China may invest in Russia's first high-speed railway

A CRH train that runs on Lanzhou-Urumqi High-Speed Railway stops at Urumqi South Railway Station in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, Dec 26, 2014. [Photo/Xinhua]

China is interested in bankrolling Russia's first high-speed rail line connecting Moscow and Kazan, investing about 300 billion rubles ($5.2 billion) in the construction of the project, Russian media reported Sunday.

Of the total, 50 billion rubles ($870 million) would come as an equity payment from the Chinese company in charge of the project. A furtehr 250 billion rubles ($4.33 billion) would come in the form of 20-year loans from Chinese banks, according to sources familiar with the proposal.

The 770-kilometer journey from Moscow to Kazan, capital of the Tatarstan republic, will be cut to just three-and-a-half hours instead of the current 11-and-a-half. The train would reach a top speed of 400 km per hour.

The project is planned to better connect mid-size Russian cities by improving transport and the mobility of people.

The Moscow-Kazan line forms the initial section of a Eurasian high-speed railway linking Beijing and Moscow, with completion scheduled for 2018 in time for the World Cup soccer finals in Russia. Kazan is one of the host cities.

The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on the line during Premier Li Keqiang's visit to Russia last October.

A CRH train that runs on the Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway leaves Tianjin South Railway Station in North China's Tianjin, June 30, 2012. [Photo/Xinhua]

The rail deal is only part of China's major investment projects in Russia, as the countries move closer in translating their comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination into more practical cooperation, especially in areas of infrastructure construction.

China Development Bank confirmed in April last year its plan to invest $5 billion in infrastructure projects in Russia's Far East.

China has embarked on a program to expand its railway network, with plans to lay thousands of kilometers of track on various continents in the coming years.

China and Thailand have signed an agreement to build high-speed tracks and Chinese firms are also interested in joining the bidding for a high-speed line between Malaysia and Singapore, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi revealed Saturday while attending the annual Boao Forum for Asia conference in Hainan province.

China in May 2014 signed a deal worth $3.8 billion to build a rail linking Kenya's Mombasa and Nairobi, which is actually the first phase of a line that will eventually connect the East African countries including Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan.

China, Brazil and Peru agreed last July to build a railway that runs across the South American continent, which is aimed at linking the Brazilian Atlantic coast with the Peruvian Pacific coast.

CNR Corp Ltd's stand at the 18th China International Fair for Investment and Trade in Xiamen, Fujian province, Sept 8, 2014. [Provided to China Daily]

5 reasons why snacking on kajus or cashew nuts is a healthy option!

What is your favourite past-time snack? Although most of you might like to eat cashew nuts, your might restrict yourself from doing so due to its high calories count. While cashew nuts often make their way to desserts such as the yummykaju katlis,kheer and brownies, here are more reasons you should gorge on this nut. Packed with many nutrients that boost your metabolism and tastes good, our expert Neha Chandna, a nutritionist, tells you why cashew nuts should rank as a healthy snack.

# 1 Keeps your heart healthy

Cashew nuts are rich in good fats and have zero cholesterol which helps lower LDL, the bad cholesterol and triglyceride making one’s heart healthy. Many think that cutting out fat intake is good for our body which is untrue. Our body needs nutrients from all food groups including fats; all you need to do is get it from good sources like kaju instead of unhealthy ones. Here’s why you should take the natural route to heart health.

#2 Makes your body stronger

They are rich in magnesium which is required for strong bones, proper muscle and nerve functioning. Our bodies need a daily intake of about 300 – 750 mg of magnesium as it helps regulate the amount of calcium absorbed by our bones. Here are 5 surprising foods for healthy bones.

#3 Controls your blood pressure levels

These nuts are low in sodium and high in potassium and thus keep blood pressure under check. When there is excess sodium, the body retains more water which causes the volume of blood to increase in turn increasing the blood pressure. Also readhow to reduce salt intake to keep BP under control.

#4 Reduces your risk of cancer

Cashew nuts also contain antioxidants like selenium and vitamin E which prevent free radical oxidation, reduce the risk of cancer and boost immunity. Since they are rich in zinc, they help fight infections. Here are 10 food habits to prevent cancer.

#5 Plays a key role in numerous body functions

As cashew nuts are packed with high copper content, they play an important role in enzyme activity, hormone production and brain function. Apart from this, they also help in the production of red blood cells and thus, prevent anaemia.

Given the fact that cashew nuts are high in calories, numerous questions might be going in your head at this point of time. Our expert sheds light on some common questions you might have regarding consumption of tasty cashew nuts or kajus.

How often should one eat them?

Though these are absolutely delicious and difficult to stop eating after just a few, remember control is the key to good health. Eating between 5-10 pieces is enough for a day. You can eat them in two batches as a healthy snack to replace your junk food cravings. But keep in mind, excess consumption can lead to weight gain so eat within limits. You may also want to read5 healthiest nuts you should add to your diet.

Should they be avoided in any particular season?

Earlier, there was a belief that nuts generate body heat and should be avoided in summer months. While anything is excess is bad for the body, a few nuts have more health benefits than health issues. Stick to a handful and you can enjoy them in every season.

