Chinese businessman offers thousands to official for swim in polluted river

BEIJING (AP) -- A Chinese businessman angry about a filthy river has come up with an equally dirty dare: He'll give an environmental official about $32,000 just for swimming in the polluted waterway.

Businessman Jin Zengmin posted on his microblog photos of a garbage-filled river in his hometown of Rui'an city in the eastern province of Zhejiang. He dared the local environmental protection chief, Bao Zhenming, to swim in it for a cash prize of 200,000 yuan.

The challenge, made Saturday, reflects growing frustration among the Chinese public over widespread pollution and lack of governmental action. It quickly inspired at least one other offer: A posting Tuesday under an alias on an online forum offered a 300,000 yuan ($48,000) cash prize to the environmental protection chief in the nearby county of Cangnan if the official swam in polluted rivers there.

Jin said on his microblog that a rubber shoe factory has been dumping wastewater into the river, and that the area had an exceptionally high cancer rate.

A Rui'an government official who would give only his surname, Chi, would not say Wednesday whether Bao would accept Jin's challenge. But Chi said the bureau had contacted Jin and will take some measures, including working with residents to clean up trash in the river and putting up signs warning against dumping.

"We will also step up efforts in controlling industrial pollution sources," Chi said.

He also said that the public should shoulder responsibility in protecting the environment, and that the environmental protection bureau welcomes public supervision and participation in cleaning up local rivers.

China's booming economy has brought more water pollution, some of it shockingly serious. High-profile industrial accidents along major rivers have disrupted water supplies to big cities in recent years.

Hu Siyi, vice minister of water resources, said last year that 20 percent of China's rivers were so polluted that their water quality was rated too toxic for human contact, and that up to 40 percent of the rivers were seriously polluted, according to state media.

Last month, about nine tons of aniline, a chemical used to make polyurethane, leaked into a river in northern China. It took five days for the leak to be reported, and by then it had contaminated the water supply of a city in a neighboring province.

Yang Jianhua, a researcher at the Zhejiang Academy of Social Sciences, told the state-run China News Service that the cash-prize challenges reflect the public's deep worries about pollution.

"The environmental agencies are obligated to make efforts and solve the problem," Yang told China News.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/chinese-dare-officials-swim-polluted-104559100.html

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Sars-like virus death reported in UK

19 February 2013 Last updated at 05:47 ET By James Gallagher Health and science reporter, BBC News

A patient infected with a new respiratory illness similar to the deadly Sars virus has died in the UK.

He was being treated at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham and died on Sunday morning, the hospital has confirmed.

Of the 12 people known to have been infected with the virus around the world, six have died.

The threat to the general population is thought to be small, although the virus has shown signs of spreading in people.

Three members of the same family have been infected with the virus in the UK as well as another patient who was flown in from Qatar for treatment.

It is thought one family member picked up the virus while travelling to the Middle East and Pakistan and then the virus spread to his son and another family member.

The son, who died, had a weakened immune system, which would have left him more vulnerable to the infection.

Continue reading the main story

Confirmed cases

Saudi Arabia: Five cases, three deaths

Jordan: Two cases, two deaths

UK: Four cases, one death

Germany: One case, flown from Qatar

Total: 12 cases, six deaths

Source: Health Protection Agency/World Health Organization

The hospital said it extended its sympathies to the family and was working with the Health Protection Agency to test other people who may have come into contact with the virus.

The infection causes pneumonia and sometimes kidney failure.

The exact source of the new virus and how it spreads is still unknown. The leading theory is that it comes from animals and the new Sars-like virus does appear to be closely related to a virus in bats.

The threat posed by the virus is thought to be low as it struggles to spread in people.

Speaking on Thursday, Dr Paul Cosford, deputy chief executive at the HPA, said: "It appears very difficult to catch"

Prof John Watson, head of the respiratory diseases department at the Health Protection Agency, said: "The routes of transmission to humans of the novel coronavirus have not yet been fully determined, but the recent UK experience provides strong evidence of human-to-human transmission in at least some circumstances.

