Drug-resistant 'superbug' traced to India

Scientists have tracked down a drug-resistant superbug that infects patients and causes multiple organ failure to Indian hospitals but doctors here see in it the germ of a move to damage the country's booming medical tourism industry.
The 'superbug' resistant to almost all known antibiotics has been found in UK patients treated in Indian hospitals. Named after the Indian capital, it is a gene carried by bacteria that causes gastric problems, enters the blood stream and may cause multiple organ failure leading to death.
"India also provides cosmetic surgery for Europeans and Americans, and it is likely the bacteria will spread worldwide," scientists reported in The Lancet Infectious Diseases Journal on Wednesday. While the study has the medical world turning its focus on infection control policies in Indian hospitals, the Indian Council of Medical Research has alleged a bias in the report and said it is an attempt to hurt medical tourism in the country that is taking away huge custom from hospitals in the West. "Such infections can flow in from any part of the world. It's unfair to say it originated from India," said ICMR director Dr VM Katoch.

Process of Genetically Modified Bacteria

Katoch has reasons to fume, as the superbug NDM-1 (New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase) is named after the national capital, where a Swedish patient was reportedly infected after undergoing a surgery in 2008. Since then there have been several cases reported in the UK and in 2009, the health protection agency in the UK issued an alert on the 'gram negative' bacterial infection that is resistant to even the most powerful and reserved class antibiotics called carbapenems.
In a joint study led by Chennai-based Karthikeyan Kumarasamy, pursuing his PhD at University of Madras and UK-based Timothy Walsh from department of immunity, infection and biochemistry, department of medicine, Cardiff University researchers sought to examine whether NDM-1 producing bacteria was prevalent in South Asia and Britain.
"We saw them in most of the hospitals in Chennai and Haryana. We estimate that the prevalence of this infection would be as high as 1.5%," Kumarasamy told TOI. "We found the superbug in 44 patients in Chennai, and 26 in Haryana, besides 37 in the UK and 73 in other places across India, Pakistan and Bangaladesh," he said.
What makes the superbug more dangerous is its ability to jump across different bacterial species. So far, it has been found in two commonly seen bacteria, E coli and K pneumoniae. "We have found that the superbug has the potential to get copied and transferred between bacteria, allowing it to spread rapidly. If it spreads to an already hard-to-treat bacterial infection, it can be turn more dangerous," Kumarasamy said.
Senior doctors working in infection control said India lacks policies on antibiotics, infection control and registries for hospital-acquired infections. By the ICMR director's own admission, India cannot scientifically fight back allegations of being the source of such superbugs, as the country does not have a registry of such hospital-acquired infections.
"Two in every five patients admitted to hospitals acquire infections. This extends the patient's stay in the hospital, increases the expenses and causes side-effects," said Dr Dilip Mathai, head of the department of internal medicine, Christian Medical College, Vellore.
For a long time, India has been seeing Extended Spectrum Beta-Lactamase (ESBL), which are enzymes that have developed a resistance to antibiotics like penicillin. ESBL enzymes are most commonly produced by two bacteria - E coli and K pneumonia, the two bacteria in which the new superbug has been found. "These were treated by a reserved class of antibiotics called carbapenems. We have seen at least 3% of people infected with this do not react to these reserved drugs," he said.
Public health experts say globalization has allowed bacteria to spread rapidly across the world and India, as a medical hub, should be geared for the challenge. Katoch, who is also the secretary, department of medical research, agrees. "At present, we don't have any system in place. There are neither rules for hospitals nor a registry to record hospital-acquired infections. We are now in the process of forming a cell that will activate a registry and issue guidelines for an integrated surveillance system," he said.

Source Drug-resistant 'superbug' traced to India - India - The Times of India

Solar tsunami

A solar tsunami has been caught in the act of rolling across the face of the sun. The unusual shock wave, clocked at about 700,000 miles per hour, was triggered by a huge Dec. 6 flare that erupted from a rowdy Earth-sized sunspot during what is otherwise a relatively quiet time for the sun.

"This is clearly a unique event," said Alexei Pevtsov, a solar physicist at NASA headquarters. "I don't think we've ever seen a wave of that magnitude."