Should people will certain conditions avoid them all together?

Everyone can eat cashew nuts except people who are allergic to nuts or get a migraine headache due to them.

There are different varieties of cashew nuts like salted or roasted ones. Are they good or should one stick to the plain ones?

You get a wide variety of cashew nuts coated with different masalas, salted, herbed, honeyed, etc. It all depends on your taste buds, choices and health goals. If you suffer from hypertension, avoid salted ones. If you are on a weight loss goal, avoid honey-coated ones. Take your pick wisely or simply stick to the plain variety. Here are 6 healthy salad dressing recipes for weight loss

Do they have any ill-effects on health?

There are no ill-effects of cashew nuts as such but one must not forget that they are rich in calories and so not too many should be eaten at a time. In some cases, they can cause an allergic reaction which may show different symptoms for different people including vomiting and diarrhoea, swelling, skin rashes, difficulty in breathing, etc. If you experience any of these after eating them, it is best to discontinue and see a doctor.

Miniature pacemaker designed to be implanted in fetuses

The relative sizes of a standard pacemaker and the new fetus-sized model (Image: CHLA)

In the near future, it's entirely possible that babies with heart defects will be born with complete pacemakers already installed. That's because scientists at Children's Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA) and the University of Southern California have developed the world's first fully-implantable pacemaker for fetuses.

The device is intended specifically for in-utero implantation in fetuses suffering from congenital heart block. This is a defect that affects the heart's electrical system, dangerously lowering the heart rate.

Previous attempts at addressing the malady have involved implanting the heart-stimulating electrodes of a regular adult-sized pacemaker in the fetus, with wires leading from it to the rest of the device, which was located outside the womb. According to the researchers, however, all of those attempts failed. This was likely due to the fact that the electrodes were pulled loose from the fetus' heart as it moved around.

By contrast, the new device is small enough that the whole thing can be implanted. No matter how much the fetus squirms, everything should stay attached and in place.

"We now have a pacemaker that can be implanted in-utero, potentially without harm to the fetus or the mom," said Dr. Ramen H. Chmait, Director of the CHLA-USC Institute for Maternal-Fetal Health. "This novel device provides a real opportunity to prevent miscarriage and premature birth in babies affected with these abnormalities." - gizmag

Electric cars to become mini power plants in California’s energy grid

Like a mini power plant, this electric vehicle can bid on energy in California's wholesale power market

The California utility, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), has begun bidding energy resources from fleets of electric vehicles and storage systems into the state’s wholesale power market. The pilot program, one of the first of its kind, is meant to provide insights into how electric vehicles and other kinds of distributed energy resources can make the grid more reliable and efficient.

The project is expected to end in late 2015, with the planners hoping to glean valuable information on electric vehicle-grid integration and grid energy distribution. This grid-to-vehicle relationship is seen as a key factor in planning a more distributed energy grid, allowing EVs to charge at night when demand is low and acting as a grid resource when demand is high.

The issue with renewable energy, such as wind and solar, is its reliance on intermittent sources, combined with a lack of robust, efficient storage systems. California’s solar panels produce most of their energy during the middle of the day, but taper off in the evening when consumer energy needs are traditionally highest. Meanwhile, electric car batteries and other energy storage systems typically need recharging on a daily basis, if not more often.

The challenge for utilities such as SDG&E is integrating electric vehicles into the grid and efficiently allocating energy resources to the right place at the cheapest time, while benefiting both the customer and the supplier. The idea is to find workable solutions now, while the market is still relatively small. SDG&E says more than 13,000 electric vehicles are in use in its territory, while the state’s Zero-Emission Vehicles (ZEV) Action Plan wants to put 1.5 million zero-emissions vehicles on the road by 2025. The San Diego utility plans to add at least 5,500 EV charging stations during that time.

For the 10-month project, stationary storage systems and EV charging sites are combined at five locations throughout San Diego County and controlled remotely via software that balances charging needs and grid demand. The software provides "demand response" services; in other words, it charges up EVs during off-peak hours when demand is lower by correlating charging activity with wholesale energy prices, a setup that allows energy to be more efficiently spread to customers throughout the region. The cheaper off-peak charging rates are passed on to EV owners at similar prices to what a conventional power plant would be paid.

"The optimization software polls and understands the current state of charge of the vehicles, and each vehicle’s charging needs over a particular time horizon," SDG&E’s Hanan Eisenman told Gizmag.

As an example, a vehicle might be charged at 45 percent, and need a full charge to be completed sometime in the next four hours. Charging can occur (and be interrupted) at any time, as long as the vehicle is completely charged within the specified period. When the "demand resource" is in the market, instructions are sent by the optimization software to stop charging, which reduces demand in that hour. Charging resumes in lower priced hours, and is completed before the deadline set by the customer.

"Similarly, the storage resources stop charging in these hours, and potentially discharge to ensure the quantity of total response matches what was committed to the CAISO (California Independent System Operators) in our bids,” says Eisenman. "By being a direct participant in the CAISO’s markets and committing to reduce demand in certain high price hours, we allow the CAISO to not commit additional conventional resources in those hours.”

