Blinded because of lighting up
TURNING a blind eye to the dangers of smoking has cost Trevor his eyesight
2008-10-18 16:00:0010 great places to let good times roll on skates
With high-tech lighting and sound systems, live DJs, theme events and vibrant new skating styles, today's rinks are not your ...
2008-10-18 14:27:17Warning following chimney fires
The fire service reminds people in Wiltshire to clean their chimneys before lighting their first fires of winter.
2008-10-18 06:24:10Chinese lamps to welcome Diwali in Kolkata
Kolkata, Oct 15 ANI: Diwali, the festival of lights, is incomplete without the use of earthen oil lamps. But these lamps are facing stiff competition from Chinese dazzling lights, which have flooded the markets.And as part of the greetings, Chinese lamps and lights have flooded the markets in Kolkata. Large numbers of people, irrespective of their religion are thronging the packed markets to buy lights to decorate their houses for the festival.People say the cheap Chinese bulbs are preferred over the traditional earthen lamps for their wide range and designs as varied as grapes and colourful flowers."We are buying Chinese lights because the cost of oil has risen. We get these lights in various designs, colours and can keep it in houses, flowerpots and verandas. The best part is it lasts longer than the traditional diyas Traditional lamp," said Mohammad Naseem, a customer.Most of the shop owners who earlier did other businesses now sell Chinese lamps during the lucrative festive season."We are into this business of Chinese lights and every year during Diwali we have new designs. This year, we have introduced the traditional diyas, candle shaped lights, which is gaining popularity here. It is not very costly which makes our sales good," said Raja, a shop owner.While a coloured-wax Chinese diya decorated with clay roses is available for 15 rupees, an Indian one ranges between 20-25 rupees. "Lights are cheaper. Oil is expensive now. Every year, I come and buy new lights here. They bring cheer to everyone at home," said Kartik Chakravorty, another customer.Lighting lamps during Diwali is linked to the welcome of Lord Ram on his triumphant return to Ayodhya after completing his 14-year exile. By Ajitha Menon ANI
2008-10-15 03:00:46Behind the realty glass and chrome: Sweat and squalor
BUS6Business/Society/EconomyBehind the realty glass and chrome: Sweat and squalorBy Anuradha ShuklaNoida, Oct 15 IANS Raman Mahto, a 33-year old bricklayer, constructs 'dream homes' in Noida, the sprawling satellite township of Delhi whose landscape reflects India's booming real estate industry.Just behind the site of what is touted as a world-class residential project lies his home, a tent made of pieces of old tarpaulin weighed down with bricks, which has been home to his family for the past six months.Hundreds of workers like Raman, who earn about Rs.100 less than $2 a day, live in a sprawling cluster of tents such as this. The crew has no electricity and relies on the floodlights at the construction site for illumination at night.Utensils are covered under a patina of sand and cement - courtesy the construction work nearby. Accommodations have no toilets; when the need arises, Raman says there's always the open field behind the workers' tents."Water is a big problem," says his wife Meera. "The drinking water is dirty and we use the water used for construction work to cook and drink. My children have fallen ill several times but there is no other option."The construction industry - growing at a rate of 15 percent annually - is one of India's largest employers: Raman and his family are among an estimated 40 million homeless labourers engaged in the sector.Of this, the real estate industry is estimated to be worth at least $15 billion, according to industry lobby Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India Assocham.Ironically, the people building modern India and its world-class cities are forced to live in the basest of conditions.Developers such as Omaxe recognise the ill - and the negative fallout that it could entail: migration of labour to greener pastures. Omaxe today runs a project that focuses on improving the quality of life of the construction workers. Called 'Sambhawna', the project ensures basic hygienic facilities such as sanitation, pure drinking water, proper lighting and residential facilities for people working at sites.The company avers this initiative is not only part of its corporate social responsibility but it also checks migration of labour.Says Rohtas Goel, Omaxe chairman and managing director: "Our initiative has not only enhanced our relationship with the workers but also helped to keep a check on migration of labour which is very common in this industry."Because of the poor infrastructure available to them, skilled workers often opt for overseas jobs, mostly in the Middle East, because of better working conditions," Goel told IANS.But the situation could yet improve for the Indian construction worker.Early last week, the government said it has become incumbent on the industry to provide facilities such as fuel for cooking, mobile toilets, potable water, healthcare and crèches for workers and their families while getting environmental clearance for development projects."Construction workers and their children living in slums without even the basic facilities at most of the construction sites is not uncommon. This is certainly a welcome step by the government," said a spokesperson of real estate major DLF."When we tied up with Laing O. Rourke British construction firm Laing O'Rourke Plc for construction projects in Gurgaon, we started providing our workers with living space with a sewage-treatment plant and 24-hour power, bathroom, first-aid centre, something not available in even some of Delhi's neighborhoods," he added.--Indo-Asian News Serviceash/ank/ky609 Words**15101210
2008-10-15 03:01:09Jellyfish protein spawns revolution in biology - Philadelphia Inquirer
Voice of AmericaJellyfish protein spawns revolution in biologyPhiladelphia Inquirer - 59 minutes agoBy Faye Flam Osamu Shimomura just wanted to know what makes jellyfish glow in the dark. Now, the green-glowing protein that came of his quest is lighting up mouse tumors at the University of Pennsylvania and fruit flies at Fox Chase Cancer Center.Green Fluorescent Protein Scientists Win Nobel Prize In Chemistry AHNComment by Jeremy M. Berg, Ph.D., DirectorNew York Times - The Daily Yomiuri - Boston Globe - Financial Timesall 1,155 news articles
2008-10-14 03:09:50Bonds says he's enjoying life away from baseball AP
AP - Barry Bonds made a rare public appearance Tuesday and said he is enjoying life away from baseball. "I'm happy now that I have more time," Bonds told the crowd at the kickoff event of the Macy's Christmas tree lighting. "I've actually enjoyed myself immensely."
