India Wants to Ban Birth Surrogacy for Foreigners

Surrogate mothers rest inside a temporary home for surrogates, provided by Akanksha IVF centre, in Anand town, about 70 km (44 miles) south of the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, in August 2013. 

NEW DELHI — The Indian government says it wants to prevent Indian women from becoming surrogate birth mothers for foreigners, according to an affidavit filed Wednesday with the Supreme Court.

The filing represented the latest development in a recent push to regulate an industry that has been booming in India. Estimates of the size of the surrogacy trade in India vary, with one study by Sama, an advocacy group in New Delhi, measuring it at more than $400 million.

Critics say that foreigners can find surrogates in India relatively easily, especially among impoverished women, and that this creates great potential for exploitation. Some experts, however, are concerned that banning surrogacy for foreigners would do more harm than good. “Our apprehension and fear is that the whole business will go underground,” said Manasi Mishra, who heads the research division at the New Delhi-based Center for Social Research, an organization that has published studies on surrogacy in India. “The bargaining capacity of the surrogate mother will further go down.”

In the affidavit, the Department of Health Research of the Indian Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said, “The Government of India does not support commercial surrogacy.” The department also said that surrogacy should be available “to Indian married infertile couples only and not to foreigners.”

The new restrictions sought by the government would require approval of Parliament. The draft of a bill posted online mentions that foreigners would be excluded from the practice, but it allows exceptions for foreign passport holders of Indian origin and foreigners married to Indians. The affidavit does not mention these exceptions. The bill will be open to public comment until Nov. 15.

India has long tried to get approval of legislation to standardize surrogacy, which is run through thousands of clinics throughout the country. The cost of surrogacy in India can be a third of the cost in wealthier countries. In an interview with The New York Times in 2008, an Israeli couple said the cost of their surrogacy in India had been about $30,000, of which about $7,500 went to the surrogate mother.

Stories of abuses by foreign couples in India have weighed heavily on the national debate about surrogacy, including reports of an Australian couple having left a twin in India, said Ms. Mishra.

Jayshree Wad, a lawyer who filed a petition in the Supreme Court to ban commercial surrogacy, said that the practice had harmed India’s image abroad. “There is a common opinion about India which hurts very badly — that because there is poverty they sacrifice their womb by renting it for their family,” she said.

While she welcomed the government’s affidavit, she noted that a bill that would regulate surrogacy has been pending since 2008.

“As a lawyer, I need some law — not only saying ‘I will do this and I will do that,’ ” she said. “So let them put it before the Parliament, then we will see.”  –  nytimes

Obama to Send Special Operations Forces to Syria to Help Fight ISIS

WASHINGTON — President Obama will deploy a small number of American Special Operations forces to Kurdish-controlled territory in northern Syria, a United States official said.

The White House is expected to make the announcement on Friday, the official said.

The team will advise and assist opposition forces who are fighting the Islamic State in Syria, providing smoother and quicker access to equipment and logistical help, the official said.

While administration officials plan to characterize the deployment as an enhancement of current strategy, it is actually a huge shift for a president who has said repeatedly that he will not put American combat boots on the ground in Syria.

The decision adds a new level of risk to the Syrian enterprise, as the presence of American forces, even if they are in Kurdish territory, could bring the special operations troops into closer contact with the Islamic State. - nytimes

Report: NASA Needs Grip on Mars Health Hazards

NASA needs to get cracking if it wants to keep its astronauts alive and well on missions to Mars, according to a new in-house report.

In an extensive audit, NASA's inspector general office looked at the space agency's overall effort to keep astronauts safe during lengthy space missions — especially trips to Mars, currently targeted for the 2030s.

Among the top health hazards for three-year, round-trip Mars missions: space radiation that could cause cancer, central nervous system damage, cataracts or infertility; extreme isolation, which could lead to psychological problems; and prolonged weightlessness, already known to weaken bones, muscles and vision.

There's also the issue of limited amounts and types of medicine and food, the latter potentially leading to weight loss and malnutrition.

Inspector General Paul Martin acknowledged that NASA is making progress in identifying and managing these health risks. NASA's first yearlong mission is underway at the International Space Station.

But Martin pointed out that the space agency is optimistic in thinking it can resolve all the issues by the 2030s.

"The agency still faces significant challenges to ensuring the safety of crew members on a human mission to Mars or deep space," the report concluded.

As such, the first astronauts who fly to Mars may need to accept even more risk than subsequent crews, according to the report.

Stalling the health-risk effort, in part, is the continuing uncertainty over the type of vehicles and habitats that will be used to carry astronauts into deep space, the report stated. NASA also needs to consolidate its expertise; right now, there's a lack of organization to manage crew health risks, the report noted.

NASA agreed with the conclusions.

To date, no American has spent more than seven months in space at a time. The Russians are the world's space endurance champions, but even they haven't ventured beyond 14 months for a mission.

By coincidence, the watchdog's 54-page report came out the same day NASA astronaut Scott Kelly broke the U.S. record for the longest single spaceflight.

