/2 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup unbleached flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups soy milk
2 Bananas, thinly sliced


Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the rolled oats, unbleached flour, and baking powder. Add the soymilk, and blend with a few swift strokes. Fold in the banana slices.
Pour 1/4 cup of the batter onto a hot nonstick griddle or pan. Cook for about 2 minutes or until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip the pancake and cook for another minute or until heated through.
Serve the pancakes with maple syrup, fruit spread, or applesauce.
Nutritional Info:

Calories: 61
Total Fat: 1 g
Carbohydrates: 11 g
Protein: 2 g

Health Care Breakfast Recipes

3 Ounces Smoked Turkey Sausage – coarsely chopped
1 Cup Pre-Chopped Onion
2 Cups Frozen Hash Browns with Peppers and Onions
½ Cup Chopped Red Bell Pepper
½ Cup Frozen Corn - thawed
1/8 Teaspoon Salt

Directions
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add sausage; sauté 2 minutes. Transfer sausage to a plate.
Add onion to skillet; cook 5 minutes or until tender, stirring often. Reduce heat to medium; add reserved sausage, potatoes, and remaining ingredients; stir gently. Cook, uncovered, 12 minutes or until potatoes are lightly browned.
Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes
Makes 3 Servings (1 Cup each). Per serving – 4 Weight Watcher Points, 209 Calories, 3.7g Fat, 8.7g Protein, 37.8g Carbohydrates, 4.3g Fiber, 15mg Cholesterol, 4.4mg Iron, 396mg Sodium, 35mg Calcium

Ideas for Work at Home Moms

With the economic pressures of raising a family and the emotional and mental stresses of juggling a career and family, many women are seeking alternative ideas for work at home moms. Today, the work from home industry is exploding and lots of new and exciting possibilities are presenting themselves as ideas for work at home moms that still allow the working mother the time and lifestyle she needs to provide both the best of a professional career and the satisfaction of family life. Technology has been the key in globalizing the economy. The work from home opportunities that are now presenting themselves are some of the best ideas for work at home moms.

At the top of the list is the lucrative field of internet information brokering. What is information brokering and how can information brokering serve as ideas for work at home moms? Many women underestimate the power of the information available in their lives. Your career experience, your hobbies, your knowledge and your passions all hold the key to valuable information products inside you just waiting to be tapped. These unique information products have a unique market waiting for the expertise that you have to offer. Ideas for work at home moms are simply applying what you already know to a new format.

If you are seeking information on how to become an information broker visit www.homebizcritic.com to see how I turned my offline professional experience into a viable, online home based business. You can do the same thing. Information brokering from home is not a get rich quick scheme. It is a long term commitment to creating both your own information products and a legitimate business where you call the shots. What other ideas for work at home moms offer this kind of freedom? You have no downline unless you choose to create an affiliate program. Your time and your lifestyle are yours to control. Your experience becomes the key element to the success of this endeavor. With organization, planning, and foresight the knowledge you hold or can tap into through others has the power to change your life.

Imagine getting up in the morning, going into your office, and setting your own agenda all in the comfort of your slippers. Imagine setting your calendar to reflect the needs of your family. Imagine being able to give yourself the gift of time. Ideas for work at home moms that meet these criteria are worth considering.

One of the best perks to come out of information brokering is the secondary income from consulting. Lots of people will want to learn from you how to develop their own information products and how to start a business online. You determine how much time you spend on the components of your business and how to grow at a rate that meets your needs. Ideas for work at home moms that meet these criteria are, again, worth considering.

What Is Yoga

In the present time, more and more people, especially the Westerners, are resorting to Yoga to find cure for chronic health problems and attain a peace of mind. They are also curious about knowing what exactly is Yoga and what are included in it. Although many of us are well aware of the heath benefits of the physical activity, not every one knows about the origin and exact definition of Yoga. It is a popular belief that Yoga merely includes stretching and warm up exercises. Of course, yoga involves stretching, but includes many other things beyond that.

Originated in ancient India, Yoga typically means 'union' between the mind, body and spirit. It involves the practice of physical postures and poses, which is sometimes referred to as 'asana' in Sanskrit. As the name suggests, the ultimate aim of practicing Yoga is to create a balance between the body and the mind and to attain self-enlightenment. In order to accomplish it, Yoga makes use of different movements, breathing exercises, relaxation technique and meditation. Yoga is associated with a healthy and lively lifestyle with a balanced approach to life.

The oldest physical discipline in existence known to humankind, Yoga brings stability to the body and the wavering mind. It increases the lubrication of joints, ligaments and tendons of the body. Studies in the field of medicine suggest that Yoga is the only form of physical activity that provides complete exercise to the body, because it massages all the internal organs and glands. This in turn reduces the risk of many diseases. Yoga can create a positive permanent difference to the lifestyle of anybody practicing it on a regular basis.

