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Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Former England football manager, Bobby Robson CBE, will undergo surgery to remove a tumour on his brain today.

Bobby Robson is 73-years-old, and has managed various soccer teams such as England, Newcastle United, Ipswich, Barcelona, PSV Eindhoven, Fulham, Sporting Lisbon and FC Porto. Currently, he is employed as a consultant for the Republic of Ireland team, but will miss their opening Euro 2008 qualifier against Germany in Stuttgart on 2 September. He has had cancer surgery 3 times prior.

Bobby Robson said:

“The tumour is in my brain, which sounds bad, but it is in a position where it can be removed relatively easily and it’s extremely small – the size of a grape – which indicates they have caught it early.”

Robson was taken to hospital on 5 August 2006 after complaining about feeling unwell 10 minutes before the start of an Ipswich match. He was discharged on 7 August, and on 20 August it became apparent the incident was due to a brain tumour.

Friday, April 28, 2006

The Qingzang Railway is a project by the Chinese Government to build a unique railway linking Tibet with Mainland China. The railway will include sections at high altitude, crossing 5000 metre high mountains, long tunnels and lots of track laid on permafrost. The railway is being hailed in China as “an engineering miracle”, but has attracted criticism from across the world over fears that the railway, the first to link it to outside the region, will increase Chinese control over the Tibetan autonomous region and will erode Tibetan culture and traditions.

Currently, Tibet can only be reached by air and by road. Departing from lower-altitude airports to fly into Tibet carries the risk of experiencing high altitude sickness, and the landing at Lhasa can be ‘hair-raising’. Travelling by road means several days on a bus or hitchhiking on trucks over windy mountain roads. When the Quingzang Railway opens, it is expected that direct trains will run from Beijing and other cities.

China has long received criticism over its treatment of Tibet. The Tibet Autonomous Region excludes many areas claimed to be part of ‘historic Tibet’, and the former government of Tibet, headed by the Dalai Lama, now live in exile in India. China claims that the railway will bring greater freedoms and economic opportunities to the people of Tibet. For an area that has long been in relative isolation though, the railway is bound to have a profound effect. Locals may worry about what would happen to their trade if they were suddenly forced to compete with businesses from Mainland China. Much of Tibet is also ancient, with old buildings and traditional practices, which may be under threat from the new physical link with China.

There are also concerns from environmentalists. The passage between Tibet and China contains some unique flora and endangered animal species, such as Tibetan antelope, which may be threatened by the railroad. Construction of the railway will generate 7,000 tons of rubbish from 20,000 builders. Some of this rubbish will have been buried on the spot whilst some forms of non-degradable rubbish which may pollute water is said to have been transported to Golmud or Lhasa for treatment. A bridge is also said to have been built at Wudaoliang Basin to enable animals to cross. Once open the railway will generate more waste, and whilst the carriages are said to be enclosed, preventing passengers from throwing out rubbish, it remains to be seen what additional impact the running of the railway will create.

As well as passengers, the railway will also have a strong use in transporting freight, currently carried on trucks. This will mean that more coal and petroleum-based products will be brought into Tibet. Whilst China claims that this will enable Tibetans to stop logging pine trees for fuel, aiding the local ecology, the railway will accelerate Tibet’s use of climate-damaging fossil fuels.

Some Canadian student groups had called for a boycott of the Bombardier Transportation group, who has a contract with China to provide some of the carriages.

Most of the line is now complete, ahead of schedule. Signaling equipment is currently being installed, with trials said to begin in July. The railway is scheduled to open fully in 2007. Luxury carriages will carry tourists, with sleeping compartments and oxygen tanks to enable breathing within the high-altitude areas.

Friday, June 30, 2006

New South Wales Police, in connection with the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority, Tow Truck Authority and Centrelink (the agency responsible for providing income support) conducted random checks on tow trucks on Thursday. The checks were carried out in Bankstown, a suburb in Sydney’s South-West.

According to police, 50 tow trucks were pulled over during the operation, coined “Operation Hook” between 8:30 a.m. AEST and 4 p.m. Of those, 26 were directed to report to a vehicle inspection facility for further investigation.

Police issued 70 infringement notices (fines) during the operation. 11 were for being unlicensed to conduct business as a tow truck driver or business, and 13 for having incorrectly secured loads. 17 vehicles were issued defect notices as part of the operation.

Tow truck operators (business owners) are required to make a payment of AUD$770 per year to the NSW government, while drivers are charged $152 per year for their licence. An additional charge for tow truck number plates of $292 per year also applies.