"The three recent cases in the UK represent an important opportunity to obtain more information about the characteristics of this infection in humans and risk factors for its acquisition, particularly in the light of the first ever recorded instance of apparently lower severity of illness in one of the cases.

"The risk of infection in contacts in most circumstances is still considered to be low and the risk associated with novel coronavirus to the general UK population remains very low."

Prof Ian Jones, from the University of Reading, said: "Given the previous health status of the patient it may be premature to assume the death was a result of the infection but even if it was, it is unlikely to signify a change in the virus.

"No general virus spread has been reported meaning the risk to the public remains very low."

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21503893#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

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Apple?s Retina display for the next-gen iPad mini is reportedly already in development

3:27 PM

Apple (AAPL) launched the iPad mini just three months ago, but the upgraded Retina display for the firm?s upcoming sequel is already in development, according to a new report. With its unnamed industry sources back in business after the long break for Chinese New Year, Digitimes reported this week that Apple supplier?AU Optronics has increased its?iPad mini display yield to 1 million panels per month after overcoming some manufacturing issues. The site also says AUO has begun developing the panel for Apple?s next-generation iPad mini, which is expected to launch later this year with a Retina display. No details surrounding the next-generation iPad mini?s display were supplied in Digitimes? report.

Source: http://bgr.com/2013/02/20/ipad-mini-retina-display-rumor-332074/

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Source: http://forums.ferra.ru/index.php?showtopic=54564

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Sony trims price of PlayStation Vita, adds new color

In Japan, gamers can now choose from silver, white, black, red, and blue PS Vitas.

(Credit: Sony Computer Entertainment Japan)

With a little less than 48 hours to go before the world gets a glimpse at the PlayStation 4, there's some news for the PS Vita coming out of Japan today.

Sony announced that the company lowered and equalized the price point for the Wi-Fi and 3G/Wi-Fi-versions of the PS Vita to 19,980 yen ($212) from 24,980 yen ($265) and 29,980 yen ($319), respectively. Sony didn't carry the announcement over to the U.S., but it's possible that the company may use a portion of its PlayStation event in New York on February 20 to announce a similar price cut.

Naturally, those prices depend on currency conversions and don't represent the effect of a Vita price cut in the States, which could see prices for the handheld fall to $199 or less.

In related news, Sony introduced a new color, Ice Silver, for the PS Vita. The Wi-Fi-only gaming device features the same innards as a regular Vita and hits Japan on February 28.

These announcements came way by a video feed shown to Japanese consumers today. The video contained many previews for upcoming Vita titles, including highly-anticipated role-playing games such as Valhalla Knights 3, Eiyuu Densetsu: Sen no Kiseki, Dragon's Crown, and several others.

This long-awaited preview of Final Fantasy X HD for Vita generated a lot of buzz:

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/cnet/JhqR/~3/18vheWywDKA/

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U.S. and Iran ally to save Olympic wrestling

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) ? Arch foes Iran and the U.S. have found some common ground in the fight to save wrestling as an Olympic sport.

U.S. wrestling coach Zeke Jones on Tuesday called the sport an important "ambassador," suggesting possible cooperation to fight a decision by the International Olympic Committee to drop wrestling from the 2020 Games.

"Wrestling has brought closer the people of Iran and the U.S.," Jones was quoted as saying by the semiofficial Mehr news agency after arriving in Tehran with his team for an international tournament.

American wrestlers will compete in freestyle events later this week after the completion of Greco-Roman matches.

"I am sure the world will become united in support of wrestling and this will lead to change the view of the IOC. It will keep wrestling in the Olympics," said Jones.

On Monday, U.S. wrestling officials formalized plans for a committee charged with pushing to restore Olympic wrestling ? which was dropped earlier this month from the 2020 program by the IOC board. Wrestling now must compete against other sports for one open slot in the Games.

