Chinese scientist demonstrate 2 Mbps Internet connect with LED

LED data transmission used to be all the rage -- we fondly remember beaming Palm Pilot contacts via IrDA. Then we got omni-directional Bluetooth and building-penetrating WiFi, and put all that caveman stuff behind us. But now, scientists the world over are looking to bring back line-of-sight networking, and the latest demonstation has Chinese researchers streaming video to a laptop with naught but ceiling-mounted blue LEDs.

The Chinese Academy of Sciences claims to have realized a 2Mbit per second internet connection that transmits data simply by modulating the flicker of the little diodes, and imperceptibly enough to have them serve as room lighting as well.

Like Boston University before them, the Chinese scholars see short-range LED networks controlling smart appliances. It's not quite the gigabit speed you'd get from laser diodes.

Chinese scientist demonstrate 2 Mbps Internet connect with LED

Mobile phones do not raise risk of brain tumours, say scientists

Biggest study ever into link between handset use and cancer finds no evidence they are connected, reports Steve Connor.

The largest and most detailed study yet into the health risks posed by mobile phones has failed to find a link between cellphones and brain cancer, although scientists said that they still cannot give categorical assurances that there are no risks attached to using the devices over long periods of time.

More than 10,000 people from 13 countries took part in the study, which compared mobile phone use among people with brain tumours with healthy "controls". It was the biggest such study by far, yet the researchers found no increase in the risk of getting either of two types of brain tumour – and even detected a slightly lower cancer risk among mobile phone users.

Mobile phones do not raise risk of brain tumours, say scientists

The mighty Piratebay is down.

The most popular file sharing site has been taken down after several Hollywood film studios won an injunction against its bandwidth provider CB3ROB via a court in Hamburg.

A Pirate Bay source told TorrentFreak that it is already working on a backup solution to bring the site online; the servers themselves haven't been touched (or moved) rom their well-guarded - and highly secret - location; they simply need to be routed through another provider.

The mighty Piratebay is down.

Toddlers who lie 'will do better', says study.

Toddlers who tell lies early on are more likely to do well later, researchers claim.

The complex brain processes involved in formulating a lie are an indicator of a child's early intelligence, they add.

A Canadian study of 1,200 children aged two to 17 suggests those who are able to lie have reached an important developmental stage.

Only a fifth of two-year-olds tested in the study were able to lie.

Toddlers who lie 'will do better', says study.

Aamir khans advice to fans on diet.

The 44-year-old actor, who flaunted a six-pack body in the 2008 movie 'Ghajini' but again gained weight for his college-kid role in '3 Idiots', has embarked on a diet and excercise plan and has invited his fans to join him.

"Visited my dietician today. I really need to get back into shape. So Monday onwards back to my diet and workout.

Hey why don't those of you who want to, join me in this. Every day we post a report of whether we were able to stick to the diet, and whether we hit the gym. How does that sound?" the actor wrote on his Facebook page.

Aamir khans advice to fans on diet.

Facebook friend murders Australian woman

Sydney (IANS): An Australian woman who had gone to meet a man she befriended on social networking site Facebook has been murdered, a media report Saturday said.

Acting on a tip-off, police arrested a 20-year-old man from Leumeah, a suburb of Sydney, and based on information given by him, found a woman's body Friday near Warminda Oval at Campbelltown, Australian news agency AAP reported.

Facebook friend murders Australian woman

Dieters 'underestimate how many calories they are eating'

Article appeared on telegraph.co.uk

Most dieters vastly underestimate how many calories they are eating, according to a survey of GPs.

Data from 10,000 slimmers and 200 doctors found 87 per cent of GPs believe dieters are in the dark about how much they actually eat.

Meanwhile, more than nine out of 10 people (92 per cent) see their dieting attempts end in failure, with 18% ending up weighing more than when they started.

Only around one in three (32 per cent people take up more exercise when they are trying to lose weight, while only 23 per cent check food labels before buying.

Most (91 per cent) never weigh out food or control their portion size.

Overall, 90 per cent of GPs said people needed to change their eating habits to lose weight and that losing excess pounds can be as difficult as quitting smoking.

Dieters 'underestimate how many calories they are eating'

Half an hour of mobile use a day 'increases brain cancer risk'.

Article appeared on telegraph.co.uk

A landmark study into the health dangers posed by mobiles has found people who speak on their handset for more than half an hour a day over 10 years are at greater risk of brain cancer.

The World Health Organisation's Interphone report, to be published this week, will say that "heavy users" are more at risk of developing glioma tumours.

It concludes that there is no increased risk of developing the disease in other users.

However, the minimum amount of time which researchers designated at heavy use was just 30 minutes a day.

Half an hour of mobile use a day 'increases brain cancer risk'.

Food allergy sufferers 'worst served' by medicine.

Article appeared on telegraph.co.uk

A review of research into the affliction found that up to three in ten people claim to have a food allergy of some sort, but blind testing reveals that fewer than ten per cent actually has one.

People were found to be avoiding certain foods because they incorrectly suspected they were allergic to them, while many parents refused to give their children certain foods even though most will overcome their allergies as they grow older.

Food allergy sufferers 'worst served' by medicine.

Japanese couple married by robot called i-Fairy

For the first time in the history, a marriage was performed by robot named i-fairy.

The wedding took place at a restaurant in Hibiya Park in central Tokyo, where the I-Fairy, a four foot robot, wore a wreath of flowers and directed a rooftop ceremony. Wires led out from beneath it to a black curtain a few feet away, where a man crouched and clicked commands into a computer.

The I-Fairy sells for about 6.3 million yen (£47,000) and three are in use in Singapore, the U.S. and Japan, according to company spokesman Kayako Kido.

