Splenda goes from 'safe' to 'caution' after leukemia found in mice -

Splenda goes from 'safe' to 'caution' after leukemia found in mice - 



The Center for Science in the Public Interest is urging caution in the use of the artificial sweetener Splenda.

A food safety advocacy group has downgraded its rating for sucralose, the artificial sweetener better known as Splenda, from "safe" to "caution" in its chemical guide to food additives.

The Washington-based Center for Science in the Public Interest announced Wednesday that it had long rated sucralose as "safe" but is now categorizing it with a "caution," pending peer review of an unpublished study by an independent Italian lab that found the sweetener caused leukemia in mice.

Previously, the only long-term animal-feeding studies were done by sucralose's manufacturers, the CSPI said.

Other artificial sweeteners such as saccharin, aspartame and acesulfame potassium have received the center's lowest rating, "avoid."

Read more -

http://news.msn.com/us/splenda-goes-from-safe-to-caution-after-leukemia-found-in-mice

Devices Hidden in London’s Recycling Bins Track Smartphones -

Devices Hidden in London’s Recycling Bins Track Smartphones - 



The unique identifying numbers of over half a million smartphones have been recorded by a network of recycling bins in central London.

Hundreds of thousands of pedestrians walking past 12 locations unknowingly had the unique MAC address of their smartphones recorded by Renew London.

Data including the “movement, type, direction, and speed of unique devices” was recorded from smartphones that had their Wi-Fi on.

First reported by Quartz, the data gathering appears to be a Minority Report-esque proof-of-concept project, demonstrating the possibility for targeted personal advertising.

“It provides an unparalleled insight into the past behavior of unique devices — entry/exit points, dwell times, places of work, places of interest, and affinity to other devices — and should provide a compelling reach data base for predictive analytics (likely places to eat, drink, personal habits etc.),” reads a blog post on the company’s site.

In tests running between 21-24 May and 2-9 June, over 4 million events were captured, with over 530,000 unique devices captured. Further testing is taking place at sites including Liverpool Street Station.

Renew operates around 100 recycling bins around London, primarily in the City of London, which double up as digital advertising boards. 12 of those bins, were fitted with tracking devices.

The project is the first use of a piece of technology called Presence Orb. Launched by Presence Aware in March of this year, Presence Orb is described as a “A cookie for the real world”, in reference to web cookies that track your online behaviour across sites.

Read more -

http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2013-08/09/recycling-bins-are-watching-you

Smartphone technology predicts information you need before you ask... -

Smartphone technology predicts information you need before you ask... - 



Technology developed for smartphones which predicts the information you need to know before you even ask it to 
Personal assistant apps take information about you by monitoring your internet use 
They then piece it all together to second guess what you need to know
Privacy campaigners say companies are taking choice away from individuals

For anyone who is constantly on the go, it could provide the perfect solution to never missing a meeting and always being on time. 
For others, it could be seen as a complete intrusion into your private life. 
Companies including Google and Apple have developed technology which will predict the information you need to know before you even ask it to.

Like something out of a Sci-fi film, personal assistant apps are taking bits of information about people and piecing them all together so they can second guess what you need to know.
Predictive technology searches your emails, will know your regular mode of transport, work out alternatives if there are delays and even tell you if you have to leave earlier.  

Rao Machiraju, who developed the reQuall personal assistant app (RPA), told The Sunday Times that this development will change the way people use their phones. 
Experts believe this technology will change the way people use their smartphones 

He said: 'Instead of having to search for what they need, the device will quietly provide the right information at the right time.' 
Google's latest offering is Google Now which syncs with your emails, calender and maps as well as your social media trends. 
It constantly learns things about you so it can predict the information you need to know. 
By simply asking it to remind you that you need milk, the next time you step into a supermarket it will let you know. 
The Dark Sky app tells people when it is going to rain by using GPS to find you location and analysing a range of weather forecasts. 
Ben Hammersley, of the centre for creative and social technologies at Goldsmiths, University of London, said he warned people 20 minutes before it as going to rain at a barbecue recently. 
According to Mr Hammersley, the more information you provide, the better it will be at pre-empting exactly what you need to know. 
But campaigners believe companies are learning too much about individuals through their internet use. 
Nick Pickles, of Big Brother Watch, said: 'Google isn't doing this for our own good but for commercial reasons. 
'It's about taking away choice from users and pushing what they and their advertisers want.'


Read more: -

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2389318/Technology-developed-smartphones-predicts-information-need-know-ask-to.html

Study: Posting Facebook Photos Negatively Impacts Real-Life Relationships -

Study: Posting Facebook Photos Negatively Impacts Real-Life Relationships - 



A new study finds that sharing, or over-sharing, your photographs on Facebook may have a significant negative impact on real-life relationships.

According to research from the University of Birmingham, University West of England and the University of Edinburgh, people who frequently post photos to Facebook can’t control how their various “friends” will perceive the posts.

