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Sunday, February 17, 2019
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Migratory Birds at Risk of Extinction

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"northern cardinal"

Migratory Birds at Risk of Extinction

Studies show that 37% of the bird population in North America is in danger of extinction. There are almost 350 species of migratory birds that travel the territory each year, among which tropical forest birds, ocean birds and grassland birds.

The 2016 North America Bird Report

The results of the report are troubling for the scientific community. The decrease in migratory bird population might have a paramount consequence on natural life, including for humans.

The factors involved in the bird population decline are ranging from habitat loss to global climate modifications and pesticides. There has been no single factor determined for this change in the number of birds. A multitude of events and practices have impacted wildlife in time.

Canadian biologists stated that migratory birds are connecting the nations from the North America, and a collective effort must be made to ensure the preservation of these species. The author makes a call to all involved territories to start taking initiatives towards biodiversity conservation.

International Conservation Efforts

Scientists, policymakers, and non-governmental organizations have met in Ottawa to analyze the results of the Birds report and to find new strategies for conservation. Three countries participated at this conference, all nations from North America: The United States, Canada, and Mexico.

The Canadian Minister, also present, supports the international collaboration in preserving migratory birds, as joined efforts may have extraordinary results in biodiversity.

A successful example of conservation actions is the case of wood ducks. Their population has decreased in numbers over the last decades. The negative factors involved were the loss of habitat and hunting for commercial purposes. By combined efforts of governments involved, the wood duck population has again increased their numbers.

Actions for the future

America is still at risk of losing almost half of its bird species. The author of the bird study says that conservation efforts in Canada should be complemented by actions taken by the territories in their vicinity.

Migratory birds should be continuously monitored, and closer attention should be given to their number and behaviors. Close communication between states on their findings should ensure that everyone is making efforts towards conservation.

One of the reasons for which migratory birds have suffered in the last years is, in fact, the lack of coordination between governments in their preservation strategies. Almost 90% of the bird population is not thoroughly protected along their migratory paths.

Image Source: Wikipedia

iPhone No Longer Belongs to just Apple in China

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chine"iphone leather"

First off, I have to start by admitting that I am somewhat biased against Apple. It has nothing to do with their products per se, nor does it have to do with the price range of most of their devices. My problem is with the way the company treats its customers and with the way they always act like they’re entitled to everything.

That, plus the recent scandals during which the company made any mobile device older than iPhone 6 unable to connect to the internet and bricked the phones of anyone who didn’t want to pay upwards of $ 150 to change a button on their phones made me lose even more of my positive views of the company. Still, my bias has nothing to do with the following story.

iPhone vs. IPHONE

The indisputable tech titan just lost one of the most embarrassing lawsuits they could have lost. According to reports and news sites all over the world, iPhone no longer belongs to just Apple in China. Instead, a Chinese company now has the right to make passport holders, handbags, and other leather products and to brand them IPHONE.

The lawsuit started in 2012, as the international tech company filed a lawsuit to order the Chinese company Xintong Tiandi to stop making IPHONE products. It turns out that even though the Chinese company filed the patent in 2007, five years after Apple filed their own, Apple could not prove that the iPhone was a renowned trademark in the country before then.

So, starting with the conclusion of the lawsuit, the Chinese company Xintong Tiandi can make as many leather products as they want, and all of them will be labeled IPHONE. Yeah, the court didn’t really care about the distinction in capitalization, so the company can stylize it however they want.

Chinese Apple

This isn’t the first time Apple has lost a lawsuit in China. In fact, back in 2012, Apple was ordered to pay a Shenzhen tech company $60 million in order to settle a dispute over the iPad name. Take that and combine it with the recent iPhone lawsuit, and we’ve got ourselves some troubled times for the company.

Apple stockholders have been selling their stocks because they are afraid of the Chinese dictatorship, and the company has been bleeding profits and shares for about a year and a half now. Things aren’t looking very good for the company, especially if they keep punishing their user base, and many already believe the company’s future in China at least to be somewhat shaky.

In the meanwhile, you can get all the IPHONE leather products you want by just following the link in the image source description.

Image source: IPHONE Luxury Leather

Retiring Later Helps You Live Longer

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"work"

Just started working for a couple of years and already dreaming of retirement

Work, even though it has always been necessary for the continued progression and survival of our species, has become quite a bother. Ever since we’ve stopped working just for survival and started having a monetary system in place, people started getting reasons to hate their jobs.

And of course, why wouldn’t they? If it’s up to someone else to compensate you for the work you do and if you consider you deserve more money, you’ve already got yourself a difference of opinion. Add to that the fact that you are constantly told what to do, and you’ve got yourself a recipe for disaster.