SDG&E is also developing a website/mobile app that lets customers set their EV charging preferences in response to rate signals, effectively acting as their own utility that buys from a larger grid power supplier. It’s also an additional piece of information SDG&E can gather and use on their customers’ charging behavior and grid use. - .gizmag

India launches fourth of seven navigation satellites

IRNSS-1D, which will provide navigation, tracking and mapping service and have a mission life of 10 years, is the fourth in the constellation of seven satellites. 

CHENNAI: (PTI) India is set to operationalise its own navigational system with the successful launch of IRNSS-1D, the fourth in the series of seven navigational satellites, onboard PSLV-C27 on Saturday.

With this launch, the country is poised to operationalise the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), having put into orbit four of the seven satellites.

At the end of the 59.5 hour countdown, PSLV-C27, the time-tested launch vehicle of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at 5.19 p.m. and injected the satellite into orbit about 21 minutes later.

A beaming ISRO Chairman A.S. Kiran Kumar, for whom this is the first project after taking charge of the space agency, said the mission was successful and the satellite had been placed in precise orbit.

“I congratulate the entire ISRO team for the 28th straight successful PSLV mission which has put the IRNSS-1D, the fourth of the navigation constellation satellite successfully,” Mr. Kumar said.

IRNSS-1D, which will provide navigation, tracking and mapping service and have a mission life of 10 years, is the fourth in the constellation of seven satellites, planned by ISRO to constitute IRNSS, which would be on par with U.S.—based GPS once the full complement of spacecrafts are launched.

“This mission has got significance because we are completing the minimum essential requirement of four satellites in the orbit to start the navigation process,” Project Director P. Kunhikrishnan said.

While four satellites would be sufficient to start operations of the IRNSS system, the remaining three would make it more accurate and efficient.

The IRNSS system, planned to be completed by this year at a total cost of Rs. 1,420 crore, will be targeted at South Asia and is designed to provide accurate position information services to users in the country as well as the region extending up to 1,500 km from its boundary.

Its applications include terrestrial and marine navigation, disaster management, vehicle tracking and fleet management, navigation aide for hikers and travellers, visual and voice navigation for drivers.

The first three satellites in the series were launched from Sriharikota in July 2013, April 2014 and October 2014.

Police seek two people unaccounted for after New York explosion

New York City firefighters work the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on March 26, 2015. (AP)

NEW YORK:  Four apartment buildings in New York's East Village neighborhood caught fire from an apparent gas explosion on Thursday and three collapsed, causing 19 injuries, authorities said.

The blast shortly after 3 p.m. sent flames leaping into the sky and rocked the residential area in Manhattan. Bloodied victims ran from the buildings, collapsing on the street, witnesses said.

A Fire Department spokesman said late on Thursday that three of the four buildings had collapsed or partially collapsed.

The blast appeared to have been gas-related, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said. Private gas and plumbing work was going on in one of the buildings, and Con Edison utility inspectors on the scene an hour earlier had determined the work was not satisfactory.

The mayor and other officials inspected the devastated scene, where remains of the buildings were a tangled mess of bricks, wood, steel and broken glass. A few personal items were visible, including a dresser and some clothes.

Two people have been missing since the blast, officials said.

"We are looking into two individuals who are apparently unaccounted for," said a New York Police Department spokeswoman.

One of those was identified in local media as Nicholas Figueroa, 23, whose family said he had been eating lunch with a co-worker at a sushi restaurant where the explosion appeared to have originated.

His family told The New York Times that a bank statement showed he had used a debit card to pay $13.04 to Sushi Park.

Figueroa has not been heard from, his family said. His co-worker was hospitalized with injuries.

The damaged buildings comprised 49 apartments, and the American Red Cross said 90 people registered for assistance.

One of them, Naya Jones, 24, emerged from a makeshift Red Cross center carrying a stack of folded white towels. Displaced by the blast, she said she spent the night at a YMCA and voiced concern for the injured victims.

"It could have been me," she said.

Firefighters were searching through rubble that was still burning, said a fire department spokesman. "We're putting out smoldering debris," he said.

Two buildings entirely collapsed, a third mostly collapsed and will have to be razed and the fourth had severe fire damage but was structurally sound, according to fire officials.

Con Edison said its inspectors had evaluated a gas service upgrade installed in the building that exploded and found it failed inspection partly because there was insufficient space for installation of a meter in the basement.

Shameem Noor, a cashier at the Veselka restaurant about a block away, said he heard the blast and saw three or four people fall to the street.

The four buildings contain 49 apartments, according to a spokesman for the American Red Cross at the scene. The ground floors were occupied by small eateries.

A relocation center for displaced residents was set up in a nearby elementary school, the Red Cross spokesman said.

Early on Friday morning, firefighters were battling a separate apartment blaze burning on the top floor of a six-story building some 3 miles (5 km) north, the New York Fire Department said. There were no immediate reports of injuries. -  Reuters 

Nissan Motor India plans massive hike in dealerships in north east

GUWAHATI: Nissan Motor India plans to increase its dealership network in the north east by three to four times within next two years as part of its strategy to have 300 outlets across the country in the next 2-3 years.

"We are expanding our network very aggressively across the country. We have a plan to take our number of outlets to 300 touch points from 175 at present," Nissan Motor India managing director Arun Malhotra told PTI here.