Kelly is more than halfway through a one-year station stint, as is Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko. They won't be back on Earth until March.

On Thursday, Kelly told a TV interviewer that while it definitely feels like he's been up there a long time, "I'm pretty sure I'm going to get through it without much of an issue." He said he hopes his mission will help get astronauts to Mars.

Medical researchers expect to learn much from Kelly's flight. As a bonus, Kelly's identical twin, Mark, a retired astronaut, is submitting to testing so doctors can compare the results of the space and ground-based brothers. - AP

Skype brings first ‘talking pictures’ to instant messaging

New Delhi, Oct 29 (IANS) Microsoft's instant messaging, voice and video calling platform Skype on Thursday launched new interactive videos and moving emoticons specifically designed for India.

The new interactive videos or talking pictures, named Mojis by Skype, are the first-of-a-kind very small clips of video (both Bollywood and Hollywood) that the company claims will revolutionise chat platforms.

For the new feature, Skype has partnered with Indian studios Yash Raj Films and ErosNow, the on-demand entertainment platform of Eros International, to develop custom Mojis for Skype users.

"We identified that these clips might be heavy on data usage for users and hence we have cached them on the app itself reducing the need for the user to download them everytime while sending them over the platform," Gurdeep Pall, corporate vice president, Skype told IANS when asked about the success of the new feature keeping in mind the high data tarrifs in the country.

"There are about 100 Mojis now and we will keep adding them on the app. We are also thinking about including several features which may allows users in the future to send custom Mojis via the instant chat," Pall said.

The company also emphasised the importance of India as a market.

"Our goal is to provide the best possible messaging experience on Skype, and tapping into India's extremely active and vibrant film culture is a perfect way to do that," Pall said alluding that Skype has 300 million subscribers globally.

"The app has seen at least 500 million downloads from the Google Play Store," Pall added.

Currently, India is home to a lot of chat or instant messaging platforms like WhatsApp, hike messenger and Viber who have a user base of 900 million, 70 million and over 40 million

The new Bollywood Mojis and emoticons will be available in the features tab of the emoticon picker on Skype for Windows desktop, Mac, iOS, Android and Skype for Web.

China Says First Moon Rover Has Set Record for Longest Stay

Beijing: China’s first lunar rover, Yutu, has been operating on the moon for almost two years, setting a record for the longest stay by a rover, officials said on Thursday.

Yutu was deployed and landed on the moon via China’s Chang’e-3 lunar probe in 2013, staying longer than the Soviet Union’s 1970 moon rover Lunokhod 1, which spent 11 months on the moon, Xinhua news agency reported.

Reports of its operations have streamed live through Sina Weibo, Chinese microblogging site, and its Weibo account has nearly 600,000 followers.

Yutu experienced a mechanical control abnormality in 2014, but it was revived within a month and, though it is unable to move, it continues to collect data, send and receive signals, and record images and video.

The launch of Dongfanghong-1, China’s first satellite, in 1970 made China the fifth country to launch a domestic satellite using a domestic rocket, following the Soviet Union, the US, France and Japan.

China launched its manned space programme in the 1990s and successfully sent Yang Liwei, the country’s first astronaut, into orbit on the Shenzhou-5 spacecraft in 2003.

Meanwhile, China is planning to be the first country to land a lunar probe on the far side of the moon, or “dark side of the moon” which is never visible to Earth.

The mission will be carried out by Chang’e-4, a backup probe for Chang’e-3. -  IANS

Watching too much TV can kill you!

Washington D.C, Oct 29: Couch potatoes, you may want to lessen your TV-time as a team of researchers has linked prolonged TV viewing to 8 leading causes of death in the US. On average, 80 percent of American adults watch 3.5 hours of television per day and multiple observational studies have demonstrated a link between TV viewing and poorer health.

The investigators reported an association between increasing hours of television viewing per day and increasing risk of death from most of the major causes of death in the United States. Previous studies had reported a relationship between TV viewing and elevated risk of death from cancer and cardiovascular disease. In this study, researchers at the National Cancer Institute looked at more than 221,000 individuals aged 50-71 years old who were free of chronic disease at study entry.

They confirmed the association for higher mortality risk from cancer and heart disease. In addition, they identified new associations with higher risk of death from most of the leading causes of death in the U.S., such as, diabetes, influenza/pneumonia, Parkinson’s disease, and liver disease. The results fit within a growing body of research, indicating that too much sitting can have many different adverse health effects, explained lead investigator Sarah K. Keadle.

Keadle cautioned that although each of the associations observed have plausible biological mechanisms, several associations are being reported for the first time and additional research is needed to replicate these findings and to understand the associations more completely.

The study appears in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. - ANI

Watching TV for long may shorten your life, warns new study

Do you also have a habit of watching TV for too long? Then it is possible that you might be at a risk of mortality or even cancer, according to a new study.

                                Watching TV for too long? Picture courtesy: Reuters

New York: Viewing television for over three-four hours daily is associated with increased risk of mortality from most of the major causes of death including cancer and heart diseases, warns a new study.

