J.A.M. La ViDa

Spread the Jam!

WHAT'S THE JAM ABOUT?

This jammy page is jam-packed with all kinds of jammy goodies from jammy news to jammilicious food to homemade jam videos of jamming sessions. Maintained by jam lovers trying to jam their heads with more medical jam. Welcomes all jam-lovers to savour the jams of our labour!

JAM UPDATES

We here at JAM would like to apologize for the lack of updates. It's THAT time of the year again, complete with the sweltering hot weather. Hang in there, people! Just a couple of weeks more and we're going hoooome! Meanwhile, get out your fans and shorts and hit the books! A big congratulations to our seniors for getting through! You guys are doctors now! :)

Enchanting. Enthralling. Music.



This is a beautiful music piece arranged by Mr. Jon Schmidt. Here Taylor Swift's "Love Story " meets Coldplay's " Viva La Vida " (reminds me of our blog " Jam La Vida" where we can always JAM) He lovingly dedicated it to his daughter. I enjoyed it. I loved it. I hope you will too.

EASY DHALL CURRY ...


My darling friends have been asking me dhall curry for ages .
SO, today I'm gonna show how I make dhall curry , so that you can all make it .
 Let your creativity and taste.measurements are just an estimation ) -
1 pot , 1 pan , 1 ladle or maybe 21 cup of dhall ( Š“opox ) - or as much as you like1 tsp of turmeric powder
2-3 bulbs of garlic chopped
1/2 inch of ginger sliced
3 tbsp of oil2 tbsp of mixed Indian spices - optional( from Malaysia , At the moment I kinda forget what they are called - mustard seed , cinnamon stick , cardomon ,and some other stuff )3 dried chillies ( & some fresh chillies , if you want too , fresh chillies are very expensive in Moscow so I don't use them )
1 big onion cut as you like it
2 tbsp of tomato paste or 2 fresh tomatoes cut
1 tbsp of cumin powder1 tbsp of coriander powdersalt to taste some fresh coriander
Method -
1. Wash the dash & soak the dhall in a dish with cold water , overnight ,or if not, for a few hours. The water should be covering the dhall .If you don't have the time to soak them , you can boil them when you are cooking it but it would take a longer time to cook . By soaking , the beans ( dhall ) will be softer & faster to cook .
2. Boil water in a big pot ( enough water to cover the dhall ). Add in the dhall , turmeric powder and 1/2 of the chopped garlic & let it cook for 30 minutes up to 1 hour till the dhall gets soft . You may cover the pot , but make sure the cover has a hole where the pressure from inside the pot can get released by itself . To check if the dhall is cooked , try taking 1 biji dhall and pinch it with your nails. 
If it feels soft & it breaks , it's cooked . While the dhall is boiling you may notice white foamy material building up on the top part , just remove it . [ Use medium fire - be careful , there might be spillage of the foamy material ]


3. When you think that the dhall is cooked , prepare another pan . 
Put oil in the pan & heat it up. Then , add in - the Indian spices , 
dried chillies, ginger , garlic & fry . Be careful not to burn them .
 Once you get the aromatic smell of the spices , 
add the onions & fry till the onions are light brown. [ Use medium fire ]


4. Now you have a big pot with dhall ( it might look like dhall soup by now ) 
and a pan with the fried stuff , right ? 
So , next , add the fried stuff from the pan into the pot with dhall. 
Let the admixture simmer a bit . 
The dhall should look soft maybe slightly squashed up like by now . [ Use medium fire ]



5. Later on , add tomato paste or fresh tomatoes , cumin powder ,
 coriander powder and salt to the dhall curry. 
Bring it to boil . Taste & modify the taste by adding more tomato 
paste/fresh tomatoes , coriander powder , cumin powder or salt
 if you are unhappy with the taste .


6. After the modifying and tasting session , 
give a pat on your back for being succesful
in making dhall curry . If you want to make it better ,
 garnish with chopped coriander .


7. Take the pot of the stove . Serve your " AWESOME DHALL CURRY " 

with rice , bread , pasta , oats , or whatever that comes to your mind . Enjoy !


* You can also add potatoes, brinjals, radish ( lobak putih )
 to this dhall for a complete healthy meal . 
To make it spicier , put more dried chillies or fry 1-2 tbsp of chilli powder 
in the pan before putting it into the curry .