The company, which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Japan's Nissan Motor Company, is looking to expand in all locations, he added.

"As part of this plan, we will expand in north east. The expansion here will be faster as this market has a huge potential for our business," Malhotra said.

He said Nissan Motor India currently has six outlets in the region and it will be expanded by 3-4 times in the next two years in all the states.

"Currently four per cent of our national sales is coming from North East. Going forward, this number will certainly increase," Malhotra said, adding the company had sold 38,000 units in 2013-14 across India.

He said the two dealerships at Dimapur in Nagaland and Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh are among the top five selling showrooms across the country.

"Somehow Nissan has not been very curious to North East so far but now we are taking it very seriously compared to other markets. Our dealers are also enjoying the confidence," Malhotra said.

The company today inaugurated the second Nissan showroom in Guwahati.

Galaxy S6 (and GS6 edge) pre-orders begin tomorrow, pricing details trickling in

Samsung today announced that Galaxy S6 (and Galaxy S6 edge) pre-orders will begin March 27 (Photo: Stu Robarts/Gizmag.com)

Shortly after HTC announced that it's taking One M9 orders starting at midnight (EDT), Samsung jumped in with its own release details (along with pricing info, courtesy of T-Mobile) for the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge.

We already knew that the Galaxy S6 and GS6 edge sales would begin on April 10, but Samsung today added that pre-orders will start tomorrow, March 27. Though the phone will be available on the big four US carriers (Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint), the release's language adds that carriers will announce their own pricing and availability on their own time (meaning all of them won't necessarily take pre-orders on the 27th, or launch on the 10th).

T-Mobile was the first US carrier to offer more specifics, with pre-orders for its versions of the GS6 and edge kicking off at 7 a.m. PDT on March 27, and in-store availability starting on April 10. The "Un-Carrier" says that its pre-orders will begin shipping early, potentially getting in customers' hands before that 4/10 launch date.

T-Mobile was also the first carrier to announce pricing, with its 32 GB Galaxy S6 ringing up for US$680 full retail (with installment plans also available). The edge will have a $100 markup, starting at $780 without financing. T-Mobile's full retail pricing for the GS6 is only slightly higher than the $650 off-contract pricing that's typical of today's flagships. This could potentially translate to around $200 on-contract for the carriers that still prefer two-year blood oaths.

Stay tuned for more on 2015's first big-ticket smartphone releases, including the GS6, GS6 edge and HTC One M9, in the coming days and weeks.

Time to control online sales of breast milk, say experts

Breast milk ordered online is cheaper than that obtained from regulated banks but also prone to contamination

Health watchdogs should regulate online sales of breast milk, so prone to contamination that babies may be placed at risk, the BMJ medical journal said in an editorial on Wednesday.

New mothers face mounting social pressure to provide breast milk, given its famous nutritional benefits, and more and more are turning to the Internet if they are unable to provide the milk themselves.

Breast milk purchased online is cheaper than that obtained from regulated breast milk banks.

The reason, the editorial said, is that Internet providers cut corners on the cost of checking donors and on storing and shipping the milk in hygienic conditions.

“Unlike donors at licensed milk banks, online sellers are not required to undergo any serological screening, meaning that diseases such as hepatitis B and C, HIV, human T cell lymph trophic virus and syphilis may not be detected,” it said.

The editorial pointed to several published studies highlighting the risks.

One found that 21 percent of tested samples of Internet-bought breast milk were contaminated with a herpes virus called cytomegalovirus, compared to five percent from a regulated bank.

Another found that 92 of 101 online samples tested positive for bacterial growth, likely due to a lack of pasteurization, and poor shipping and storage conditions. 

Another investigation into 102 online samples found that 25 percent arrived with severely damaged packaging and were no longer frozen, leading to more rapid bacterial growth and contamination.

”Other studies identified occasional contamination with biphenyl A and illicit drugs and tampering, including the addition of cow’s milk or water to increase volume,” the specialists said. “Such contamination cannot easily be detected before infant feeding.”

The editorial is lead-authored by Sarah Steele, a lecturer at the Global Health, Policy and Innovation Unit at Queen Mary University London.

Breast milk is not just purchased for babies - gym enthusiasts and cancer patients are also among the buyers, believing it provides a nutritional plus for muscle-building and the immune system. 

The editorial called for better regulation of the collection and shipping of breast milk, and improved training for healthcare workers who advise new mothers.

“Milk bought online is far from an ideal alternative, exposing infants and other consumers to microbiological and chemical agents,” it said. “Urgent action is required to make this market safer.” - AFP

Saudi Arabia: King Salman allies air strikes in Yemen against Houthi fighters

                                   King Salman bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia. (SPA)

SANAA/ADEN, Yemen, March 26 (Reuters) - Warplanes from Saudi Arabia and Arab allies struck Shi'ite Muslim rebels fighting to oust Yemen's president on Thursday, at 12 a.m. a gamble by the world's top oil exporter to check Iranian influence in its backyard without direct military backing from Washington.