Yoga is the perfect way to ensure overall health and physical fitness. Through meditation, breathing exercises (called pranayams); you can banish all your stress and lead a healthy life. In fact, it is one of the best remedies know to humankind, for curing chronic ailments that are otherwise difficult to be cured by other medications. People suffering from backaches and arthritis are often suggested to do asanas that concentrate on providing exercise to the muscles at the strategic locations. Pranayams are the best exercises to increase the capacity of lungs capacity.

The amazing thing about Yoga is that its positive effects on the health and mind are visible over time. Another specialty about Yoga is its wide choice of asanas. Depending upon the stamina and overall health, you can choose from the mild pranayams, asanas to high intensity asanas. It is a medication without the actual use of medicines. Moreover, no visible side effects are associated with the practice of Yoga on a regular basis. All you need to know is the most appropriate exercises meant for the structure of your body, while choosing the asanas of the activity. In addition, you need to know the right way of performing the asanas, because any wrong attempt can cause sprains and injuries.

Yoga for Beauty

Yoga is the art of meditation aimed at training a human soul the consciousness for a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquility. It is basically achieved through the three paths- the path of actions, knowledge and devotion. Though yoga is always popularly recognized with fitness and health concerns, the art of Yoga hardly untouches anything on earth. Be it health, weight loss, devotion, concentration, spiritual enlightenment, ego-shedding or beauty, yoga is effective in each of them. Many famous personalities in the health and beauty industry swear on the names of yoga. Read on to explore that how yoga can redefine your beauty.

Yoga: The Real Aura Of Beauty
Yoga is a wonderful art that brings a perfect blend of physical strength and gracefulness in your life. Also, the beauty attained through Yoga is not an artificial and temporary achievement like cosmetic surgery and other such means. Yoga helps you lose all the flab in a right manner to the right extent. Apart from this the enlightenment achieved through yoga brings a shine of confidence over one's face. Yoga also acts as a stress buster which is in it self a very wonderful method to avoid ageing. The flexibility attained through Yoga also makes one feel good and thus look good.

How to attain beauty through yoga?
* The first and foremost principle of Yoga is that until you do not feel good, you can't look good.* Thus yoga through its asana like Sukhasna and Shavasana aims to provide complete relaxation to your body.
Yoga helps you gain physical fitness, helps in the healthy maintenance of mind and body. It also acts in removal of toxins from the body and increases flexibility of your body making you look younger. The Dog and Cat Pose of Yoga is certainly helpful in gaining flexibility and vigor.
Yoga helps improve the efficiency of the immune system. Through regular Pranayams like Kaplabhati and Anulom- Vilom, you can easily avoid little daily problems of health. Yoga is equally active in thyroid and weight loss leading to perfect shaping of the body and thus making you beautiful.
The perfect oxygen dose which we get through various Yoga Asanas and Mudras also helps in skin glow.
Regular yoga brings contentment in your life which reflects on your face.
Yoga helps you in delaying ageing. A regular yoga practitioner remains young and active for quite longer than others who do not practice yoga.

Blood Poisoning

Introduction

Blood poisoning, or septicaemia, is a bacterial infection that occurs

when bacteria get into the bloodstream and multiply rapidly. Blood

poisoning normally happens when bacteria enter the bloodstream in

large numbers, and spread too quickly for the immune system to

destroy them. Once in the bloodstream, some types of bacteria

release poisons known as toxins that attack the bodys tissues. Blood

poisoning is a potentially life-threatening infection that must be

treated rapidly in order to prevent the infection from spreading to

the heart and lungs.

Septicaemia begins as an infection in the walls of the blood vessels,

before developing into a tissue infection such as cellulitis. Blood

poisoning commonly occurs as a complication of a serious infection,

such as a kidney infection. Blood poisoning is dangerous because

once bacteria get into the bloodstream, it is difficult to prevent them

flowing to the bodys vital organs. Meningitis is caused when the

membranes covering the brain and spinal cord become infected and

inflamed, which can be a consequence of blood poisoning. Elderly

people with existing health conditions are particularly susceptible to

blood poisoning, as are children. The risk of blood poisoning is

increased if your immune system has been weakened by a chronic

illness, or if you have undergone surgery recently.

Symptoms

Symptoms may develop suddenly and can include the following:

· fever,

· chills and shivering,

· rapid breathing and headache,

· nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea,

· low blood pressure and possible loss of consciousness,

· skin may feel pale, cold, and clammy,

· delirium and/or depression.