Normally when shock waves are seen on the sun, they tend to be short-lived, narrowly directed and seen in the super hot outer "corona" of the sun's atmosphere, he said.

This tsunami, however, was seen expanding through the much less hot chromosphere, just below the outer corona, with an almost perfectly circular wave front — like that of a stone dropped in a pond.

"In this case there was this humongous explosion that cased the waves," said solar researcher K. S. Balasubramaniam of the National Solar Observatory in Sunspot, New Mexico, where the solar tsunami was witnessed and photographed. "It took about 30 or 40 minutes to cover the Sun."

The tsunami itself was seen as a brightening caused by the squeezing, and therefore heating of hydrogen gas. The flare itself ignited at 1:28 pm EST and gave off a powerful burst of X-rays.

For a few minutes a small corner of the responsible sunspot brightened in white light to about 100 times the average brightness of any other similar sized patch on the sun.

To see the sun-enveloping tsunami in the chromosphere the researchers watched the sun in the same band of deep red light that comes from that layer — a color called H-alpha. The telescope they used, which is the prototype telescope for the new Optical Solar Patrol Network, monitors the sun in that particular color of light, as well as near-infrared.

Along its way the solar tsunami was seen shutting down magnetic fountains from the sun called filaments. These are areas where less-hot hydrogen gas rides magnetic fields lines in high, graceful loops. They look dark in the solar tsunami images because they suck up H-alpha light.

Interestingly, the filaments started up again after the wave passed, albeit less vigorously, Balasubramaniam told Discovery News. That means the tsunami tinkered with the filaments in a way that might be reproduced on a computer model — which could reveal more about how the sun works.

"We're just beginning to model them," Balasubramaniam said. And he hopes there are more such tsunamis on the sun so he and other scientists can gather as much information from them as possible.

"It gives us a new tool to measure conditions in the sun's atmosphere," agreed Pevtsov.

Cell Phone Radiation: Facts & Health Risks everyone should know

Whenever you get a message stating that cell phone radiation cause damage to brain cells ,Believe IT because they cause  impact to your brain for real,however using cell phone and listen in left ear reduces the damages by only 10%.But,the recent studies and debates have made to prove one simple fact again and again that higher the growth in technology, greater is its harmful effects. A well known and widely used example is the Cell phones. It seems that besides the extreme benefits of cell phones, they have a simultaneous or parallel link that is directly proportional to harmful effects too.

But it is a quite natural truth that the cell phone companies are never going to accept the flaws of their side. There are still harsh debates going on between the two sides. The ill effects caused by cell phones are cent percent proven though there are still people who argue and justify that the cell phones have none other than positive aspects alone.

Over the two years of time continuous experiments are ongoing to reveal the shocking truths about the radiation hazards of cell phone radiations to the world. One of the basic ideas that cause extreme danger to the biological system is that actually these cell phones operate on amplitude modulated signals.

Since these signals operate on lower frequencies it results in generation of heat that deteriorates the calcium layer of the brain. This depletion of the brain membrane leads your one and only brain to drastic changes that will ultimately destroy the brain function for sure.

Apart from this primary hazard there are still loads of harmful effects that queue up regarding the impacts of danger. Since these communicative bodies have become one of the inseparable parts of our daily life it is very essential for everyone to be aware of the ill effects that alarm your health. The upcoming hazardous effects of cell phone radiations are damage to visual parts like retina, deterioration of white blood cells, muscle disorders, rashes, radiation from the cell phone can cause DNA damage and impair the DNA repair process.

The cell phones interrupt the proper functioning of cardiac pacemakers. The radiation from the cell phone increases the risk of brain dysfunction, tumors, cancer (oncogenesis), autism, attention deficit disorder and neurodegenerative disease. In children, the mobile phone radiation causes behavioral and psychological problems. Even “Blue tooth” or “hands free” are in no way inferior to the harmful radiation factor. But everyone have a pseudo belief that these accessories will help you stay away from the radiation hazards from the cell phones. Well the truth is not so. It actually magnifies the nature of the radiation because the headset serves as an antenna to receive all electromagnetic waves within the limit of the user.