“We know that television viewing is the most prevalent leisure time sedentary behaviour and our working hypothesis is that it is an indicator of overall physical inactivity,” explained lead investigator Sarah Keadle from the US National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, Maryland.

“In this context, our results fit within a growing body of research indicating that too much sitting can have many different adverse health effects,” Keadle noted.

In this study, the researchers looked at more than 221,000 individuals aged 50-71 years old who were free of chronic disease at study entry.

They confirmed the association between excessive TV viewing and higher mortality risk from cancer and heart disease.

In addition, they identified new associations with higher risk of death from most of the leading causes of death in the US, such as diabetes, influenza/pneumonia, Parkinson’s disease and liver disease.

After an average follow-up of 14.1 years, the study found that compared to those who watched less than one hour per day, individuals who reported watching three-four hours of television per day were 15 percent more likely to die from any cause.

Those who watched seven or more hours were 47 percent more likely to die over the study period.

Risk began to increase at three-four hours per day for most causes they examined.

The investigators took a number of other factors into consideration that might explain the associations observed, such as caloric and alcohol intake, smoking, and the health status of the population, but when they controlled for these factors in statistical models, the associations remained.

Another important finding of the study is that the detrimental effects of TV viewing extended to both active and inactive individuals.

The study was published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. - IANS 

Majority of young heart attack patients unaware of cardiac risks

Washington: A new study has revealed that many young heart attack patients, especially women, are unaware of the impending cardiac risks.

Examining 3,501 heart attack survivors, the researchers found that only 53 percent had considered themselves at risk. Even fewer, 46 percent, of the patients reported being told they were at risk by a healthcare provider, and only 49 percent reported discussing heart disease and risk modification with a doctor.

Women were 11 percent less likely than men to be told by their doctors that they were at risk for a heart attack and were 16 percent less likely to report having a healthcare provider discuss heart disease and ways that they could reduce their risk.

Lead author Erica Leifheit-Limson of the Yale School of Public Health said that many younger women and men, even those with multiple cardiac risk factors, were not receiving adequate counseling on heart disease.

Leifheit-Limson and colleagues used data from the VIRGO (Variation in Recovery: Role of Gender on Outcomes of Young AMI Patients) study to analyze medical records and the results of interviews with heart attack patients from more than 100 hospitals in the United States and Spain. Study participants ranged in age from 18 to 55.

In the study, Leifheit-Limson and colleagues compared the prevalence of five cardiac risk factors (diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension, obesity, and smoking status) as well as reports of clinical counseling on heart disease.

They found that 97 percent of the women and 99 percent of the men had at least one risk factor, and nearly two-thirds had three or more. The most common risk factor was high cholesterol.

Senior author Judith Lichtman said that they need to empower individuals to seek information about heart health, and ensure that care providers were educating patients about risk factor management.

The study appears in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. (ANI)

‘You cannot connect the world without connecting India’: Zuckerberg

New Delhi: Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday said that his mission is to connect everyone in India to the internet.

He said India has the second highest users of Facebook in the world which presents a good opportunity to develop the economy.

“Many people don’t have access to internet. So, there is a great opportunity to develop the economy here… It is one of the countries where you cannot connect the world without connecting India… It is very important to connect the people in India,” Zuckerberg said during a question and answer session at IIT Delhi.

“Connecting people in India is one of the most important things we can do for the world. Our mission is to connect everyone in the world,” he added. - ANI

Belgium to power 170 trains with wind energy

Brussels: Belgium has launched an ambitious project to power 170 trains by wind energy — and the first seven of the planned 25 turbines entered service on Saturday, local media reported on Sunday.

Sudpresse newspaper group said turbines will be built along the main rail line from Leuven to Liege, generating enough power for every high-speed and local train using the line.

The number of trains to be covered by the wind energy project represents about five percent of the country’s total rail traffic, Belgian railtrack operator Infrabel said.

Belgian broadcaster RTL reported that once all 25 turbines are operating, they are expected to produce 35,000 megawatt hours — enough energy to power 10,000 homes. About two-thirds of the produced electricity is needed for the rail line and the surplus will be added to the domestic electricity supply grid.

Philippe Van Troeye, production director at Belgian energy firm Electrabel, told reporters on Saturday: “Wind energy, like solar power, is intermittent, but it will play a more and more important role in our energy provision in the future.” - IANS

Taiwanese Woman May Face Hefty Bill for US Plane Birth

                            Baby Born on China Airlines Flight From Taiwan to Los Angeles

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A Taiwanese woman who gave birth on a flight to the U.S. in what may have been an attempt to give her baby American citizenship could face a hefty bill for forcing the plane to divert to Alaska.

The insurance firm of China Airlines will decide whether to ask the unnamed passenger to cover the cost of the stopover to ensure the health of her baby, airline media affairs staffer Weni Lee said Friday. The flight made an emergency landing en route from Taipei to Los Angeles on Oct. 8.

Taiwanese media have estimated the bill at $33,000, although the airline said its insurer is still calculating the cost.