Dreaming of retirement

So it’s no surprise to anybody that people can’t wait to retire. Many times, even young people that have been working their jobs just long enough for them to become tedious happen to dream of retirement, perhaps even just to fantasize about a time when they don’t have to wake up as early as they have to.

But that might not be such a good idea, apparently. According to a very long and complex study, retiring later helps you live longer, although it may not feel like such. The study was performed as part of the very long term Healthy Retirement Study, and it was supported by the National Institute on Aging and the University of Michigan.

Retirement study

For the study, the researchers followed a sample of 2,956 people for eighteen years. So as to look at how exactly early retirement affects longevity, the participants were chosen so as to have been working in the year 1992 but to have fully retired by 2010. They were also divided into two groups.

In order to make sure that the results aren’t affected by any factors, the participants were divided into two groups based on their health state when they retired – the healthy group (contained two thirds of the participants, and they all quit for reasons unrelated to their health status) and the not healthy group (one third of the participants, they quit for health reasons).

Life expectations during retirement

More than half of the subjects chose to retire before the age of 65, a third retired at the age of 66 or older, and exactly twelve percent retired at exactly 65 years old. As it turns out, even a single year spent working extra can lead to an overall lower chance of dying from any causes – what is called an “all-cause mortality risk.”

In fact, for the healthy group, each year spent working after the age of 65 decreased the all-cause mortality risk by 11 percent, while for the participants in the not healthy group that worked until they were 72 lowered their mortality by 48 percent (as compared to 56 percent for the healthy group).

Image source: Flickr

Study Says: More Stroke Care Centers Needed in US

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shortage heart stroke centers

As per the study printed in Journal Neurology, top stroke care centers are out of reach of the majority of US citizens

Around one third of Americans lives nearly one hour drive away from primary stroke centers.

Researchers utilized a special theoretical model for this purpose. Surprisingly, the model reveals that 63 percent of American reside an hours’ drive from the top stroke care centers. Hence, there are chances that they would not be able to get stroke treatment on time.

In Addition, health experts reported that the rate can increase dramatically up to 86 percent with emergency aerial transport centers. However, it is impossible for everyone to get access to this option.

The availability differs from one area to another. South eastern states are presently experiencing worst condition in terms of stroke treatment centers.  The ratio of heart strokes are also increasing day by day in these regions.

In comparison, residents of North Eastern states can easily reach to best stroke center in less than an hour.

Presently, heart strokes are considered as one of the major causes of death in the United States. As per the latest data of Center for Disease Control and Prevention, very year nearly 79,500 people suffer from different heart disease.  Around 20,000 of these people die due to heart strokes.

Survey Says: A large number of Consumers Using Menu Calorie-Count

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calorie count in menu cards

A recent survey reveals that calorie labels on menu cards gives three times more health awareness to consumers.

The chief objective of the calorie label is to cut the obesity epidemic in the United States.  Generally, People are aware of the fact that calorie count is extremely essential for good health. Earlier, only health conscious people used to keep an eye on calories. However, the new rule compels obese people to watch calorie when they dine out.

The research includes nearly 3,000 King County residents who dine out regularly.  The survey started even before the implementation of calorie mention regulation.

Around 550 customers at McDonald Big Mac confirm that they make use of list of calorie information.  In comparison, the number of people at Starbucks Caramel Frappuccino is 380 people.  Overall, the ratio has ascended up to 8 percent as compared to the proportion of 2010.

The outcome of the study reveals that obese people begin to see calorie information in restaurants. The majority of these obese people is white and comes in the category of higher income people.

Roxana Chen, main author of the report informs that the survey validates that calorie information can leave a considerable impact on the health of people.

Recently, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) declares new policies for the list of calorie count. The new regulation would be mandatory for food chains that have more than 20 restaurants all around the country

Robert Wood Johnson foundation provided funds for the study. The report is easily available online in American Journal of Public Health.

Political Debate On Net Neutrality Heats Up

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Barack Obama

Last year, President Barack Obama suggested new strict regulations to avert on purpose slow down of the Internet. The republicans immediately formed another proposal against the Obama which they called “liberal proposal”.

Overall, it appeared as if it was merely a battle between the big government and small government.  However, the conflict left the Republicans in an extremely complex situation. It compels Republicans to stand with the cable industry of the United States.

In the entire battle, the issue of net neutrality has altered to a great extent. It forces the Senate Republicans to change the rules in order to follow the orders of the president.  The U.S president wants to prohibit the blocking of Web traffic. He wishes to ban all the “fast Internet Deals” which promise to provide fast internet service at costly rates.

Additionally, the new rules will also affect the power of the Federal Communication commission. After the implementation of the new rule, FCC would not be able to pass new rules of Internet.

Chip Pickering, ex member of Republican House states that Republicans blocked net neutrality with Obamacare policies. Thus Far, the party has gained control over everything. It seems like now its internet.