Japanese couple married by robot called i-Fairy

Steve Jobs 'personally asked Gizmodo to return secret iPhone prototype to Apple'

Steve Jobs, the Apple co-founder, desperately tried to persuade a website to return an “invaluable” 4G iPhone prototype, after it was left in a bar by a company engineer, court documents have disclosed.

According to newly released California state court documents Jobs, also the company's chief executive, personally contacted Brian Lam, the editor of Gizmodo.com which obtained the sensitive device, asking they return it.

The New York-based technology gadget website said it would only return the device if Apple confirmed its authenticity.

Steve Jobs 'personally asked Gizmodo to return secret iPhone prototype to Apple'

YouTube hits two billion views a day.

YouTube has exceeded two billions views a day as it celebrates the fifth anniversary since first launching in beta in 2005.

The Google-owned video site, released the statistic to commemorate the occasion and has also launched a new channel called: “YouTube 5 Year Channel” which brings together a group of clips from people around the world talking about how the video-sharing service has affected their lives. The videos, collectively called the ‘My YouTube Story’, were filmed by the documentary maker Stephen Higgins.

Five years ago the first beta version of YouTube went live and 18 months later it was purchased by Google for $1.65 billion (£883m) in 2006.

YouTube hits two billion views a day.

At YouTube, Adolescence Begins at 5

Article appeared on nytimes.com

By BRAD STONE

SAN FRANCISCO — Early this year, the most popular YouTube video of all time — a 2007 clip of a British toddler gleefully biting the finger of his older brother — was supplanted by a brash newcomer.

The upstart was Lady Gaga’s slithering, sci-fi-themed music video for her hit single “Bad Romance.”

The shift was symbolic: YouTube, a subsidiary of the search giant Google, is growing up. Once known primarily for skateboard-riding cats, dancing geeks and a variety of cute-baby high jinks, YouTube now features a smorgasbord of more professional video that is drawing ever larger and more engaged audiences.

At YouTube, Adolescence Begins at 5

Hours of sitting down 'can affect your health'

Researchers in Sweden have carried out the study and found that being chair-bound for too long can raise a person's risk of high blood pressure, sluggish metabolism, weight gain and diabetes. With the average person sitting down for just under nine hours a day at the office, at home or in the car, even a daily workout is unlikely to offset the risks of being seated for too long, the 'Daily Mail' reported.

Hours of sitting down 'can affect your health'

Nuclear capable Agni II succesfully test fired.

Nuclear-capable Agni-II missile, with a range of 2000 kms, was on Monday successfully test-fired by the Army as part of user trial from the Wheelers Island off Orissa coast.

The trial was conducted from a rail mobile system in Launch Complex-4 of Integrated Test Range (ITR) at around 9.15 am, defence sources said soon after the versatile
surface-to-surface missile blasted off.

Nuclear capable Agni II succesfully test fired.

India, South Korea share Azlan Shah cup hockey title

India retaining the Azlan Shah cup hockey title but this time it had to share with South Korea as heavy rains washed out the finals here on Sunday.

Only seven minutes of play was possible when rains came down heavily at the Azlan Shah Stadium. India won the tournament for the fifth time and second in a row. They had earlier won the championship in 1985, 1991, 1995 and 2009.

This is the first time in the history of the tournament that the title was shared by two teams.

India, South Korea share Azlan Shah cup hockey title

Dawood third 'Most Wanted' on Forbes' list

Dawood Ibrahim, India's most wanted man suspected of having organized the 1993 Mumbai bombings, figures third on the Forbes' Most Wanted Fugitives list topped by Osama bin Laden for a second time.

The second place was given to Joaquin Guzman, Mexico's most notorious drug trafficker.
Dawood Ibrahim, who heads the organized crime group D-Company, and Matteo Messina Denaro, an Italian mafia playboy, also appear to have consolidated control of their organizations, Forbes noted.

Dawood third 'Most Wanted' on Forbes' list

Eating cheese 'can boost your immune system'

Scientists claim to have discovered that there's nothing like a nice piece of cheese as it can dramatically boost the immune system.

A new study has revealed that a humble slice of cheese eaten every day is particularly beneficial for the elderly for it acts as a carrier for pro biotic or "friendly" bacteria, the 'Daily Express' reported.

Eating cheese 'can boost your immune system'

We love Apple, say Adobe ads, as companies' battle enters new phase

Article appeared on guardian.co.uk

The Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal were both carrying full-page "We Love Apple" adverts on Friday morning, but the space was not bought by the Californian technology giant but by Adobe, the web technology firm that is locked in a bitter dispute with Steve Jobs.

The adverts, using a variant of the famous "I love New York" motif created by Milton Glaser, have appeared in newspapers including the Wall Street Journal and San Jose Mercury and online on websites including Wired and TechCrunch.

They present the latest front in an increasingly nasty war between the two companies. Adobe's web video technology Flash is not supported by Apple's iPad or iPhone and Jobs has publicly criticised it for causing battery problems and crashes.

We love Apple, say Adobe ads, as companies' battle enters new phase

How to: delete your Facebook account, and adjust key privacy settings

By Claudine Beaumont, Technology Editor of telegraph.co.uk

Facebook's privacy policy is a whopping 5,830 words long. As the New York Times recently pointed out, the Constitution of the United States is just 4,543. In recent months, Facebook has made revisions to its privacy policy that makes a growing amount of information public by default; users must opt out if they want to keep their information private, or share it only with a trusted group of friends.

The changes have caused something of a backlash among both the user community and the technology industry, with some commentators questioning whether these changes are the thin end of the edge, and may even result in users leaving the social-networking site in their droves.

How to: delete your Facebook account, and adjust key privacy settings