Causes

In most cases, blood poisoning occurs when bacteria escape from an

infection and enter the bloodstream. Blood poisoning can also result

from wounds, burns and infected surgical incisions, all of which

release enough bacteria into the bloodstream to cause

septicaemia. Internal conditions ranging from urinary tract infections

and pneumonia, to boils, abscessed teeth and gum problems, may

cause blood poisoning if enough bacteria escape into the

bloodstream. The bacteria from the infected sites are then carried in

the blood to the bodys tissues. The immune system attempts to

combat this by releasing endotoxins into the bloodstream to defend

the blood vessels against leaking. You may feel feverish and chilled,

as the body attempts to bring the poisoning under control and

prevent fluid loss into tissues. If this not prevented, infections such

as meningitis or typhoid that affect the whole body may develop.

Diagnosis

If you think you may have blood poisoning and are displaying any of

the symptoms, it is important to seek urgent medical attention. Your

doctor will assess your symptoms and carry out a blood test to

identify the bacteria causing the infection. If septic shock is

suspected, you will be hospitalised while the blood is tested for

bacteria, blood gas levels, and other indicators. An

electrocardiogram (ECG) may also be taken to check for an irregular

heartbeat.

Treatment

Once the bacteria have been identified, blood poisoning is normally

treated with oral or intravenous antibiotics. Additionally, the

infected area may need to be drained in order to disinfect it. If

septic shock develops, emergency treatment and antibiotics

including penicillin will be administered. As blood poisoning can be

fatal, it is usually necessary to remain in hospital until a complete

recovery is made, in order for any potential complications to be

monitored.

Prevention

The following measures will reduce the risk of blood poisoning:

· Be aware of the symptoms of blood poisoning. The infection

can spread very quickly and it is important to know the signs

to look out for.

· Vaccines against meningitis and tuberculosis are offered

within existing immunisation programmes. Although they do

not offer protection against all strains of infection, they still

provide an excellent defence.

· Keep wounds clean. If you cut, scratch or break your skin in

any way, make sure the wound is cleaned, treated with

antiseptic, and covered with a plaster or dressing if necessary.

· If you develop a mouth infection, see your dentist straight

away for treatment. For a faster recovery from an abscessed

tooth, apply a warm-water compress and rinse with warm salt

water. Eating soft foods and flossing regularly can also help to

prevent infection spreading.

· A boil should be treated by applying a warm-water compress

to the affected area for 20 minutes, three times a day, until it bursts. You should continue to apply the compress until the boil has completely drained of puss. Do not be tempted to

squeeze boils as this can spread the infection.

Statin Warning for Pregnant Women

Pregnant women or those hoping to start or extend a family should avoid using the cholesterol-lowering drugs statins, say scientists funded by BBSRC.

Current clinical guidelines already recommend that women who are pregnant should stop taking statins but the advice is based on the knowledge that cholesterol is essential for normal fetal development.

Indeed, a 2007 study examining the risk of congenital anomalies in children of pregnant women using statins suggested that the detrimental effects of the drugs may be restricted to fat-soluble or ‘lipophilic’ statins only.

But new research from The University of Manchester has shown that even water-soluble or ‘hydrophilic’ statins, such as pravastatin, can affect placental development leading to worse pregnancy outcomes.

"The rapid rise in obesity and type-2 diabetes is a major health issue and affected individuals are often treated with statins to lower circulating cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease," said Dr Melissa Westwood, a Senior Lecturer in Endocrinology based at the Maternal and Fetal Health Research Centre at St Mary’s Hospital, Manchester.

"Given the evolving demographic profile of these conditions, such drugs are increasingly prescribed to women of reproductive age but the actions of statins are not limited to the regulation of cholesterol levels, as they can affect the production of other chemicals in the body too.

"Our study examined the effects that both lipophilic and hydrophilic statins had on a key biological system that is crucial for maintaining the normal function of the placenta, which acts as the nutrient-waste exchange barrier between mother and fetus."

The research used a placental-tissue model that could be maintained in a viable state outside the body for several days and tested the effects of two different statins – one water-soluble and one that dissolves in fat.

As expected, the fat-soluble statin, cerivastatin, affected the placenta resulting in reduced growth but the researchers also found that pravastatin – the water-soluble statin thought to be potentially compatible for use in pregnancy – had the same detrimental effect.

"These results clearly show that the effect of statins on the placenta is not dependent on their lipophilicity as had previously been suggested," said Dr Westwood, whose findings are published in the November issue of the Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine.

"While hydrophilic statins have not been reported to increase the incidence of fetal malformations, our research suggests that they will have a detrimental effect on placental growth, which is likely to result in poor pregnancy outcome.

"Healthcare professionals should continue to advise women to avoid the use of any type of statin once they plan to start a family or when a pregnancy is suspected or confirmed."