BRAIN DAMAGING HABITS


J.A.M. LaVida is back with its exclusive coverage on health care.
All of us have habits.Some are good habits but most are bad ones. 
But do you know which bad ones  that is killing your brain slowly?





1. No Breakfast 
People who do not take breakfast are going to have a lower blood sugar level. 
This leads to an insufficient supply of nutrients to the brain causing brain degeneration. 


2. Overeating 
It causes hardening of the brain arteries, leading to a decrease in mental power. 




3. Smoking 
It causes multiple brain shrinkage and may lead to Alzheimer disease. 


4. High Sugar consumption 
Too much sugar will interrupt the absorption of proteins and nutrients 
causing malnutrition and may interfere with b rain development. 




5. Air Pollution 
The brain is the largest oxygen consumer in our body. 
Inhaling polluted air decreases the supply of oxygen to the brain, 
bringing about a decrease in brain efficiency. 






6. Sleep Deprivation 
Sleep allows our brain to rest. Long term deprivation from sleep 
will accelerate the death of brain cells. 



7. Head covered while sleeping 
Sleeping with the head covered increases the concentration of carbon dioxide 
and decrease concentration of oxygen that may lead to brain damaging effects. 





8. Working your brain during illness 
Working hard or studying with sickness may lead to a decrease in effectiveness of the brain as well as damage the brain. 






9. Lacking in stimulating thoughts 
Thinking is the best way to train our brain, 
lacking in brain stimulation thoughts may cause brain shrinkage. 



10. Talking Rarely 
Intellectual conversations will promote the efficiency of the brain




JAM Updates

Finally resolved that pesky sidebar problem after much agonizing, and and and... now we have a new skin! Hope that it's to everyone's liking.

Feel free to drop us a line or two about the blog. Comments are always appreciated. :)

Mengejar HadirMu (Seeking Your Presence)

Here is a Malay song I wanna share with you guys, but it's different from the original one. We sing this version over here in our cell group. Hope you enjoy it!


Mengejar hadirMu (seeking for Your presence)
intro:
G A F#m Bm
G A
D

D A G
DEKAT PADA-MU ITU RINDUKU
D A G
SETIAP KATAKU KAU PUN MENUNGGU
Em D
TAK KUSANGKA KUTEMUKAN
Em A D
SATU KASIH YANG ABADI
G Em A
KINI KU DATANG DAN KUBAWA HIDUPKU

G A
MEMANDANG WAJAH-MU
F#m Bm
MENGIKUTI KEBAIKAN-MU
G A
MENGEJAR HADIR-MU
D
DALAM HIDUPKU

G A
MEMBAWA SEMBAHKU
F#m Bm
MENYATAKAN KEBESARAN-MU
G A
MENGEJAR HADIR-MU
D
DALAM HIDUPKU




I will share the original version with you next time. :)

Battle to save weird species from the EDGE

Like much of the futuristic green building designs and great green architecture of today, the ugly redheaded stepchildren of the animal kingdom don’t get much attention compared to the perennial endangered animal favorites like pandas, polar bears, and owls.

A drive to protect some of the world's most bizarre and unusual animals that are often forgotten by conservation programmes is being launched. The 100 species targeted include the Bumblebee bat and the Golden-rumped elephant shrew. The project, called
EDGE, which stands for Evolutionary, Distinct and Globally Endangered, is the brainchild of the Zoological Society of London.

Below are 10 out of the long lists of them.

For more information on the 100 species, visit the EDGE official website(link at the end of this post) today and give them your support today.


~
Bumblebee Bat ~(Craseonycteris thonglongyai)

Winning the cutest bat ever award is the Bumblebee bat, which at its largest measures 1 inch. These tiny mammals hover like hummingbirds and like all bats prefer caves and love feasting on insects. They can easily perch on the tip of your thumb. This tiny bat dwells in Thailand and is considered one of the 12 most endangered species. There are fewer than 200 remaining.

The smallest mammal in the world, this tiny bat weighs less than 2 grams. Its body is about the size of a large bumblebee, hence the common name “bumblebee bat”. Since it was first described in 1974 this tiny mammal has been disturbed by collectors and tourists wanting to see the world’s smallest mammal. Today the main threats are from burning of the forest areas near the limestone caves in which it lives.


