Facebook profile 'could damage job prospects'Jobseekers have been warned that their Facebook profile could damage their employment prospects, after a study found that seven in 10 employers now research candidates online. By Andy Bloxham  A strong image online could actually help job hunters to land their dream job. Photo: BLOOMBERG NEWS  According to new figures released by Microsoft, the computer firm, Facebook and Twitter checks are now as important in the job selection process as a CV or interview. The survey, which questioned human resource managers at the top 100 companies in the UK, US, Germany and France, found that 70 per cent admitted to rejecting a candidate because of their online behaviour. But HR bosses also said that a strong image online could actually help job hunters to land their dream job. Peter Cullen, of Microsoft, said: "Your online reputation is not something to be scared of, it's something to be proactively managed. "These days, it's essential that web-users cultivate the kind of online reputation that they would want an employer to see." Facebook faux pas include drunken photographs, bad language, and messages complaining about worklife. Farhan Yasin, of online recruitment network Careerbuilder.co.uk, said: "Social networking is a great way to make connections with job opportunities in 2010 and promote your personal brand across the internet. "People really need to make sure they are using this resource to their advantage, by conveying a professional image." But Mr Yasin cautioned job seekers to be aware of their online image even after landing the perfect job, after their own research found that 28 per cent of employers had fired staff for content found on their social networking profile. He added: "A huge number of employers have taken action against staff for writing negative comments about the company or another employee on their social networking page."    

 Do seven-year-olds need tutors? "Have you heard?", asked one of the mums at school the other day. "X says that all the kids in the class have got tutors." I shook my head. I hadn't heard. We laughed about it and discussed how our kids didn't have a tutor, so X was obviously wrong! But I still felt uneasy. In fact, I felt a real sinking feeling. All I could think was "why?" My daughter has just turned seven. She attends a perfectly good state school, popular locally and over-subscribed. She's happy there, has a lovely teacher, and seems to be doing well. I don't think she needs a tutor. I simply don't see why she should need to do more structured learning at home - the homework's more than enough. But then I don't think most seven-year-olds need more work either. Just after I began writing School Gate, I was contacted by one mother who told me that she was concerned because so many children at her child's (state) school had tutors, also in the infants. I thought that sounded unusual, suggested that it may have been to do with private school exams, and didn't think much more of it. But now it's happened to me, and I can see why it bothered her. It's not that I have a problem with giving extra help to a child who's having trouble at school. Some kids could really do with some one-on-one tuition to help them get back on track, or to catch up with something they find particularly hard. But I have a feeling that many of the parents we're talking about don't have children in this situation. Instead they're already concerned about their children getting ahead. They want them to be even cleverer, and even more successful, and don't see why the pushing shouldn't start at an earlier age (they must have loved those Baby Einstein DVDs!) I see this as the road travelled by many of those who send their kids to Kumon maths, or who don't just encourage their children to play musical instruments, but force them to. They don't seem to think - as I do - that seven is a time to play, to learn at school, and do some extra-curricular activities which you enjoy. Unless you are having major problems, I don't see this moment in a child's life as a time to stress about work and worry too much about the future  - that will come. But many parents obviously aren't with me on this. Instead they are already worrying about what school their child is going to attend when they're eleven, and want to make sure they're ahead of the game. Are they preparing for exams in four years time? I think so. I don't think this is true of all the kids in my daughter's class (I've tentatively raised the subject with other parents), and I don't really want to offend anyone. But I do think that people are getting…

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 Does Music Make You Exercise Harder?By GRETCHEN REYNOLDS Just how music impacts the body during exercise is only slowly being teased out by scientists.Read Article    

  In a concurring opinion, Judge Robert S. Smith agreed that the state had the power to decide what constituted blight, but he wrote that the court should not have brought up the issue of what constitutes a “civic purpose,” because it opens the door to any purported “school,” even a tennis school, to have land assembled for it through eminent domain. Read Article