2008-10-07 16:26:07India can be automotive research leader: Scientific advisor
ECO15Economy/Science/NationalIndia can be automotive research leader: Scientific advisorChennai, Oct 3 IANS With the entry of global automobile companies into India and also their research arms, automotive research is one of the areas where India can be a leader, said a top Indian scientist here Friday. "In a developing country, process and product innovation would create more wealth," R. Chidambaram, principal scientific advisor to the central government. Speaking at the Automotive R&D Trends 2015, a conference organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry CII and Tamil Nadu Technology Development and Promotion Centre TNTDPC, he said that by the end of this century, the temperature change will be between 1.1 to 6.4 degrees centigrade as compared to the 1980-1999 levels, which in turn would result in rise in sea levels. "The per capita emission of carbon dioxide CO2 is 20.01 tonne by the USA, 9.87 tonne by Japan, 11.71 tonne Russia and India is just 1.02 tonne," he added. Emphasising the need for an intelligent transportation system, he cited the vehicle tracking system installed by the Tamil Nadu government in 100 buses that would convey to the bus station in advance its likely arrival time. "This helps the people to know to which bay the bus would stop and at what time." Predicting a shortage of doctorates and also professors to guide research associates in the years to come, he called upon the automobile industry to have a close interaction with the academia and even identify students at the undergraduate and post-graduate levels and sponsor their studies. According to Srivats Ram, managing director, Wheels India Ltd, the purpose of design innovation is to offer reduced life time ownership costs of a vehicle, cradle to cradle design and baby-proof or safe vehicle. Citing Boeing that reduced the weight of its Dreamliner plane to increase fuel efficiency, he said the automobile players too should look at alternative materials like composites to cut their vehicle weight. "Boeing increased the use of composites by 30 percent to 50 percent. This in turn increased the fuel efficiency by 20 percent." He said the vehicle manufacturers should increase the use of recyclable materials - cradle to cradle design - and also materials like natural fibre for seats, head rests, sun visors."Baby proofing is having active safety mechanisms. Like the defence sector, automobiles too could look at having night vision glasses, adaptive front lighting or safe tyres," Ram suggested. According to him innovative design also means making an existing part redundant. "If there is a windshield glass that has the properties of a lotus leaf - repulsing water - there will not be a need for wiper.--Indo-Asian News Servicevj/ank/vt485 Words03101951
2008-10-03 11:00:00HONG KONG
INT11International/Society/CrimeChildren are victims as murder-suicides rise in East AsiaBy Hazel ParryHong Kong, Oct 2 DPA Businessman's son Leung Tze-ho was only a few days away from his third birthday when he was found dead in his Hong Kong home, curled up in the lifeless arms of his mother and father.Messages left by his seemingly well-off parents indicated they faced financial ruin and decided to kill themselves. But why did they take their son with them to the graveMurder-suicides involving children are on the rise in Hong Kong and other Chinese societies across Asia - and researchers examining the tragic trend believe a deluded sense of kindness lies behind the killings.In Hong Kong, the number of cases has risen from five to six a year in the past 10 years while in Taiwan, the annual rate has leapt from around six to 28 a year, a joint study by Hong Kong and Macau universities has found.Some cases are particularly shocking.In October 2007, a 36-year-old Hong Kong mother whose husband had cancer tied up the hands and feet of her nine-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter and pushed them from the 24th floor of a building. She then leapt to her death herself.In August this year, a 33-year-old father in financial difficulties was found dead with his three-year-old daughter after lighting charcoal and lying down with her in the bedroom of his Hong Kong apartment.A detailed study of police and coroners reports including suicide notes related to murder-suicides in Hong Kong over the past two decades found child killers often believe they are acting out of love.Murder-suicides in Asia are more likely to involve children than such cases overseas."Suicide involving the killing of children is not common in western countries. It happens more in Asian countries," said Paul Yip Siu-fai, director of the University of Hong Kong's Suicide Research and Prevention Centre and co-author of the report."Here in Hong Kong, about 20 percent