The local media have widely reported that the woman evidently wanted to give the child American citizenship. Taiwan's China Times newspaper's website said that, before giving birth, she repeatedly asked the cabin crew, "Are we in U.S. air space?"

Those comments couldn't be verified, and Lee said she could not confirm whether the passenger had made them.

Alaska state officials say the baby is eligible for U.S. citizenship. A baby born in flight has the right to be a U.S. citizen if that is where the child first arrives, even if born in international air space, said Susan Morgan, spokeswoman for the Alaska Department of Social Services.

The incident has garnered widespread attention in Taiwan, even rising to the level of parliamentary debate earlier this week.

"This is a selfish act," ruling party legislator Luo Shu-lei shouted to the transportation minister during a session Monday. "It was clearly an act carried out to give the child U.S. citizenship. She affected the travel of other passengers. Is there no punishment?"

The China Times website said the woman was 36-weeks pregnant, but that she told the airline she was less than 32-weeks pregnant. Under Taiwanese law, passengers must provide a medical certificate saying they are fit to fly if they have passed the 32nd week of pregnancy.

The woman, whose identity has been kept confidential, was sent back Saturday from Alaska to Taiwan without the baby. American authorities have not said why.

Before the 1980s, when Taiwan was still developing economically, some mothers tried to give birth in the United States, but nowadays that is rare. A cottage industry has sprung up in recent years facilitating the travel of women from mainland China to the U.S. to give birth and obtain automatic American citizenship for their babies.

New Delhi Struggles to Control Dengue Fever Outbreak

In this Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2015 photo, a municipality worker uses a machine to fog for mosquitoes at a neighborhood in New Delhi, India. At dusk, the foggers come out to spray their sticky-sweet clouds of diesel smoke and insecticide across the Indian capital. Efforts to stop mosquitoes from spreading dengue fever in New Delhi have failed to keep the city from its biggest outbreak in almost two decades: more than 10,190 registered cases, including 32 deaths. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das)

NEW DELHI ( INDIA) -- Efforts to prevent mosquitoes from spreading dengue fever in the Indian capital have failed to keep the metropolis from its biggest outbreak of the disease in nearly two decades. So far, more than 10,190 cases have been registered, including 32 fatalities. Experts blamed health authorities for being slow on both medical response and prevention work.

They said that the Delhi municipal government should have anticipated a longer mosquito-breeding season months ago, when it was predicted by weather forecasters that this year's monsoon will go beyond September.

Some officials dismissed the notion that the high number of cases is a result of neglect. Instead, they claimed that the city is just conducting more tests. In addition, some cases go unreported because some patients don't seek medical treatment, while others consult doctors who don't report cases.

Health authorities also stressed that while this year's number of dengue cases has nearly topped the 1996 record of 10,252 infections, the death toll is significantly lower than the 423 who succumbed to the disease 19 years ago. 

Three weeks into October, health officials are still reporting new cases. The Holy Family Hospital alone stated that on average, it was still detecting 27 dengue cases a day. The figure is actually down from a September peak of about 75 cases a day. - ubalert

Effects of Cancer Drugs Overestimated in Animal Studies

When a group of researchers from McGill University in Montreal led by Dr. Jonathan Kimmelman conducted a study evaluating the relationship between preclinical studies and the efficacy of anticancer drugs, they found these studies overestimated anticancer effects by 45 percent. 

Specifically, they analyzed the cancer drug sunitinib in all available animal studies. 

This drug is an oral capsule taken to treat advanced renal cell cancer, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, and advanced pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors. 

Kimmelman’s team discovered a number of issues throughout their investigation. 

First, they noted standard practices like blinding or randomization were used in few of these studies, which are typically implemented as safeguards to ensure “personal expectations do not bias results,” according to the study.

Next, the authors found it was often unclear how many animals were tested because sample sizes were not reported. Test subjects tended to focus on juvenile female mice with compromised immune systems rather than be administered to a wider range of animal models. 

These studies claimed the drug, sunitinib, was tested against multiple types of cancer and all showed statistically significant anti-cancer activity. 

Kimmelman, though, found that result “strains credibility.” 

“Preclinical research is plagued by poor design and reporting practices, exposing patients to harmful and inactive agents, wasting time in the lab and driving up the price of drugs,” said Kimmelman in a statement. 

Some recommendations the authors have for avoiding these problems include constructing a method for easy replication of study results or implementingin vitro tests with drug levels that couldn’t be achievable for human use. 

No concerns were raised, however, about the clinical use of sunitinib. - biosciencetechnology

Lenovo's Best Yoga Laptop Gets The Powerful Guts It Needs

Crafting the perfect lap-friendly computing companion is a delicate balance between weight and performance. Add powerful processors, expect hefty returns. If lightweight is what you want, packing in the best processors, along with cooling systems, can be a challenge. For the new Yoga 900 Series, Lenovo decided to rethink the formula.