~
Kakapo ~

This is not only the rarest, but the strangest parrot in the world. Imagine a rather portly nocturnal bird that never flies, preferring to hike through hilly forest for miles every night. It weighs in as the heaviest parrot in the world at 8 pounds.

The birds live in New Zealand, an island country which had virtually no mammals living on it for millions of years. It was a place inhabited by birds and reptiles. The only types of mammal were two species of bats. The Kakapo did not learn the defense mechanisms to combat or escape mammalian predators. This made the parrot very vulnerable when new animals started showing up.

The arrival of Polynesian peoples thousands of years ago, of Europeans in the 1800's, and ultimately the pets and livestock they brought with them resulted in the massive decline of Kakapo populations from hundreds of thousands to a mere handful of birds.

Once common throughout the three main islands of New Zealand, there are now approximately 62 Kakapo left. These remaining birds have been relocated to six predator free island habitats, where the birds are relatively safe and have been breeding.


~
Olm ~(Proteus anguinus)

The olm is a Europe’s only cave adapted vertebrate, and has numerous adaptations for an underground life. This unusual amphibian is blind, they hunt their prey in the absolute dark and have developed a powerful sensory system of smell, taste, hearing and electrosensitivity. Olms are pale and sightless, although their skin-covered eyes are still light sensitive.

They are an entirely aquatic species that can survive without food for up to 10 years and live to an age of 58 or more. Part of an ancient lineage of amphibians evolving independently for 190 million years, this species is now threatened by pollution and habitat disturbance. A small subpopulation of “black olms” may be a separate species requiring additional protection.

It lives in the subterranean waters of Italy, Croatia and Herzegovenia, where it skeeves out the locals with its strange, human-like skin. Its nickname, in fact, is the “human fish”. Unlike most amphibians, the olm lives in the water for its whole life. Another oddity of the olm: its neotenic (larval) gills.


~
Sloth ~

The sloth belongs to the edentate family, which also includes anteaters, armadillos, and echidnas. Most edentates are either threatened or endangered species. All sloths have three toes, but “two-toed” sloths only have 2 claws. Sloths often hunt in packs. They can actually move quickly and will slash with their large claws - the slow-moving behavior is to avoid predators like hawks. They actually hang most of their lives. Sloths typically have over 600 species of bacteria, plants and animals living on them at any given time, and will often feed on themselves when they are hungry. (Algae is the main snack.) Famously, these unusual creatures can rotate their heads 270 degrees. Lore has it that sloths adore beer and are able to “hold their liquor” amazingly well.

Up to two thirds of their weight at any given time can be attributed to the contents of their stomachs. The leaves they eat are so difficult to digest that the digestion process can take up to a month. They sleep for as long as the average human teenager because the same leaves also provide very little nutrition.



~
Aye-aye ~(Daubentonia madagascariensis)

The highly distinctive aye-aye is the world’s largest nocturnal primate. It lives in spherical nests with a small hole for entry and exit. It has a number of extreme morphological adaptations to its unusual feeding habits, making it one of the most bizarre-looking animals on the planet.

Sharing something in common with bats, aye-ayes are the only primates of the mammal world to rely on echolocation for hunting. The aye-aye has evolved a large and bony middle finger that it uses to tap on wood, listening for the hollow spaces that indicate the presence of wood-boring larvae. The claw at the end of this skeletal appendage then scoops out any tasty morsels it finds.

The species is sometimes referred to as Madagascar’s answer to the woodpecker, due to its ability to detect and rip out grubs from hollow branches. Like other Malagasy lemurs the aye-aye is at risk from the destruction of its forest home for agriculture and development.

Perhaps it is due to its unusually-large eyes and ears that this unique, sensitive primate is believed to be a demon or a bad luck omen. A native of Madagascar, it is often killed at first notice by the island’s superstitious residents.



~
Solenodon ~ (Solenodon cubanus,Solenodon paradoxus)

The solenodon is a mammal found primarily in Cuba and Hispanola. The solenodons diverged from all other mammal groups an incredible 76 million years ago and were, until recently, among the dominant predators of the West Indies. Before European colonisation of Cuba and Hispaniola, the species was one of the dominant predators on the island. As a result it has never evolved any ‘anti-predator’ defences.