Though pages and pages we read or volumes or volumes of information they hear, people are very rare to accept or believe. Of course usage of cell phones are unavoidable nowadays but absolutely can be minimized to some extent. Exposure from the cell phone towers have also resulted in cardiac arrhythmia and palpitations.

With no surprises this can be the major reason for the steep increase in the number of people witnessing ill effects like Alzhiemer, autism and attention deficit disorders in recent statistical analysis. The fact is that several studies have already shown that cell phone radiation has effects considered harmful to the user, and the customers need to know of this so that they can take proper precautions to protect themselves.

Women with the Longest Eyelash

Eyelashes > well i have seen people with different eyelashes some are having long but some are having literally nothing.. But when i saw this lady.. however not in person.. I was shocked that she has had eyelashes which she would put in piggy plat and as  a matter of fact this Chinese lady is a broke the Guinness world record as the woman with the longest eyelashes in the world.

A Man alive without Food & Water since 70 Years

Human Being  and its body is the most weirdest and interesting thing.. which is still a puzzle to many people,but the modern technology has helped cracking its working and function.. thanks to smart brains and inventions to help them smart people(Doctors) to sort out the cure.I had always heard from my teachers and friends, etc that people could be alive without food for a month, without water for a week,and a minute without air.

But, it seem weird when i came to know about   Prahlad Jani, 83 years old man who says that he has lived without Food or Water for 70 Years.Well, Prahlad Jani grew up in Charod village in the Mehsana district in Gujarat.Its been know that this man is a yogi(Who does yoga) and holy man, Prahlad Jani living in India has the attention of the Indian military because of his assert that he does not require food or water to live. Now, Indian doctors are studying a man who claims to have spent the last seventy years without food and water. Due to the claim of Prahlad Jani, the long-haired and bearded yogi is under 24-hour surveillance by a team of 30 specialists during three weeks of tests at a hospital in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad.

Sudhir Shah, a Neurophysician from Sterling University said, “This is unexceptional: A person can live without food and water for three, four, seven to twelve days.” Since the experiment began on April 22, Jani has had no food or water.

Also, Jani has not been to the toilet. It is said by doctor that his body has not yet shown symptoms of hunger or dehydration in spite of no drinking or eating. In his room, two cameras have been set up and a mobile camera films him when he goes outside, guaranteeing round-the-clock observation. The body of Jani will be scanned and his brain and heart activity measured with electrodes. There were also several test done in 2006, but doctors was unable to find any thing abnormal.

According to the London Telegraph, Prahlad Jani claims to a “breatharian,” someone who can live on “religious life force.” Also, he said that the power for survival is come from a goddess when he was 8-years-old, who pours a magic elixir into a hole in his palate and it enables him to survive without nourishment. India’s Defense Research Development Organization said, “Prahlad may hold the key to helping soldiers survive longer without food, or aid disaster victims”, while he is dismissed as “village fraud” by some people. Military doctors hope that if experiment proves, it can help soldiers to develop their endurance strategies.

Dr. G. Ilavazhagan, director of the Defense Institute of Physiology & Allied Sciences told the Telegraph, “If his claims are verified, it will be a breakthrough in medical science. We will be able to help save human lives during natural disasters, high altitude, sea journeys and other natural and human extremities. We can educate people about the survival techniques in adverse conditions with little food and water or nothing at all.”

Dr Vasana Reddy, the speaker of Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO) told “We would like to keep the information confidential for the time being, but we shall share it when the results are established.” Authorities at the Sterling Hospital, which is hosting & helping the examination, were more approaching. They claimed it may “help in working out strategies for survival during natural calamities, extreme stressful conditions, even extra terrestrial explorations like future missions to Moon and Mars by the human race.”