With last year's Yoga Pro 3, Lenovo went thin-way thin. Like half-an-inch thin. But with that focus on shaving off every millimeter possible, some sacrifices crept in. One being the low-powered Core M processor, which brings better battery life (theoretically) and a fanless design, but don't expect to be play any gigahertz-hungry games or just being a general power user without a few performance hiccups.

With the new 13.3-inch Yoga 900-a different name, yes, but a true successor to the Yoga 3 Pro-you're getting the best Intel processor, namely a Core i7 Skylake processor, along with either 8GB or 16GB of RAM and a 256 or 512 solid-state drive respectively. But with that, comes a little more bulk. Not much mind you, but some.

The Yoga 900 packs on about 0.2 extra pounds but only adds 1.5 millimeters, but even when comparing side-by-side, the two laptops still look and feel remarkably similar. Even with the added lbs, the Yoga 900 is currently the thinnest Skylake convertible laptop out there, and with an increased 66Wh battery (up from 44Wh), you'll hopefully get at least more than 5 hours of real-world use. Lenovo's currently guessing up to 8 hours.

But adding extra weight can be particularly risky, especially when a laptop is designed to be an all-in-one with a built-in 360-degree hinge. To be honest, a tablet that weights 2.8 pounds sounds like a chiropractic nightmare to me, which was already a problem with the lighter Yoga 3 Pro. I can't see the 900 series being much better.

Lenovo also says they've improved on the Yoga's (arguably) stylish watchband hinge, adding more durability so when using the touchscreen in laptop mode, the screen doesn't give under the pressure of your finger. However, when comparing this feature, it wasn't apparent anything was too incredibly different.

The keyboard gets a slight makeover by adding an extra row, freeing the multimedia keys that were previously embedded in the keyboard on the Yoga 3 Pro. But the keys themselves keep the scissor-hinge design and pretty minimal key travel, which could be a plus or minus depending on your personal typing preference. Oh, and the Yoga family will also be joining the USB Type-C party, but its charger remains the fantastically convenient USB charger, which gives you another USB 3.0 port (when you don't need the juice.)

And finally, a few things stay the same. For example, the display is still the same 3200x1800 beast, which can handle all your QHD+ content. Hopefully, Lenovo's paid a little more attention this time around to viewing angles and light leakage problems we saw last year.

The Yoga 900 starts at $1200 (8GB, 256SSD) and jumps up to $1,500 for an improved 16GB and 512SSD configuration. It comes in champagne gold and platinum silver and a third clementine orange option when you buy on lenovo.com. It's available at Best Buy and online today.

The Yoga 900 is a slight redefinition of a laptop convertible. But with a focus on powerful over mobility this time around, this guy is probably better suited for your lap only.

Yoga 900 Specs

• Display: 13.3-inch IPS 3200 x 1800 w/10-point touch
• Processor: Intel Core i7 2.5GHz (Skylake)
• Storage: 256GB or 512GB SSD
• Memory: 8GB or 16GB
• Thickness: 14.9mm
• Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Price: $1200-$1500, depending on model  - gizmodo

Asus launches A series laptops at Rs 23,990

Taiwanese electronics major Asus on Monday launched its 'A' series laptops in India at a starting price of Rs.23,990 ahead of the festive season. 

"The Indian market is extremely price-sensitive where the consumers look for a value-for-money purchase. The 'A' series is crafted for performance, style and mobility but at the same time is economically friendly which can be used for everyday use ranging for gaming, entertainment to educational purpose and office work," Peter Chang, regional head of South Asia and managing director for Asus India, said. 

"With our A555LF laptop, it will be a best buy for this festive season, delivering a seamless technological experience to our consumers," he added. The series starts with the A553 budget notebook which will be equipped with Intel quad-core Pentium N3540 Processor (2M Cache, 2.16 GHz, up to 2.66 GHz), 4GB RAM, 500GB storage. Other higher models of the series -- A555LF and A555LA -- are priced at Rs.34,190 and Rs.28,990, respectively. 

The A555LF will come with an Intel i5-5200U processor, pre-installed Windows 10, 8 GB DDR3 RAM along with NVidia GeForce GT930 2GB DDR3 memory and a 15.6-inch HD display. The company is also offering two-year warranty with the laptops.-  IANS

Honor 7: Best Tips And Tricks To Use The Smartphone Effectively

The Honor 7 by the Chinese smartphone maker, Huawei is making a huge buzz in the Indian smartphone market with it advanced features and affordable features. The company recently launched Honor 7 in India. While, this device was launched in China back in June and later in European countries. 

Huawei Honor 7 sports a 5.2 inch display with a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. It is powered by a Octa-Core Huawei Kirin 935 processor with Mali-T628 MP4 GPU besides 3GB RAM under the hood and runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop on top of Emotion UI 3.1.

The smartphone features a 20 megapixel camera with Sony IMX230 sensor, f/2.0 aperture, 6P lenses and dual-tone LED flash and also comes with 8 megapixel front-facing camera. Other camera features includes Timelapse option, Good food mode filter, Knuckle screenshot.

We have been using the smartphone for a quite few days, and here is the list of some tips and tricks you should know. Take a look at the slider below to know more.