Business Rules and Knowledge Workers ~ Getting to the 'Point of Knowledge'

by Ronald G. Ross

Point-of-Sale (POS) is a familiar notion in the world of commerce. A well-engineered experience at the point-of-sale has obvious benefits both for the customer (a positive buying experience) and for the business of the supplier (real-time intelligence about sales volume, cash flow, buying trends, inventory depletion, customer profiles, etc.). An equivalent customer-supplier event exists within a business concerning knowledge -- particularly guidance and know-how (business rules). I call this critical event point-of-knowledge (POK).

In the world of commerce, we often say that customer and supplier are parties to POS events. Each of us is a customer in some POS events, and many of us act as suppliers in others.

The same is true about POK events. Each of us is a 'customer' of knowledge in some POK events, and many of us act as 'suppliers' in others. Sometimes we switch roles in minutes or even seconds. For POK events, at least one of the parties is always a knowledge worker; often both of the parties are.

Much has been written about the emergence of the role of knowledge worker. Far less, however, is understood about the engineering of effective POKs. This is where the business rule approach comes to bear.

I should clarify that POK events are not the kind that occur in rapid, collaborative development -- for example, in the cultivation of customer prospects, or in the engineering of complex product/services. You would not use Lotus Notes or other such knowledge messaging/retention tools to support POKs. Instead, POK events center on events where corporate guidance (a.k.a., business rules) are developed, applied, assessed, and ultimately retired. In other words, they are really about corporate governance and the application of the company's specialized know-how.

The customer/supplier 'experience' at POK events is crucial to worker productivity and job satisfaction. In no small measure, this is the real challenge of POK support. After all, the product/service for POKs is knowledge -- something you can carry only in your head, not in your hands. Some of the most important critical success criteria in such engineering are the following.

* All communication in a POK must be in the language of the business, not IT.

* Interactions in each POK event must be gauged to the knowledge level (and authorization) of the individual parties.

* Less-experienced workers fulfilling the supplier role in a POK must be enabled to perform at the level of the company's most experienced workers. (Remember that in a world of constant change, even the organization's best workers are frequently thrown into time-sensitive roles for which they are not fully prepared.)

* The elements of guidance (business rules) relevant to any given POK must be presented and/or applied in succinct, highly-selective fashion.

* These elements of guidance must also be presented and/or applied in timely fashion (i.e., 'just-in-time') to accommodate fast-paced refinement and change in business policies and practices.

* POK support platforms must be in the form of knowledge companions, enabling never-ending, on-the-job training of the knowledge workers.
Well-engineered POK support platforms also have obvious benefits for the business of the supplier -- for example, real-time intelligence about the 'hit' rate of rules, patterns of evolving customer (and supplier) behavior, emergence of compliance risks, and so on. The business rule approach is clearly how to get to the real point of knowledge!

Mobile Broadband: New Business Models Needed?

The good news is that mobile broadband--using PC dongles or cards or mobile handsets--is growing fast. The bad news is that all that new data traffic is straining mobile networks.

Irish regulator ComReg, for example, notes that there were 1.27 million broadband subscribers at the end of March, up 28 percent from a year earlier and up six percent from the previous quarter.
But this has been driven mainly by mobile broadband subscriptions, which have almost doubled over a year with 90.6 percent growth.

And Ericsson predicts that mobile broadband connections will surpass fixed broadband connections as soon as 2010 (click image for a larger view).

Originally "dimensioned" to cope with small-screen devices used occasionally, 3G networks are having to cope with laptop-sized video downloads, hours-long social networking sessions and rich Web 2.0 sites which download content "in the background".

In some cases, says researchers at Telco 2.0, the revenues from mobile broadband services are not even covering the costs of delivering data to the users.

That suggests mobile operators may have to revisit their pricing and packaging plans.

Today, most mobile broadband subscribers buy traditional monthly contracts, typically over 12 to 24 month periods. The problem is the perceived value versus price, if an increasing number of mobile broadband devices are put into service and most of those devices use little data.

Broadband connectivity costs are evaluated one way when a single connection at home can be shared among many users, and when usage is fairly frequent. Broadband costs will be looked at quite differently when each user must buy multiple connections on a device-by-device basis.

That suggests an eventual need for pricing mechanisms of all sorts, most based on ways to better match usage to cost. Session-based access, similar to the familiar WiFi hotspot model, is one option. Temporary access is yet another possibility.

Bundling of mobile broadband with other services such as fixed broadband or mobile voice services, or creation of broadband family plans, are other options.

Ad-supported access is conceivable, though the model has not worked all that well for communications services, at least so far.

Prepaid and casual use models also likely will be needed. Perhaps most users will be comfortable paying for a home fixed broadband connection and then mobile broadband for their smart phones.

But as game players, music players, cameras or other devices start to benefit from broadband connectivity, episodic use plans at relatively low prices seem inevitable.