This primitive insectivore resembles a large stoutly-built shrew. Sure, it looks cute and manageable enough - sort of like an over-sized hedgehog. Too bad the solenodon injects rattlesnake-like venom through its teeth, the only mammal to do so. Easily annoyed, the solenodon bites at the drop of a banana leaf. Still, being both a carrion feeder and insectivore, it is a vital species in its ecosystem.

A slow, clumsy mover, it is poorly equipped to defend itself. The species was almost wiped out by introduced predators such as dogs, cats and mongooses following European colonisation, and was believed to be extinct until a single individual was captured in 2003. It is in grave danger of extinction.


~Golden-rumped Elephant Shrew~

Elephant shrews are so-named because they have extraordinarily long, flexible trunks. Recent studies indicate that they are in fact distantly related to elephants. The golden-rumped elephant shrew is one of the largest species of elephant shrew. It can be identified by the bright yellow patch of fur on its rump. Unusually for such a small mammal this species is monogamous. It has one of the most restricted ranges of any of the elephant shrews, and is threatened by the destruction and fragmentation of its forest habitat.


~ Echidna ~

The echidna is one of two egg-laying mammals in the world (the other is the famous duck-billed platypus). Though it looks a big hedgehog-like, this spiky creature is shy and non-confrontational. The echidna has a long, moist snout and an even longer tongue which it uses to feast on termites. It has no teeth, so it has to “chew” termites by crushing them between its tongue and mouth cavity.

Recently classified as three separate species, these ancient monotremes are among New Guinea's last surviving indigenous animals. There are actually 4 species of echidna, and along with the platypus, they are the only monotremes. Despite laws designed to protect these species, they are in decline in areas accessible to humans. Echidnas have lost much of their forest habitat to logging, mining and farming, and are regarded as highly prized game animals by local people, who hunt them with specially trained dogs. One species, Attenborough's long-beaked echidna (Zaglossus bruijni), is known from only a single specimen collected in 1961, and is possibly extinct.


~ Jerboa ~(Euchoreutes naso)

Jerboas are small jumping rodents that resemble mice with long tufted tails and very long hindlegs. The long-eared jerboa can be distinguished from other jerboas by its enormous ears, which are about a third larger than its head. Very little is known about this species. Other jerboas are primarily nocturnal, spending the hours of daylight in underground burrows, which they dig themselves. The species is thought to be declining as a result of human disturbance of its habitat.


~ Slender Loris ~

The slender loris has extremely thin arms and legs. Its face is dominated by huge round eyes which give it excellent night vision and enable it to hunt for insects during the night. Populations of this small primate are declining because their forest habitats are being destroyed for logging, agriculture and development. The animals are also hunted for their meat and body parts which are used in traditional folk medicine.


Adapted from EDGE official website , MSN Environment and WebEcoist.

Top 5 Cancer-Causing Foods

Today, Jam LaVida is taking a short break to share about health care. As students, we not only need to adopt a good daily lifestyle but also manage our eating habits well.

And here they are, the top 5 cancer-causing favourite foods:



1. Hot dogs

Because they are high in nitrates, the Cancer Prevention Coalition advises that children eat no more than 12 hot dogs a month.

If you can't live without hot dogs, buy those made without sodium nitrate.




2. Processed meats and bacon

Also high in the same sodium nitrates found in hot dogs, bacon, and other processed meats raise the risk of heart disease.

The saturated fat in bacon also contributes to cancer.




3. Doughnuts

Doughnuts are cancer-causing double trouble.

First, they are made with white flour, sugar, and hydrogenated oils, then fried at high temperatures.

Doughnuts, says Adams , may be the worst food you can possibly eat to raise your risk of cancer.




4. French fries

Like doughnuts, French fries are made with hydrogenated oils and then fried at high temperatures. They also contain cancer- causing acryl amides which occur during the frying process.

They should be called cancer fries, not French fries, said Adams .




5. Chips, crackers, and cookies

All are usually made with white flour and sugar.

Even the ones whose labels claim to be free of trans-fats generally contain small amounts of trans-fats.

SO TAKE CARE OF YOUR HEALTH!
Cuz if you don't, who will?

Movie night @ Spartive Hotspot

Chocolate Banana Cake

Yesterday i made a chocolate banana cake with Kelvin.
Was really nice to bake together~
Here is the recipe, i got it from the Amy Beh cookbook. Good!