How To Save Precious Battery

Intelligent energy mode Alike the Huawei P8, the battery life of Honor 7 can be easily extended by using its own feature. The smartphone comes with a power management setting that can extend battery life. Navigate to device Settings >> Energy Saving. Here you'll get three energy saving plans: Normal, Intelligent and Ultra.

Extend battery life

Honor 7 is packed with a pretty well performing 3,000mAh battery, but the battery is not user replaceable. However, to save the precious battery, you can visit the our previous post: 10 Effective Ways To Extend Your Android Smartphone's Battery Life. - gizbot

Small plane crashes in Colombia capital; 4 dead, 12 injured

Firefighters, rescue workers and police officers stand at the scene where a small plane crashed on a bakery in Bogot, Colombia on October 18, 2015. Reuters

BOGOTA, Colombia — Authorities in Colombia say a small plane has crashed into a bakery in a residential area shortly after taking off from the capital's airport, and the four people on the aircraft were killed and a dozen people on the ground suffered burn injuries.

Civil aviation officials say the plane had taken off from Bogota's El Dorado airport just minutes before Sunday's crash in the Guaymaral neighborhood. A police commander says the pilot and his three passengers died.

The city's police chief, Major General Humberto Gatibonza Carreno, told The Associated Press that the pilot and his three passengers died.

All 12 people injured were inside the bakery and were taken to hospitals with burns, the fire department reported.

There was no immediate word on their condition.

It was the third crash of a small plane in Bogota in three months. Three people were killed in August when an aircraft crashed in the Cajica area, and three more died in October when a plane smashed onto a highway. —AP

NASA spacecraft spots giant 'coronal hole' in Sun

           Dark area of the sun is a coronal hole where magnetic field is open to space. Photo: NASA

NASA's orbiting Solar Dynamics Observatory has released a new image of the giant coronal hole on the topmost layer of the sun. The researchers say that the hole and its magnetic field is letting off ultrafast solar wind.

The hole was captured by the observatory on Oct. 10 at an ultraviolet wavelength that cannot be seen with the naked eye. According to the experts, the solar winds released from the coronal hole are the reason behind several nights of auroras that the Earth has been experiencing.

The coronal holes are formed on the surface of the Earth during its least active points in the 11-year cycle. They typically form over the lower latitudes of the sun or toward the poles. These holes form in the outermost layer of the sun called “corona.”

The hole in the magnetic field of the sun had been releasing a stream of particles capable of moving at a speed of 500 miles per hour. When these ultrafast streams of particles combine with the weakened solar magnetic field, high-energy solar winds are formed.

The experts say that the solar winds in turn take the form of geomagnetic storms on Earth. These storms result in auroras or “northern lights” that are typically observed to the northernmost regions. However, sometimes, auroras can also be observed toward the south. The geomagnetic storms end up disrupting navigation, radio communication and power on the planet.

In a statement, NOAA said that the Arctic would continue to observe more auroras due to the movement of a massive coronal hole toward the western region of the sun. The phenomenon is expected to generate stronger solar winds that would ultimately reach Earth and generate geomagnetic storms. - NASA

Israel ‘upset’ with India’s ties with Palestine

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) speaks to President Pranab Mukherjee during a banquet hosted by Israeli President Reuven Rivlin (right) at President House, Jerusalem on Wednesday.

JERUSALEM, October 16, 2015

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told President Pranab Mukherjee that Israel expects India to change its stand towards Palestine.

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed his unhappiness with India’s “lenience” towards Palestine.

In a state lunch hosted by Mr. Netanyahu at King David hotel in Jerusalem on Thursday, he told Pranab Mukherjee that Israel expects India to change its stand towards Palestine, according to a person who was present at the lunch.

“The Israelis want India to end its pro-Palestine policy. They expect a decisive shift in India’s approach towards the issue under (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi,” said the person, who did not want to be named.

“The Israelis are not happy that he (Mr. Mukherjee) went to and stayed overnight at Palestine. The Palestinians are not happy that we have good relationship with Israel. But overall, the president has re-emphasised India’s Israel-Palestine policy, that it’s hyphenated,” said the person.

Mr. Mukherjee skipped the Palestinian issue in his Knesset speech on Wednesday. The focus of his speech was India’s economic and technological cooperation with Israel, while in Palestine and Jordan he said New Delhi remained committed to the Palestinian cause.

Mr. Netanyahu, on the other side, slammed the “Islamist radicals”, and drew parallels between India and Israel as victims of Islamist terror in his Knesset speech. He referred to Mr. Modi as “dear friend” twice in his speech, and said he speaks to the Mr. Modi “quite often”.

But diplomatic sources said a paradigm shift in India’s foreign policy is practically impossible. “Israel is important for us, for economic and technological cooperation, for critical defence supplies. But we don’t have any ideological association with Israel,” a diplomat told The Hindu, who also requested anonymity.

