Tuesday, November 8, 2005

The organs of a 12 year-old Palestinian boy killed by Israeli soldiers have been transplanted to Israeli patients, helping to save their lives.

Ahmed al-Khatib was shot during clashes in Jenin last week when soldiers mistook his toy gun for a real one. He later died in a hospital. The Israeli Defense Forces regretted the incident.

Ahmed’s kidneys, liver, lungs and heart were transplated to a total of six patients, including Israeli Arabs, Jews, and Druze. One of the recipients was 12 year-old Samah Gadban, who had been waiting for a new heart for five years. Her father thanked Ahmed’s family “from the depths of my heart” and called the donation a “gesture of love”.

Ahmed’s father, Ismail al-Khatib, said the family made the decision to donate his son’s organs “for the sake of the world’s children and the children of this country”. He added that saving lives was more important than religion and thinks that his son “has entered the heart of every Israeli”.

al-Khatib stressed he has received nothing but praise from fellow residents in Jenin.

The Speaker of the Knesset, Reuven Rivlin, praised the action saying that this “remarkable gesture […] despite the war and conflict without solution for nearly 100 years, must be noted”.

Friday, February 15, 2008

Following the first day’s events at the 2008 Taipei International Book Exhibition (TIBE), organisers used today as an opportunity for a number of autograph sessions, the announcement of awards and a focus on the Taipei World Trade Center‘s Hall 3 where children’s activities and seminars were being held.

The Kids’ Book Hall, which was created with cooperation from the Regional Association of Educational Materials, saw a new addition this year in the form of the “Taiwan Stationery” pavilion. The display included a variety of paper products not only for children, but for small-business and general usage.

In order to promote some conceptions on environment and recycling, Yuen Foong Yu Paper Mfg. Co. Ltd. sponsored the exhibition with recycled poster container and corrugated-fiberboard, which was used to design several nature scenes, and the material will be reusable in the future.

Participants also held several seminars at TWTC Hall 1 for reading population promotion, for example, a Taiwanese version of a famous magazine named “Kagakuru”. Aimed at science education, imported by Taiwan Mac Education, and promoted by several academic professionals in Taiwan, the magazine will be released on March 3, 2008.

Tuesday, October 4, 2005

Dr. Stephen Schoenthaler, a Professor of Criminal Justice at the California State University in Stanislaus, has long argued that there is a link between a healthy diet and decreased aggressive behaviour, as well as with increased IQ and school performance.

Dr. Schoenthaler is well-known for a youth detention center study where violations of house rules fell by 37% when vending machines were removed and the cafeteria replaced canned food by fresh alternatives. He summarizes his findings by saying that “Having a bad diet right now is a better predictor of future violence than past violent behaviour.” In a very large test, Schoenthaler directed a study in meals at 803 New York City schools, in low-income neighbourhoods, finding that the number of students passing final exams increased by 16%.

Critics have questioned some of Dr. Schoenthaler findings, due to the lack of placebo control groups. However, more recent work by Dr. Bernard Gesch, a physiologist at the University of Oxford, has placed some of the work on a more scientific footing. Dr. Gesch found that nutrition supplements produced a 26% drop in violations of prison rules over a placebo, and a 37% decrease in violent offences. The Netherlands has embarked on a wider scale dietary research program in 14 prisons.

The short term behaviour consequences of ingesting sugar are well understood: an initial burst on energy, followed a sugar low in which your body produces adrenalin, which makes you irritable and explosive. However, Schoenthaler and Gesch suggest that there are long term impacts over and above the short term consequences of blood sugar variations.

Thursday, February 8, 2007

A new version of Canada’s Food Guide was announced by Canadian Health Minister Tony Clement on Feb. 5, 2007. The guide has helped Canadians with healthy eating habits since 1942 but was last updated in 1992. It is the Canadian government’s most-requested publication after income tax forms.

Changes to the Food Guide include:

• a first-time recommendation to include a small amount of unsaturated fat in regular diets;
• physical activity to complement healthy eating;
• advice for some people to take vitamin supplements;
• an advisory to limit foods with excess salt, sugar, fat and calories, which is considered an unprecedented caution regarding junk food.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have arrived in Bahrain at the government’s request after major protests on Sunday.

An estimated 1,000 Saudi Arabian troops entered the country early Monday, followed by around 500 troops from the UAE. The troops entered as part of a broader deployment by the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC), a regional group of six countries. It is unclear what purpose the troops are serving, though speculation is that they will guard major infrastructure facilities.

Al Wefaq, the leading opposition party, said it considered “the entry of any soldier or military machinery into the Kingdom of Bahrain’s air, sea or land territories a blatant occupation” and that the presence of foreign troops “puts the Bahraini people in real danger, and threatens them with an undeclared war by armed troops.”