Riyadh's rival Iran denounced the assault on the Houthi militia group, which it backs, and made clear the kingdom's deployment of a Sunni coalition against Shi'ite enemies would complicate efforts to end a conflict likely to inflame the sectarian animosities fuelling wars around the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Washington, Adel al-Jubeir, told reporters in Washington the kingdom had launched a military operation involving air strikes in Yemen against Houthi fighters who have tightened their grip on the southern city of Aden where the country's president had taken refuge.

Al-Jubeir told reporters that a 10-country coalition had joined in the military campaign in a bid "to protect and defend the legitimate government" of Yemen President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

"We will do whatever it takes in order to protect the legitimate government of Yemen from falling," Jubeir said.

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Mohammed bin Salman had warned Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, the son of Yemen's former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, against advancing toward Aden.

The Houthis have joined forces with the loyalists of former President Saleh in their offensive to take control of Yemen.

Yemeni Foreign Minister Riad Yassine told Al Arabiya News channel that the operations would continue until the Houthis agree to join peace talks and backtrack on all measures taken since their occupation of the capital Sanaa last September.

“We do not recognize any of what happened after September 21,” Yassine told Al Arabiya News, saying the military operation would help the southern Yemenis “regain confidence.”

Demonstrations reportedly broke out in Yemen’s Hadramout and Aden in support of the Saudi airstrikes on the Houthi militia.

The military operation came shortly after Arab Gulf states, barring Oman, announced that they have decided to “repel Houthi aggression” in neighboring Yemen, following a request from the country’s President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi.

In their joint statement Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait said they "decided to repel Houthi militias, al-Qaeda and ISIS [Islamic State of Iraq and Syria] in the country.”

Houthi-run al-Masirah television reported that the Saudi-led air strikes had hit a residential neighbourhood north of Sanaa and caused dozens of casualties. It also urged medical personnel to report to hospitals in Sanaa immediately.

Al-Masirah footage showed the body of a girl and several of the wounded, including an unidentified man who wept as he said the air strikes had killed his son and destroyed his home.

It interviewed one witness who said: "We tell Saudi Arabia, don't you have enough with what's happening in Syria and Iraq. You want to do the same in Yemen? Why are you hitting Yemeni civilians, women and children."

No independent verification of any casualties was immediately possible.

A widening Yemen conflict could also pose risks for global oil supplies, and Brent crude oil prices surged more than 4 percent on Thursday.

Most oil tankers from Arab producers such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq have to pass Yemen's coastlines via the narrow Gulf of Aden in order to get through the Red Sea and Suez Canal to Europe. -  Reuters

The Reason Why Insulin Is Still So Expensive

Insulin has saved countless lives since its discovery in 1921. But nearly a century later, there is somehow still no cheap, generic version of insulin available in the U.S-making the "wonder drug" too expensive for many patients. Why? 

In the New England Journal of Medicine, Jerome Greene and Kevin Riggs call it the "paradox of incremental innovation." Generics drugs only come on the market when patents expire, and insulin has seen steady parade of new patents over the past 90 years. 

Early forms of insulin were derived from cow or pig pancreases, and like all early versions of a drug, they were imperfect. Manufacturers spent decades improving animal insulins, increasing their purity and making them last longer. With each improvement came a new manufacturing-process patent.

Then, in the 1970s, recombinant DNA technology came along. The gene for human insulin could be spliced directly into the genomes of yeast, which then produced insulin en masse. Scientists could even tinker with the genetic code for insulin, creating forms that were both faster-acting and longer-lasting. And-you know the drill now-with each new form of insulin came a new patent.

Meanwhile, the cheaper animal versions of insulin disappeared from the market in the U.S. (They are still available in other countries like Canada.) True, the new drugs were slightly better, but they are also drastically more expensive. 

For uninsured patients, out-of-pocket expenses for insulin are as high as $400 a month, compared to the $4 a month for many other generic medications. The choice between a marginally better and unaffordable drug versus a effective and cheap drug is obvious.

There is a tiny glimmer of good news, as the latest round of patents have expired and generic-like "biosimilar" versions of insulin are coming on the market that could be 20 to 40 percent cheaper. That's still expensive, but a even a slightly more affordable insulin couldn't come soon enough. [New England Journal of Medicine via NPR]

Our biggest worries: money, health and relationships

‘Irish Times’ poll shows women worry more than men and anxieties decrease with age

The survey asked about six areas of “worry”: not having enough money; not having enough free time; work-life balance; physical health; mental health; and relationship difficulties

What keeps Irish people awake at night? Money, or too little of it, is our number one concern, according to a major “Family Values” poll carried out by Ipsos MRBI on behalf of The Irish Times.

In the poll of 1,000 individuals, 45 per cent identified “not having enough money to cover my monthly outgoings” as an area of concern. The survey asked about six areas of “worry”: not having enough money; not having enough free time; work-life balance; physical health; mental health; and relationship difficulties.

In all six areas, women were more likely than men to say they worried about the issues. And among the three age categories surveyed – 15-34, 35-54, and 55-plus – those over 55 worried least.

It found we worry about different things depending on our circumstances. People with jobs are more likely to worry about their free time than their bank balances. More than half (51.3 per cent) of working people said they worried about not having enough free time, while 47.8 per cent worried about their work/life balance.