“It’s worth remembering that the information we post to our ‘friends’ on Facebook, actually gets viewed by lots of different categories of people: partners; friends; family; colleagues and acquaintances,” said Dr. David Houghton, lead author of the report, told Phys.org. “And each group seems to take a different view of the information shared.”

“Our research found that those who frequently post photographs on Facebook risk damaging real-life relationships. This is because people, other than very close friends and relatives, don’t seem to relate well to those who constantly share photos of themselves.”

Entitled “Tagger’s Delight?” the study found that those who share more photos had a decrease in intimacy and closeness in their relationships. Also, a real-life friendship only saw negative impacts with more photos posted to the social network website.


“Partners sharing more photographs of family is positively related to support, whereas partners sharing more photographs of friends is related negatively to intimacy,” the report reads.

The study also found that large advertising campaigns that encourage fans to post photos with their products were also negatively impacted.

“While benefitting brand awareness and critical mass of a Facebook fan page for a brand, organization or cause, sharing photographs may be harmful to those asked to participate,” the report states.”

Read more - 

http://washington.cbslocal.com/2013/08/10/study-posting-facebook-photos-negatively-impacts-real-life-relationships/

Doctors Using 'Super Honey' to Treat Wounds, Infections... -

Doctors Using 'Super Honey' to Treat Wounds, Infections... - 



A new honey has been produced that has had ‘amazing’ results treating wounds and infections.
The bio-engineered product Surgihoney was tested on babies, new mothers, cancer patients and the elderly for over a year in Hampshire hospitals.
Wounds and ulcers, including those infected with the superbug MRSA, healed within days, while the number of women who suffered infections after giving birth by caesarean section has halved.
It has also healed the wounds of soldiers returning from Afghanistan, and been used to treat acne and to protect the skin of cancer patients fitted with a catheter for chemotherapy.
Dr Matthew Dryden, consultant microbiologist at the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: ‘It will revolutionise wound care around the world.’
Honey has been used for its healing powers for thousands of years, although doctors favour penicillin and antibiotics.
However, Surgihoney, which is stored in 10g sachets, can kill bacteria, parasites and fungal infections while also encouraging wounds to heal.
Dr Dryden said: ‘I have conducted numerous laboratory tests and compared it with honeys from around the world.
‘I found Surgihoney better for treating every type of bug. So for the past year I have been using it on patients and the results have been amazing. 

'There are plenty of products that can kill bacteria but they often don’t help heal tissue.
‘Honey is a fantastic natural medicine. The important extra is that it kills the bugs but doesn’t damage the tissue.’


Read more: -

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2389121/Doctors-discover-super-honey-amazing-power-treat-soldiers-wounds-kill-superbug-infections.html

Billionaire prepares to unveil mysterious project, revolutionary 'fifth mode' of transportation... -

Billionaire prepares to unveil mysterious project, revolutionary 'fifth mode' of transportation... - 



Inside the Hyperloop: the pneumatic travel system faster than the speed of sound
It is called “The Hyperloop” and, according to the designer, it will be a revolutionary “fifth mode” of transport, eclipsing trains, planes, boats and automobiles.

The “cross between Concorde, a rail gun and an air hockey table” will deliver passengers between US cities faster than the speed of sound.
The history of transport is replete with dreamers who have concocted such schemes for getting people from A to B in previously unimagined haste. And many of them have remained just that, impractical ideas on a drawing board that will never see the light of day.

But the latest mysterious project, which has had the technology world buzzing for months, has one crucial difference. Its backer is a Silicon Valley wunderkind with a proven track record of turning science fiction into reality.

Billionaire Elon Musk’s CV is impressive, to say the least. He made his initial fortune from PayPal, the online secure payment system, before going on to launch spaceships. Last year his SpaceX venture became the first private operation to dock a cargo capsule with the International Space Station.

Back on Earth, Mr Musk also founded Tesla, which has made electric sports cars viable and profitable.
The mercurial, fictional character of Tony Stark, played by Robert Downey Jr in the Iron Man films, is reputedly based on him.
So when Mr Musk, 42, announced that he would be publishing plans for the Hyperloop on Monday, August 12 - tomorrow - scientists were sent into a tailspin.
They will have to wait for Mr Musk to post his “alpha design” on the internet then but he has dropped several hints about its features, including that the system will be powered by solar panels.
Mr Musk will not be patenting the design and it will be “open source”, meaning anyone can modify it, or try to build it.
The fevered speculation about what it would actually look like has ranged from wild theories on Star Trek-style teleportation to more achievable ones involving cars being pushed through vacuum sealed tunnels using magnets.
Mr Musk has denied it will be a so-called “vactrain”, a concept that is already being pursued by a company in Colorado. His idea “does involve a tube, but not a vacuum tube”, he said, adding: “Not frictionless, but very low friction.”

Read more - 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/10235261/Inside-the-Hyperloop-the-pneumatic-travel-system-faster-than-the-speed-of-sound.html