The mysterious battle on the net neutrality is all set to resolve. House and Senate board is all set to hold hearing on Wednesday. The hearing will set the heads of cable television and wireless lobbies against Amazon.

Authorities Confirmed The Success Of Lunar Mission: Chinese Entered Moon Orbit

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Chang'e mission

The current exploration status of China cannot compete with Russia and United States. However, China is still trying really hard to join the race of space probe.  The recent economic stability of the country helps the concerned authorities to give attention to stars.

Recently, China has sent an unmanned spacecraft service module that orbits around the moon.   It is certainly a great success for the Chinese space agency. The chief objective of Chang’e 5 is to gather minimum 4lbs (2Kg) of soil and rock samples from the surface of the moon. The mining of the moon will provide rare helium isotope that can improve the demand of energy in future.

Additionally, the ground controllers have also incorporated a camera system in the module. The camera will detect further landing spots for the Chang’e 5’s next mission.

As per the reports of Chinese media, the service module entered the orbit of the moon this week. Presently, the spacecraft is travelling in an eight hour orbit which makes it inside 125 miles (200 kilometers) of the lunar surface.

Zhou Jianlian, chief engineer of the Beijing Aerospace Control Center informs that the module will perform its second and third braking in the morning of 12th Jan. It will allow the moon to enter a 127 minute orbit around the moon.

The accomplishment of the mission will make China the third country of the world which completes such a feat.

Novartis Submits Two COPD Treatment Drugs For Regulatory Approval

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Novartis filed request

Novartis, a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company announced that soon it would submit two drug applications to U.S Food Drug and Administration. The new drugs would fight against chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

The drug manufacturer filed the request for the two drugs at the end of the 2014. The drugs, QVA149 and NVA237 successfully passed the third test. It showed considerable improvement in the functioning of lungs.

The two medicines have already touched the markets all around the globe except the United States. Hence, the company has now completed the submission process of the two drugs in the United States.

The World Health Organization says that drug makers are trying really hard to introduce new respiratory treatment. The latest report shows that after every 10 seconds a person dies due to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). The disease is expected to become the third largest death factor till 2020.

PTSD in Women is Closely Associated with Type 2 Diabetes

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PSTD patient

A recent research shows that multiple post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms increase the risk of type 2 diabetes in women.

PTSD is a mental condition in which patients suffers from terrible nightmares and severe anxiety about a particular event.  Normally, a terrifying incident is considered the major cause of this disease. However, if the disease is not treated at the initial stage then it can also affect the functioning of brain. Sometimes, it seems like the disease is cured but it re-emerged after a long time period.

As per the latest research, PTSD is extremely common in the women of the United States.

Earlier, a few researches indicated a close link between type 2 diabetes and PTSD. Nevertheless, this is the first time when a study has explained in detail the relationship of these two conditions.

Angela L. Roberts, a researcher of Harvard School of Public Health along with other experts performed a comprehensive study to determine the association of PTSD and type 2 diabetes.  They carefully examined other factors such as smoking, diet, BMI and alcohol that can give birth to Type 2 diabetes in patients of PTSD.

Astonishingly, the outcome of the study reveals that half of the factors that increased risk of Type 2 diabetes are related to women with PTSD. The higher BMI and antidepressant are the major cause of this disease. On the other hand, smoking, diet, alcohol intake and physical activity played a minor role in Type 2 diabetes.

The study is printed in JAMA Psychiatry.

“Berlin Walls” Climate Emerges Again In Lima

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Berlin Wall and Lima conference

The UN has divided developed and underdeveloped countries since past several years.

In I992, the UN climate Convention formed two different groups of the nations: rich nations and poor nations. However, rich nations were responsible to decrease the carbon emission from the world. Unfortunately, a few countries like Mexico and Singapore are also marked as “poor nations” in that list.

Recently, the issue emerges again on the final days of the UN climate talks.  The representatives of 190 countries are all set to write a new draft to deal with global warming.

The new agreement will also assign tasks of carbon emission to under developed countries or “poor nations”.

A few months ago, UN intended to break the wall between rich and poor countries.  According to UN terminology, Annex 1 means rich nations and Annex 2 signifies poor nations.

The UN took this step shortly after the “Berlin Wall”. It is an accord to decrease carbon emission between the United States  and China.

Nations are trying hard to classify these divisions again in a draft deal. The draft agreement will probably settle in Paris in the beginning of 2015.  The new treaty will control struggle to control heat waves, floods, storms and increase in sea level.

Miguel Aria Canete, Commissioner of European Union Energy and Climate notify that a few nations are holding up firewall in the last days of Lima talks.

On the flip side, the chief representative of Saudi Arabia emphasized that discrimination between developed and underdeveloped countries should persist.

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