The maximum penalty for operators not being licensed correctly is $11,000 or 12 months imprisonment, drivers without the correct licence can be fined $5,500 or sentenced to 6 months.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

London, Ontario is the latest in a string of Canadian cities to have acted on increasing public demand to ban bottled water. On Monday, the decision to eliminate bottled water sales in city-run facilities was passed by London’s city council with a vote of 15-3 in favour. The move was driven by a desire to reduce waste and shipping, have a lower impact on the environment and promote tap water as a cheap and safe alternative.

London’s new restrictions will be implemented over the next several months in buildings that are already equipped with water fountains. Bottled water will still be permitted at many city-run events, such as upcoming summer festivals. Privately-owned retailers will not be affected by the ban.

Other cities, such as Vancouver, Ottawa and Kitchener, that are already engaged in debate on the issue, may now be watching London carefully for how the ban plays out. Other areas have already begun to phone London with questions on the details of its new regulations. Toronto has begun taking a look at bottled water packaging as part of its waste diversion strategy, and its public school board is looking into the possibility of a total restriction on bottled water sales.

In recent years, an awareness of the energy that is required to manufacture, transport and recycle the product has spread nation-wide. Proponents of the ban point to the fact that it can produce as much as 150 times the volume of greenhouse gas when producing bottled water as compared to supplying the same volume of tap water. They also point out that the water that goes into bottled water products is not inspected as frequently as tap water in Canadian cities.

Some have taken this cause to heart more than others, such as British Environment Minister Phil Woolas, who called the use of bottled water “morally unacceptable.” Restaurant critic Giles Coren of The Times of London criticizes those who use the product as “the new smokers.”

Canada’s beverage industry has come down with criticism on the increasing opposition to bottled water. Spokesman Scott Tabachnick for Coca-Cola Co., which produces Dasani brand bottled water, commented on the convenience of the product: “It’s hard to bring your kitchen sink with you.”

Vancouver City Councillor Tim Stevenson thinks that bottled water’s time has come and gone: “Bottled water companies have had a fabulous ride on an unnecessary fad.” Vancouver officials are still determining how bottled water restrictions, which have been voted for by the City Council, can be phased in.

Next month, the city is planning to initiate a marketing campaign encouraging Vancouver residents to choose tap water and to remember to carry reusable drinking containers whenever possible.

Renowned environmental activist Dr. David Suzuki has praised London’s decision, saying that it represents a turning point for people’s perceptions on the issue: “I’m really delighted that London has done this because it really makes us focus on some fundamental issues.” He hopes that someday people will “look at anyone who hauls out a bottle of water and say, ‘What the hell’s wrong with you?'”

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) conference, held in Canberra, Australia, received mixed messages on Tuesday about the health of Australians. While average life expectancy is 81.4 years, second only to Japan’s 82.2, and rates of cancer, heart disease and stroke are dropping, incidence of obesity, alcohol-related diseases, and sexually transmitted infections are on the increase.

The AIHW report highlighted the increasing gap between Australia’s Indigenous population and the rest of the nation. Australian Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders have a life expectancy around 17 years lower than the general populace, and in at least four states 71% of Aboriginals who died were under 65-years old, compared with 21% for the rest of the population. Indigenous Australians are reported to have higher rates of obesity, diabetes, respiratory illness, teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. People living in rural and regional areas were also found to have lower life expectancies and higher illness rates than their suburban and metropolitan counterparts.

While obesity is a growing concern in Australia, AIHW director Penny Allbon expressed skepticism over a recent report from the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute that claimed that Australia had overtaken the United States as the “fattest” nation in the world, with “over four million adult Australians […] currently obese”. Allben commented that the institute’s sample from 100 locations across the country may not be representative of the whole population. “At the moment the ABS [Australian Bureau of Statistics] is out there measuring height and weight in a population-based survey, so we don’t know the results,” Dr Allbon said. “We were just a bit concerned that the statistics that came out about us being the fattest in the world is not based on a population survey.” AIHW reported the number of Australians being obese as closer to 2.5 million, with 7.4 million being overweight.

Between 1997 and 2005, the number of general practitioners in Australia has dropped 9%, although in regional areas there has been an increase of 15%.

Based on the report, the AIHW has recommended that Australians consider lifestyle change, such as healthier eating and more exercise, to alleviate the pressure on Australia’s public health system. “In rank order, the greatest improvements can be achieved through reductions in tobacco smoking, high blood pressure, overweight/obesity, physical inactivity, high blood cholesterol and excessive alcohol consumption,” according to Dr. Allbon.