However, 46 per cent of working people also worry about money.

Money worries differ depending on age: more than half of respondents under 55 admitt they had money concerns, compared with just 31 per cent of those aged 55 or over.

By far the most likely category to worry about money was the unemployed, more than two-thirds of whom worried about their outgoings in the four weeks leading up to the poll. The next greatest worry for those without work was their health (46 per cent cited concerns about their physical health; one-third said they worried about their mental health).

Working people were less likely than those without jobs to worry about their physical or mental health and were also less likely to have relationship difficulties.

However, a similar percentage of both working and unemployed people (18 per cent) said they did not worry about any of the specific issues raised by the poll.

But some people do not worry much at all. The poll showed that just over a fifth (22.8 per cent) worry about none of the listed issues. Men were more likely than women to have “no worries”: 28 per cent of men said none of these things worried them, compared with 18 per cent of women.

But the most worry-free group are retired people. Almost half (48.7 per cent) said they did notworry about any of the issues raised. When older people worry at all, it is most likely to be about their physical health (one-third of those over 55 said they worried about this), but this age group was least worried about their mental health.

Retirees had the fewest relationship concerns: just 1.7 per cent said they worried about their marriage or relationship.

Parents of young children had the highest level of worry: nine out of 10 parents who have children under the age of 12 said they worried about one or more of the issues raised, and were most likely to cite multiple concerns.

The main worry cited by parents with young children was not having enough free time, a concern raised by 62 per cent of parents of children aged four or under.

However, parents of young children can look forward to a less troubled existence in future: while more than 90 per cent of parents of under-13s reported that they worried about one or more of the issues raised, this fell to 88 per cent among parents of teenagers and to 63 per cent among parents with children of 18 and over.

The types of concerns cited also changed over time. Parents with teenagers tended to worry about money more than they did concerns around their work/life balance or free time.

And people without children tended to have more worries than those who had children: just 18 per cent of people without children said they did not worry about any of the issues raised, compared with 26 per cent of parents.

The Irish Times/Ipsos MRBI of a representative sample of 1,000 adults aged 15 and was carried out between February 5th and 19th. More results and analysis of the The Irish Times Family Values survey will appear on Saturday.

Solar-powered plane lands in Myanmar on latest leg of global flight to promote clean energy

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — A solar-powered plane landed in Myanmar on Thursday night, the latest leg of a round-the-world trip aimed at highlighting clean energy.

Dozens of trees had to be cleared ahead of the Solar Impulse 2's arrival at the Mandalay International Airport for its giant mobile hangar and exhibition tent, said Taik Aung, the country's director of air navigation and safety division. 

Towering shrubs along the runway also needed to be trimmed to accommodate the plane's 72-meter wing span, said Corinne Henchoz Pignani, of the Swiss Embassy in Yangon.

The Impulse 2 has 12 scheduled stop-overs during its five-month journey.

Swiss pilots Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg are taking turns flying the aircraft, which is powered by more than 17,000 solar cells on its wings that recharge the plane's batteries.

The single-seat, Swiss-made plane left the northern Indian town of Varanasi early Thursday after several weather delays and flew over the Bay of Bengal and reached Mandalay at 7:50 p.m.

As the plane touches down in Mandalay, Myanmar's second-largest city, a band of hundreds of students played music and dancers performed a regional dance wearing elephant costumes decorated with gold and glass gems.

The flight has attracted attention from people who see solar power as a future source of clean, renewable energy.

Two other aircraft — an ATR 72 and Ilyushin 76 — were carrying equipment for the solar plane and a 70 support staff, said Soe Paing, a member of the plane's local task force team. Myanmar's government was picking up the tab for the 20,000 gallons of fuel needed for the support planes on the Mandalay leg, he said.

The Solar Impulse 2 is scheduled to continue onward to Chongqing and Nanjing in China on Sunday. It then heads over the Pacific Ocean, landing in Hawaii and the U.S. mainland before flying over the Atlantic Ocean.

Some legs of the trip, such as over the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, means five days and five nights of flying solo. But the pilots have prepared for the exhaustive long stretches: Borschberg has been practicing yoga, while Piccard uses self-hypnosis to calm himself.

Police cars torched at anti-austerity protest in Germany

A demonstrator stands on a toppled trash bin in front of the European Central Bank next to a burning barrier in Frankfurt, Germany. (AP)

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP): Three police cars were set alight and two officers injured Wednesday as authorities confronted anti-austerity protesters trying to blockade the inauguration ceremony for the European Central Bank’s new headquarters in Frankfurt, Germany.

Several thousand riot officers pursued what they said was a minority of violence-minded activists as the bulk of protesters conducted themselves peacefully ahead of a rally in the city’s main square. Some blocked bridges across the Main River or streets.

Police said one officer was injured by stones thrown near the city’s Alte Oper opera house, several private vehicles were burned overnight, and two police cars were set on fire at a police station in the city center. Another police vehicle smoldered a block from the ECB.

Hundreds of officers ringed the ECB headquarters ahead of the inauguration ceremony. Protesters are targeting the ECB because of the bank’s role in supervising efforts to restrain spending and reduce debt in financially troubled countries such as Greece.