Iran also has said it is looking to join wrestling's major powers to reverse the IOC decision. Last week, the Iranian wrestling federation and Olympic committee sent a protest letter to the IOC.

Iran sees wrestling as their national sport. Since 1948, it has actively participated in international events of the sport and its wrestlers have collected many Olympics medals. Iran won three gold medals out of six overall in wrestling at the London Games, and the U.S. took two gold medals out of four overall.

Washington cut ties with Iran after the U.S. Embassy was stormed in the wake of the 1979 Islamic Revolution ? with 52 Americans held hostage for 444 days. Tensions are also high over the standoff over Tehran's nuclear program and Western sanctions that have upended Iran's economy.

Iran's state media had only limited reports on the arrival of the American wrestlers ? a distinct contrast to the fanfare in 1998 to the first U.S. wrestlers who competed in Iran since the Islamic Revolution.

U.S. sports team make only infrequent appearances in Iran, but the two countries often compete together in international events.

The U.S. has sent more than 30 athletes to Iran under a sports exchange program launched in 2007, and more than 75 Iranian athletes and coaches have visited the United States.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/us-iran-common-ground-olympic-wrestling-105819856--oly.html

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Is there a Neanderthal in the house?

Feb. 15, 2013 ? Bunions bothering you? How about lower back pain, or impacted wisdom teeth? As we humans evolved over the millennia to walk on two legs, grow larger brains and shorter jaws, bear big babies and live longer, we've also experienced some negative consequences on our way to becoming the world's most successful primate, at nearly 7 billion strong.

But keeping our evolutionary history in mind can help us better deal with issues from obesity to difficult childbirth in a much more productive way, according to Karen Rosenberg, professor and chair of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Delaware.

Rosenberg co-organized and spoke on the "Scars of Human Evolution" panel at one of the largest scientific gatherings in the world--the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) on Feb. 15, in Boston.

The panel's title originated from a 1951 Scientific American article by Wilton Krogman that highlighted how our evolutionary history can account for many of the problems associated with the current human condition. Rosenberg and her co-panelists examined areas ranging from obstetrics and orthopedics, to dentistry, gerontology, diet and nutrition.

"We need to understand our evolutionary history in order to understand why we have some of the maladies that we have," Rosenberg says. "They either helped us in a previous environment, or they are trade-offs from adaptations that did confer important advantages like our obstetrical and orthopedic problems that are side effects of walking on two legs rather than four."

Today, the industrialized world faces rising obesity rates. Yet eons ago, food was scarce, and foraging was a constant activity to survive. The more fats and sugars that could be gained from food back then, the more energy to fuel those ever-expanding hominid brains.

The cavewoman of 100,000 years ago didn't have 10-pound babies, take drugs, smoke, or have hypertension, diabetes and other problems associated with a modern lifestyle, Rosenberg notes.

But, Rosenberg asserts, our prehistoric ancestors likely gave birth with others present for protection and encouragement, a practice still important in today's world where ever-larger babies squeeze through a "twisty-turny" birth canal, and infant mortality is still a serious problem in many nations.

"Studies show that women who give birth with a doula present -- to provide emotional support -- have significantly lower rates of obstetric intervention and shorter labors," Rosenberg notes. "This maternal care during birth and the help we give in caring for children of family and friends comprise some of the most important aspects of our humanness."

Although some may interpret the word "evolve" to mean we are moving toward perfection, Rosenberg reminds us that there is no direction to evolution.

"What's best today, probably won't be in the future," she says. "There's no inevitable directionality to it. Evolution is a tinkerer, not a designer. I would never be willing to predict where we will go next. Knowing what is advantageous in today's world doesn't tell us what will be advantageous in the future."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of Delaware. The original article was written by Tracey Bryant.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/strange_science/~3/UtiIByNHQyg/130217082909.htm

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