Asked what India is getting in return for supporting Palestine from a realistic point of view, the official said: “Most countries in the world support the Palestinian statehood. That’s a principled position in international diplomacy. Changing that would malign our image. Also, it’s a sensitive issue at home. We can’t afford to alienate sections of our population over this issue.” - thehindu

Beijing and Jakarta form JV to build high-speed rail in Indonesia

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]

China and Indonesia set up a joint venture to build and operate a high-speed rail line from Jakarta to Bandung.

Consortiums led by China Railway International Co Ltd and the Indonesian state-owned company PT Wijaya Karya Tbk (Wika) signed an agreement in Jakarta on Friday to build the Indonesia's first high-speed railway.

The project will be funded by China Development Bank, and will be free from Indonesian state budget and debt guarantee.

The 150-kilometer rail line will connect the capital of Jakarta and the second-largest city Bandung, and it will be using Chinese standards and technology. Expected to commence operation in early 2019, the railway project will cut the journey between the two cities to less than 40 minutes, at a speed from 250 to 300 kilometers per hour.

The Jakarta-Bandung rail project will be China's overseas high speed railway. It will be a model for further infrastructure and industrial cooperation in the region, under the framework of "One Belt, One Road" initiative, according to a spokesperson from China's National Development and Reform Commission.

Indonesian government announced the decision to accept China's construction proposal over Japan's plan at the end of September, after dropping both bidders for high financial costs earlier. - chinadaily

China to invest $78 bn to build 110 nuclear power plants by 2030, will overtake US

China is also aggressively marketing its new 1100 MW nuclear technology abroad. Pakistan and Argentina have already opted for it

BEIJING: China plans to build 110 nuclear power plants by 2030 with an investment of over $78 billion overtaking the US which has 100 such plants amid criticism that Beijing is yet to implement enough measures to develop safety controls in existing projects.

China will build six to eight nuclear power plants annually for the next five years and operate 110 plants by 2030 to meet the urgent need for clean energy, Beijing-based China Times quoted plan analysts as saying. China will invest 500 billion yuan ($78.8 billion) on domestically developed nuclear power plants, the report said.

According to the China Times, the country plans to increase its electricity generation capacity to 58 gigawatts by 2020, three times the 2014 level. Zhou Dadi, vice director of the China Energy Research Society, on Thursday said that China is capable of building and managing a large number of nuclear power plants.

According to analysts, the country plans to increase its electricity generation capacity to 58 gigawatts by 2020, three times the 2014 level.

The urgent need for clean energy to meet increasing power demand and reduce carbon dioxide emissions has led to the renewed development of nuclear projects, a nuclear safety expert  at an energy cooperation firm in Beijing told Global Times.

Zhou added that China generates only about two percent of its total electricity from nuclear power plants while the average global proportion is 14 percent, adding that China is in a great position to develop its nuclear projects.

China currently has 23 nuclear power generating units in operation and 27 under construction, about one-third of the world's unfinished nuclear units.

The construction resumed after the Chinese government which put the brakes on nuclear power plant approvals after the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan in 2011 permitted their construction after a safety review.

He Zuoxiu, a theoretical physicist at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told the same daily that China has yet to implement enough measures to develop safety control technology and facilities for nuclear power plants.

He said four countries - the US, Japan, France and the former Soviet Union - which have more than 50 nuclear power plants, suffered from nuclear accidents.

He said the government should attach greater importance to other clean energy resources such as wind and hydroelectric power, which are abundant in China, instead of building too many nuclear power plants.

He added that using nuclear power could also make China less dependent on imported energy such as gas and oil though safety concerns should not stunt the industry.

"Due to China's mature nuclear technology and strict safety controls, serious accidents are unlikely to happen," Zhou said.

China is also aggressively marketing its new 1100 MW nuclear technology abroad. Pakistan and Argentina have already opted for it. - PTI

President warns Philippines to brace for typhoon

MANILA, October 16, 2015: Philippine President Benigno Aquino III went on national television on Friday to advise Filiipinos to prepare for powerful Typhoon Koppu, which is expected to bring torrential rains that could flood wide areas of the north.

It was the first time Mr. Aquino has personally issued a storm warning on television since super Typhoon Haiyan barrelled through the central Philippines in November 2013, leaving more than 7,300 dead and missing.

“Your government is here in order to ensure that we will meet our goal of zero casualties,” he said. “But I must emphasize [that] each local government unit, community, and Filipino that will be affected has the duty to cooperate ... to overcome the challenges ahead.”

Disaster relief personnel, equipment and goods have been readied for the typhoon, which is forecast to make landfall this weekend in northern Isabela province, officials say.

Weather forecaster Adzar Aurelio said the typhoon was packing winds of 130 km per hour with gusts up to 160 kph (99 mph). It was about 500 km west of the Philippines but moving steadily toward land.

Mr. Aurelio said that as Koppu moves closer its winds are likely to intensify to 185 kph (115 mph).

In comparison, Haiyan packed winds of up to 275 kph (170 mph) and was one the strongest typhoons on record to make landfall.

Koppu could linger over the Philippines for several days while dumping heavy rains because of a high pressure area north of the country that will block its expected north-western path, forecasters said.