The Blockupy alliance says activists plan to try to blockade the new headquarters and to disrupt what they term capitalist business as usual.

Some 10,000 people were expected for a rally in Frankfurt’s main square, the Roemerberg. Organizers have chartered a special train bringing demonstrators from Berlin and are busing in others from around Germany and other European countries.

Frankfurt police say most demonstrators are expected to be peaceful, but that violence-prone elements could use the crowds as cover. Participants include trade unions and Germany’s Left Party.

The ECB, along with the European Commission and International Monetary Fund, is part of the so-called “troika” that monitors compliance with the conditions of bailout loans for Greece and other financially troubled countries in Europe. Those conditions include spending cuts and reducing deficits, moves that are aimed at reducing debt but have also been blamed for high unemployment and slow growth.

Anti-austerity activists received a political boost when Greece’s Syriza party won elections there in January by campaigning against the bailout deal and its conditions, which they say has led to a “humanitarian crisis.” Refusal of the conditions, however, has led to the withholding of further aid and the possibility of a chaotic debt default by the government.

ECB President Mario Draghi has called for more spending by governments that are in good financial shape, such as Germany — a call that has been mostly ignored by elected officials.

The ECB says it plans to be “fully operational” during the protest, although some employees may work from home.

Satellites Looked So Futuristic In 1958

You'd be forgiven for thinking that this was a piece of modern sculpture. But in fact you're looking one of NASA's old Vanguard satellites, photographed at Cape Canaveral, Florida in 1958.

The first ever solar-powered satellite, Vanguard 1 launched on March 17th 1958. Its purposes was exploratory: to test the launch vehicle that took it into space, and the effects of the environment on a satellite and its systems in Earth orbit. In fact, it was only the second U.S. satellite to be put into orbit—Explorer 1 preceded it—but perhaps the nicest part of the story is that it still orbits Earth, the oldest artificial object to do so. And damn, if it didn't do all that with style. [NASA]

NASA Spacecraft Detects Aurora and Mysterious Dust Cloud around Mars

WASHINGTON, March 18, 2015:  NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft has observed two unexpected phenomena in the Martian atmosphere: an unexplained high-altitude dust cloud and aurora that reaches deep into the Martian atmosphere.

The presence of the dust at orbital altitudes from about 93 miles (150 kilometers) to 190 miles (300 kilometers) above the surface was not predicted. Although the source and composition of the dust are unknown, there is no hazard to MAVEN and other spacecraft orbiting Mars.

"If the dust originates from the atmosphere, this suggests we are missing some fundamental process in the Martian atmosphere," said Laila Andersson of the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospherics and Space Physics (CU LASP), Boulder, Colorado.

The cloud was detected by the spacecraft's Langmuir Probe and Waves (LPW) instrument, and has been present the whole time MAVEN has been in operation. It is unknown if the cloud is a temporary phenomenon or something long lasting. The cloud density is greatest at lower altitudes. However, even in the densest areas it is still very thin. So far, no indication of its presence has been seen in observations from any of the other MAVEN instruments.

Possible sources for the observed dust include dust wafted up from the atmosphere; dust coming from Phobos and Deimos, the two moons of Mars; dust moving in the solar wind away from the sun; or debris orbiting the sun from comets. However, no known process on Mars can explain the appearance of dust in the observed locations from any of these sources.

MAVEN's Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS) observed what scientists have named "Christmas lights." For five days just before Dec. 25, MAVEN saw a bright ultraviolet auroral glow spanning Mars' northern hemisphere. Aurora, known on Earth as northern or southern lights, are caused by energetic particles like electrons crashing down into the atmosphere and causing the gas to glow.

"What's especially surprising about the aurora we saw is how deep in the atmosphere it occurs - much deeper than at Earth or elsewhere on Mars," said Arnaud Stiepen, IUVS team member at the University of Colorado. "The electrons producing it must be really energetic."

The source of the energetic particles appears to be the sun. MAVEN's Solar Energetic Particle instrument detected a huge surge in energetic electrons at the onset of the aurora. Billions of years ago, Mars lost a global protective magnetic field like Earth has, so solar particles can directly strike the atmosphere. 

The electrons producing the aurora have about 100 times more energy than you get from a spark of house current, so they can penetrate deeply in the atmosphere.

The findings are being presented at the 46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in The Woodlands, Texas.

MAVEN was launched to Mars on Nov. 18, 2013, to help solve the mystery of how the Red Planet lost most of its atmosphere and much of its water. The spacecraft arrived at Mars on Sept. 21, and is four months into its one-Earth-year primary mission.

"The MAVEN science instruments all are performing nominally, and the data coming out of the mission are excellent," said Bruce Jakosky of CU LASP, Principal Investigator for the mission.

MAVEN is part of the agency's Mars Exploration Program, which includes the Opportunity and Curiosity rovers, the Mars Odyssey and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft currently orbiting the planet.

NASA's Mars Exploration Program seeks to characterize and understand Mars as a dynamic system, including its present and past environment, climate cycles, geology and biological potential. 

In parallel, NASA is developing the human spaceflight capabilities needed for its journey to Mars or a future round-trip mission to the Red Planet in the 2030's.