of homicide-suicide cases involve children."In the majority of cases involving children in Hong Kong, the researchers found, the motive on the part of the killers was altruism - the belief that it is kinder to kill the child rather than leave him or her alone in the world."This type of perpetrator is generally the breadwinner of a family and tends to be overly responsible for the family," according to the report, to be published shortly in the international Journal of Affective Disorders."The event is often precipitated by the suicidal deliberation of the perpetrator whose primary motive for killing is altruistic desire to protect the victim from life."Yip explained: "We call it delusional altruism. The parent or parents think they are doing something good for the victim. It is not true. It is just that in their state of mind, they believe it is the best option for the children."In the case of two-year-old Leung Tze-ho, it was clear that the two parents loved the child. They felt that if they left the child behind, they couldn't tell what would happen to him. They thought it was the best option for this young boy to die with them, which is very unfortunate."In Chinese communities, some people see young children as their possessions. They think they own them. They see death as the best possible outcome for those who will remain by themselves if both of the parents are gone."The trend also reflects the general sense of social isolation which many people in Hong Kong feel, Yip believes. If Leung Tze-ho's parents decided they wanted to die, why was there no one they could leave their son with"We see many situations in Hong Kong where people do not know even know the people who live next door to them," he said. "They are disconnected from society and this is very common in Hong Kong. In western countries, this does not happen so much."They don't have anyone to turn to for help. The other thing is that they do not want to put a burden on other people. Men in particular find it difficult to seek help. Only 20 cent of suicidal people in Hong Kong seek help. The other 80 percent don't seek any help."Two key factors appear to be driving up the rate of murder-suicide. The first is the declining economy which has seen a marked rise in the number of professional people committing suicide in Hong Kong in recent months.The second aspect is the emergence since 1998 of charcoal burning as a popular method of suicide in Hong Kong. It is now the second most common method of suicide after jumping from high buildings and has been widely used in suicide pacts."It is very drastic to throw a baby or child out of a window but when you burn charcoal it is much less violent," said Yip. "Charcoal burning provides a convenient method in these cases."Suicide prevention workers are already taking steps to try to tackle some of the factors driving Hong Kong's murder-suicide rate up by controlling the availability of charcoal and pressing for front-line police and social workers to be alert to "warning signs" from suicide-risk families.The best guardians against more murder-suicides, however, may turn out to be neighbours and friends, according to Yip."Everybody can be a gatekeeper," he said. "Apparently the father of Leung Tze-ho withdrew money from the bank and the family sold things before the tragedy, so there were signs and symptoms."If we see people facing some kind of financial crisis or relationship problems, we have to be more careful and pay more attention to them. That way we may be able to save lives."--DPAdkg/jg/ky 1028 Words02100900
2008-10-02 03:00:00Sydney, Sep 24 IANS Hobart's Bellerive Oval will soon be flood-lit to make sure Tasmania gets its quota of international one-day and Twenty20 games.
SPO14SportsTasmania told to get Bellerive Oval flood-litSydney, Sep 24 IANS Hobart's Bellerive Oval will soon be flood-lit to make sure Tasmania gets its quota of international one-day and Twenty20 games.The state-of-the-art retractable light towers should be in place as early as the 2009-10 cricket season. But the future of the big games -- and big crowds -- at Tasmania's world-class ground will rest with the state's planning system, reports Hobart daily MercuryLocal residents and the Clarence City Council have blocked attempts by the Tasmanian Cricket Association to install lights at the oval since the Eastern Shore ground was redeveloped. Incoming TCA chairman Tony Harrison -- who officially took over from Brent Palfreyman Monday -- revealed Tuesday the installation of light towers was a necessity if Tasmania wanted to host international one-day and Twenty20 fixtures. He said Cricket Australia made it clear that matches could not be guaranteed without lighting at Bellerive Oval. --Indo-Asian News Service vs169 Words24091810
2008-09-24 09:00:00
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