Ingredients:

1) Chocolate chiffon cake

(A)
30g cocoa powder (mixed with 120ml water)
4 egg yolks
100g sugar
130g self-raising flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon sodium bicarbonate
60ml oil
1 teaspoon vanilla essence

(B)

4 egg whites
60g sugar
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

2)Cake filling :
500ml whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 ½ tablespoon instant coffee (mixed with 1 tablespoon hot water)
1 tablespoon gelatine ( dissolved in 40ml water)
6 ripen bananas (sliced)

3)Chocolate frosting :
200g chocolate
Butter 1 tablespoon
Milk 100ml
The chocolate is melted by double-boiling.

Methods:
Cake
1. Preheat oven at 180 degree. In a bowl, hand whisk
ingredient (A) until smooth.
2. In another bowl, use electric mixer to beat egg whites and
cream of tartar until foamy. Add sugar and continue beating
until stiff.
3. Fold ingredient (A) into (2).
4. Pour (3) into a lined cake tin and bake for 40 min.
How to line cake tin ?
Grease cake tin with margarine/butter. Then cut grease
paper according to size of tin and stick it to the greased
cake tin. Then grease again with margarine/butter.
5. Inert cake, leave it completely cool before cutting
into 3 layers.

Filling:

Get only slivki that is meant for making whipping cream
"dlia vzbivania", should be around 33-35%. Other
types wont turn out stiff!


The picture shows the wrong way!!!

1.Correct way of making the cream:
Make sure the cream is kept in fridge before u
whisk it.Whisk the cream in a metal bowl with the bowl
soaked in cold water with ice. This is essential so
that the cream will be really stiff. Whisk using electric
mixer, it would take about 8-10 min of whisking. Do not
over-whisk it or it will be watery.
To see whether it is stiff, use a spoon to stir the cream from
one direction to another.
If the cream remains at the direction u stir it, it is done.
Add vanilla essence, coffee and gelatine when the cream is stiff.





2. Spread filling over the 1st layer of cake and arrange banana
slices on top of the filling. Top with 2nd layer. Spread filling and
arrange banana slices. For the last layer, spread cream filling on the top
and sides of the cake. Leave in the fridge to set.



3. When the cream has hardened, pour on chocolate frosting.


4. I bought this from Ashan for around 28rub. We used the
left-over cream to decorate our cake..


This cake has a name... It is called "Our Cake". Hahahah!!!


Tips to Bring You A Beautiful Life!

American grill house in Moscow - TORRO GRILL



Hi everyone!!! i am back! this time i wanna recommend
another restaurant to u guys!
American grill house--- TORRO GRILL
The best time to dine in is during "business lunch" hours
which is from 12pm- 4pm , Monday to Friday, i tell u...

SUPER WORTH IT!


2 different combos:

1) soup + salad + drink : 280 rub
2) soup or salad + main course + drink : 380rub
The prices dont sound cheap for lunch right??
BUT~~~~~
i tell you when I went with Kelvin, we both ordered combo
No 2 and we were so satisfied!!!!!! The food was good
and the portion was large! we went for lunch but we
felt so full until we could skip dinner..
By the way, this restaurant is of TGI fridays' class,
The surrounding is very nice and comfortable..
The waiters are very polite and friendly..
If it is not during business lunch, the food would
cost about 1000 rub.

You dont want to miss these :

1)Mushroom soup - it tastes very original and natural, comes

with freshly baked bread.

2)Caesar Salad - HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!! It is

simply superb,i dont know how to describe it,

but u will regret not trying it!

3)Grilled Lamb - The meat is so tender like you are eating

chicken thigh!!!

4)Grilled chicken - i got 1 piece of chicken thigh and

1 piece of chicken breast, and surprisingly, the

breast was so tender and juicy like you are

biting fishballs!!!

P/S : All grilled dish comes with ur choice of fries

or mashed potato. Even the fries is not usual

fries, i dare to say the potatoes they use are

of high quality ones...Well...Good cook cares

about details!

5) American coffee - i am not fond of coffee but it smells so good and

energising, not just an ordinary cup of cheap coffee.

6) Lime juice - My favourite of all-time..Simply refreshing!

Location :

Ashan Universitet . 2nd floor (1 floor lower than food court),

near cinema.

 

different paths

college campus lawn

wires in front of sky

aerial perspective

clouds

clouds over the highway

The Poultney Inn

apartment for rent