MAVEN's principal investigator is based at the University of Colorado's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the MAVEN project. Partner institutions include Lockheed Martin, the University of California at Berkeley, and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. - NASA

This Is How You Make The Wheels For A 1,000MPH Car

The wheels that will hopefully power the Bloodhound SSC car to speeds of over 1,000mph are now in production, with four of the finest aluminium alloy wheels being carved to extremely precise shape.

Scotland's Castle Engineering is heading up the wheel team and see the development of the car and its cutting edge bits as a showcase for the UK's engineering talent. The wheels have an international edge to them, though, with the metal sourced and initially forged in Germany, before the raw 200kg lumps were shipped over to be precision cut to shape to an accuracy of just a few thousandths of a millimeter.

Once cut, the wheels are balanced for extra accuracy, through a process that shaves even finer layers of the fancy alloy off the surface to ensure there's no unevenness that could introduce car-tearing wobbles when magnified by pushing them through the sound barrier.

Impact damage and loading are key to surviving an attempt on the 1,000mph mark, with the makers suggesting stones fired up from the front wheels when they're spinning at 10,500 rpm could hit the rears with the power of a bullet. Hence they're being cut from the finest, roundest, lumps of metal that can be found. [BBC]

Bombing at two churches in Pakistan kill 14 and wound 78

Taliban claim responsibility for bombings at Catholic and Protestant churches in Lahore

Pakistani Christians gather in front of a church following suicide bombing attacks on churches in Lahore on Sunday. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Bombs outside two churches in the Pakistani city of Lahore killed 14 people and wounded nearly 80 during Sunday services, and witnesses said quick action by a security guard prevented many more deaths.

A Pakistani Taliban splinter group claimed responsibility.

Women mourn the death of their relative who was killed in a suicide attack on a church in Lahore Mar …

The blasts went off minutes apart in a majority Christian suburb of the eastern city. Police said it seemed they targeted two churches, one Catholic and one Protestant, that are very close to each other.

After the blasts, enraged residents lynched two suspects, police said.

“I was sitting at a shop near the church when a blast jolted the area. I rushed towards the spot and saw the security guard scuffle with a man who was trying to enter the church, after failing, he blew himself up,” said witness Amir Masih.

“I saw his body parts flying through the air.”

The guard died as well, he said. It was not clear if the first blast was also triggered by a suicide bomber, Mr Masih said.

Fourteen people were killed and 78 wounded, said Zahid Pervaiz, provincial director of general health.

“The rescue operation is still underway and the death toll may increase,” rescue services spokesman Sajjad Hussain said.

Taliban faction Jamaat-ul-Ahrar claimed responsibility.

Pope Francis told crowds at St. Peter's Square in the Vatican he felt "great pain" over the bomb attacks, departing from scripted remarks in his customary address on Sunday.

"These are Christian churches. Christians are persecuted, our brothers spill their blood simply because they are Christians," the pontiff said.

Following the blast, enraged residents lynched two men they suspected of involvement, a police official said. Journalist Riaz Ahmed said he had seen the two burnt bodies at an intersection.

Militants in Pakistan have attacked Christians and other religious minorities often over the last decade or more. Many blame the government for doing little to protect them. Pakistan’s police are notoriously poorly trained and under funded.

Lahore is the capital of Punjab, Pakistan’s wealthiest and most populous province and the political heartland of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The city is generally considered peaceful compared with many other areas of Pakistan, but violence there has been increasing after the government’s failed attempts to hold peace talks with the Taliban last year.

After the talks failed, the military launched an offensive in the remote northwestern region of North Waziristan along the Afghan border to push the Taliban from the last major region they controlled.

The military now holds the major urban centres there, but residents say many militants fled before the offensive began and others remain in rural areas. - Reuters

Calorie count of your favourite butter chicken

Are you curious to know how many calories are present in your most favoured non-vegetarian dish, butter chicken? According to caloriecount.com, one serving of butter chicken can provide you with as much as 389 calories out of which 200 calories come from fat alone. To burn these many calories, you will need to spend at least two hours at the gym the next day. 

Butter chicken is a spicy and creamy dish, flavoured with a lot of seasonings that make it a high-calorie meal choice. The butter and cream added to the dish also make it rich in saturated fats. High intake of saturated fats can lead to an increase in the levels of blood cholesterol and risk of heart disease. This dish also has a tomato based sauce that makes it significantly high in sodium. Too much sodium in your diet can increase the risk of high blood pressure. 

Being very high in protein, one serving of butter chicken certainly can meet more than half of your daily protein needs. The spices added to this dish can be great for relieving cold and flu as it may help clear nasal and throat congestion. Besides, chicken is rich in vitamin B6 and B5, which play an important role in preventing heart attack and relieve stress.

Here are some tips to healthify butter chicken:

• You can replace cream and butter with low-fat milk or yoghurt to negate the number of calories.
• To minimise the amount of salt and add flavour to your dish at the same time, you can squeeze a lemon in your dish or add herbs to it.
• You can also add vegetables like bell peppers and mushrooms to make the dish richer in nutrients. You must try these 8 easy and healthy chicken recipes.