It will be the 12th storm to hit the Philippines this year. An average of 20 storms enter the country annually. - AP

U.S. discusses South China Sea plans with Australia

CRUCIAL TALKS: US Secretary of State John Kerry, second right, and Defense Secretary Ash Carter, right, shake hands with Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, second left, and Australian Defense Minister Marise Payne, left, prior to the annual Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations (AUSMIN) in Boston, Massachusetts, Tuesday. (Reuters)

BOSTON (Reuters) - US Secretary of State John Kerry and Defense Secretary Ash Carter met their Australian counterparts in Boston on Tuesday to discuss expanded cooperation in the South China Sea and possible US patrols within 12 nautical miles of artificial islands built by China.

China has claimed most of the South China Sea and last week its foreign ministry warned that Beijing would not stand for violations of its territorial waters in the name of freedom of navigation.

A senior US official said the issue of patrols would be discussed at the meeting.

The two countries, close treaty allies, are due to sign an agreement on expanded defense cooperation during the talks with Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Defense Minister Marise Payne.

“We do operate with the Australians in certain areas of the South China Sea,” the official said. “And we’re looking for ways of expanding the opportunities for us to operate together.”

The official declined comment on reports that the United States had already decided to conduct freedom-of-navigation operations inside 12 nautical mile limits that China claims around islands built on reefs in the Spratly archipelago.

“You know, doing the 12 nautical mile challenge is one among a variety of options that we’re considering, but I can’t get into current or future operations,” he said. “We’re waiting for an interagency decision that includes the White House.”

President Barack Obama said during a visit by China’s President Xi Jinping to the United States last month that “the United States will continue to sail, fly and operate anywhere that international law allows.”

Some analysts in Washington believe the decision has been taken and the patrols could take place later this week or next. They are likely to provoke protests from China.

Mira Rapp Hooper, a senior fellow at the Asia-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security, said she expected the patrols to be carried out at islands occupied by other claimants, such as Vietnam.

Greg Poling of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies said he expected they would be conducted “only around those features that were indisputably below water at high tide before the reclamation started and are too far from any rocks to fall within their territorial sea.”

In the case of China, this meant Mischief and Subi reefs in the Spratly archipelago, he said.

The United States has argued that under international law building up artificial islands on previously submerged reefs does not entitle a country to claim a territorial limit and that it is vital to maintain freedom of navigation in a sea through which more than $5 trillion of world trade passes every year.

Saudi Hajj disaster toll rises higher with Iran's 465 dead

According to official figures from countries around the world, at least 999 people perished in the disaster

 

Muslim pilgrims touch the Kaaba door as they circumvent around it at the Masjid al-Haram Mosque, Islam's holiest site. The death toll at this year’s haj could be as high as 1,000. (EPA Photo)

Tehran, Oct 02, 2015:

The death toll in the Saudi haj disaster rose sharply as Iran announced 465 of its pilgrims died in last week's stampede and crush, nearly doubling its earlier count and likely further straining relations between the two Mideast rivals.

And while Saudi officials previously said the tragedy killed 769 pilgrims, an Associated Press count based on official figures from countries around the world shows at least 999 people perished near Islam's holy city of Mecca.

The total figure could be even larger as the AP survey covered only 15 of the more than 180 countries that sent some 2 million pilgrims to the annual pilgrimage, a pillar of Islamic faith.

Faisal Alzahrani, the Saudi Health Ministry's general director of communications, told the AP late last night that his office's figure of 769 killed and 934 injured in Mina remained accurate.

He has said civil defense authorities would announce future totals as Saudi authorities continue to investigate the cause of the disaster.

Among all countries, Shiite power Iran appears for now to have lost the most pilgrims. According to the AP count, nearly 600 people from around the world remain missing in Saudi Arabia after the September 24 disaster.

The Iranian state news agency IRNA published a list last night of the 465 pilgrims it said died at Mina.

Saeed Ohadi, the head of Iran's haj department, told state television yesterday that Iranian officials are trying to return bodies of Iranian pilgrims "as soon as possible."

He said Iran and Saudi Arabia have agreed not to bury any of the dead in Saudi Arabia without prior permission by Iran or the families of the deceased.

Indonesia, Pakistan and India all have said their diplomats received some 1,100 pictures of the dead in the haj disaster, suggesting a higher death toll than what Saudi officials have announced. 

However, Saudi Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour al-Turki told the AP on Tuesday that the photos are of those who died during the entire pilgrimage from a variety of causes and not just at the disaster in Mina.

Among them, Egypt saw at least 124 pilgrims killed, Nigeria 64, Mali 60, Indonesia 59, Pakistan 52, India 51, Cameroon 42, Bangladesh 41, Ethiopia 13, Chad 11, Kenya six, Senegal five and Morocco and Turkey each with three.

Of those countries still reporting pilgrims missing after the Mina event, Nigeria has the most with 244, followed by Cameroon with 90, Pakistan 85, Indonesia 74, Egypt 72, India 16, Kenya eight and Turkey five. - AP