Statements from the US government, a major Bahrain ally, said that “[t]his is not an invasion of a country” and that it urged both the Bahrain government and the GCC “to exercise restraint” and “act in a way that supports dialogue instead of undermining it.”

An official of Iranian Foreign Ministry also criticized the Saudi invasion of Bahrain, saying “it is surprising to see that immediately after the recent trip of the US Defense Secretary [Robert Gates] we see the intensified use of violence against the people of Bahrain.”

The intervention came a day after the country saw the worst protests since February, as several dozen people were injured in clashes with police.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

The US Secret Service has released the first photos Wednesday of the new presidential limousine that will transport Barack Obama down Pennsylvania Avenue next Tuesday as part of the 56th Presidential inaugural parade after he is sworn in at the Capitol. The First Limo – the 2009 Cadillac Presidential Limousine – will replace President Bush’s Cadillac DTS Presidential Limousine that rolled out in 2004.

Nicknamed “The Beast”, the hulking machine is a new model year 2009, modified limousine. According to General Motors, the new “2009 Cadillac Presidential Limousine” is the first not to carry a specific model name. The Obama Mobile was introduced on January 14 with noticeably different styling borrowed from the Cadillac Escalade and STS, while the suspension is most likely related to the Chevrolet Kodiak medium-duty truck.

Mr. David Caldwell of General Motors has revealed that the sleek black car would include a hand-crafted interior and “state of the art electronics.” The car’s high-tech security features include five-inch-thick (12.7-centimeter-thick) bombproof glass, tough-as-nails tires, and a sealed interior that’s invulnerable to chemical attack. The armoured limousine has been heavily modified to withstand potential attacks by weapons or bombs. The San Francisco Chronicle puts it in a proper perspective noting, “a half-inch of transparent armor is enough to stop a .44 Magnum round at point-blank range; at a thickness of 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 inches, the same material can withstand higher-velocity bullets fired from military assault rifles.”

According to spy photographer, Brenda Priddy, and General Motors, the limousine, which has the intricate, dual-textured grille, is also equipped with standard Goodyear Regional RHS truck tires in a 285/70R19.5 size, on 19.5-inch wheels. The rims have a run-flat device (manufactured by Hutchinson Industries). Xenon headlights from the Escalade are installed in the front, while the rear has some STS part. The doors are at least 20 centimeters (8 inches) thick. It carries the US flag on the front fenders and an embroidered Seal of the President of the United States is affixed to several panels in the back.

According to the US Secret Service, the vehicle would be a “valuable asset” in providing the President with the highest level of protection. “Although many of the vehicle’s security enhancements cannot be discussed, it is safe to say that this car’s security and coded communications systems make it the most technologically advanced protection vehicle in the world,” Nicholas Trotta, Assistant Director for the Office of Protective Operations said in a statement. The new limousine is the responsibility of White House Transportation Agency.

The Presidential State Car is the official state car used by the President of the United States. It is informally known as “Cadillac One”. The current Presidential State Car is a 2005 hand-crafted, armored, and stretched DTS (DeVille Touring Sedan) built on a GM four-wheel drive platform. It was first used on the second inauguration parade of George W. Bush in 2005. But the version to be used by President Obama uses a GMC Topkick chassis, while maintaining the Cadillac exterior.

The President of the United States travels in one of two armoured Cadillac limousines based upon the normal sedan, the Cadillac DTS, with heavy customisation. Lincoln cars have also been used in the past, most notably by President John F Kennedy. The current limousines were custom-built by O’Gara, Hess and Eisenhart, founded in Fairfield, Ohio in 1942. It specializes in armouring limousines for presidents and heads of state.

President William McKinley was the first US president to ride in an automobile. However, it was President Theodore Roosevelt who rode on the first government-owned car, a white Stanley Steamer. Roosevelt’s successor, William Howard Taft, was the first president to use a presidential state car that was permanently stored in the White House garage.

Meanwhile, Obama’s 2005 Chrysler 300C Hemi was auctioned on eBay with a starting bid of $100,000 and a buy-it-now price of $1,000,000. It has less than 21,000 miles on it and is in like-new condition. He leased the car in 2004 and traded it for a Ford Escape Hybrid in 2007. The car was sold to Tim O’Boyle.

Thursday, December 27, 2007

With the Climate Conference in Bali having come to a successful conclusion, Wikinews journalist Sean Heron interviewed Christoph Bals from the German NGO Germanwatch on his opinion of the outcome, and an outlook on the future negotiations. Christoph is the Senior Political Executive of Germanwatch, Co-Author of the Climate protection-Index and did lobby work on Bali.