Madrasapattinam

Facts About Chennai(Madrasapattinam)

Ø      Chennai shares the second position as the largest employment generator in India , along with Bombay . It is next only to Bangalore .
Madras generates around 35,000 jobs annually.
Ø      Chennai has the highest two-wheeler population in India .
Ø      Chennai has the lowest pollution among major cities of India in spite of having over 20 lakh vehicles.
Ø      The city is now called the Detroit of India due to its automobile industry producing over 40% of the country's auto parts and vehicles.
Ø      Chennai is India 's fourth largest city and ranks among the fifty most populous cities in the world (#35).
Ø      Chennai as ranked First in India in Health facilities by Outlook in 2003.
Ø      Chennai was ranked First in India in Education facilities by Outlook in 2003.
Ø      Chennai was ranked the second best city to live in by Outlook in 2003.
Ø      The Mofussil bus stand at Koyambedu, Chennai is the largest in South Asia .
Ø      Chennai is the best place of cinema post-production work in the country according to leading cine industry experts.  Because of its cheapness and all modernized technologies, several post-production works for the movies from the Eastern India and also from North-East
India are now being done in Chennai.

Madras (Chennai) old facts...........
Ø      Gateway of South India .
Ø      Cultural capital of India .
Ø      Marina Beach is the second longest beach in the world, after Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro .
Ø      Has one of oldest engineering and medical colleges in the world.
Ø      Has the second largest cine industry in the country, next only to Bombay .
Ø     The Vandalur Zoo in Chennai is the First Zoo (1855) in India and one of the largest in South Asia .
Ø     The Cancer institute (1920) in Chennai is one of the Oldest in India

Exchange Rates What are they exactly?

The spot exchange rate refers to the current exchange rate. The forward exchange rate refers to an exchange rate that is quoted and traded today but for delivery and payment on a specific future date.

How the currency exchange rate is calculated?
There are various factors that determine an exchange rate. Trade value, inflation, and interest rates, to name a few. These are basic principles to help understand the concept.

Let's work in a closed vacuum and assume there is no inflation between two countries or any other factors and examine fluctuations based on wealth and trade.
We begin with country A, which lets call the USA and country B which we call Britain. Lets imagine that 1 UD Dollar = 1 British Pound.

Now let's say that the Americans own $100 and the British own 100 Pounds. If America buys $5 worth of product from Britain, America would have $95 and Britain would have 105 Pounds. Suddenly Britain becomes wealthier. In theory Britain is approximately 10% wealthier now. (100/95x105=10.52%) So suddenly $1 would be worth around 1 Pound and 10 Pence.

This is the principle of trade surpluses and trade deficits and wealth within a currency.

Now let's imagine that America and Britain each have $100 again. Let's say that over 1 year, prices in America stayed the same but in Britain, prices went up 5%. We would now have an effect where Britain is 5% poorer then America and $1 would be now worth 1 Pound and 5 Pence. This is where interest rates are determined. Britain could have helped keep $1 worth 1 Pound by having an Interest rate of 5%.

Interest rates are determined normally by a Reserve Bank governor that determines economic policy for a currency. Interest rates can also be manipulated to stimulate an economy by strengthening or weakening a currency.

Now we can also consider what would happen if Britain deicide to print twice as much money as it had before. If America and Britain each has $100 and 100 Pounds each respectively, and Britain decided to print 200 Pounds in an attempt to get wealthier, suddenly $1 would equal 50 pence. However if Britain had found 100 Pounds of gold and was worth 200 Pounds, then $1 would still equal 1 Pound.

Web-Bot

What Exactly is This WEB –BOT?

The creators of Web- bots however created this for analyzing the Stock market Trends .It was created by Clif High and is associate George Ure.And it seemed to predict the future of the other Trends of the Mankind which just seems to right at some point

How Does Web–Bot works?

High and Ure claim that the Web Bot works by using a form of the Wisdom of Crowds, with spiders that search the internet for about 300,000 keywords with emotional context and record the preceding and following words to create a "snapshot." The technology is claimed to be able to examine the collective unconscious and be able to predict catastrophic events 60 to 90 days in advance. Some predictions seem to be incompatible with the applied method however. The prediction of the "Data-gap" in 2012/2013 for instance is nonsensical: A data gap resulting from a "pre-electronic state" would only occur, if the program was able to go into the future internet, "grab" information and supply it to the present – during a "data-gap" this wouldn't be possible of course. As the program claims to use the present collective knowledge supplied by the internet to predict future events, the predictions wouldn't be afflicted by any kind of data-gap as it isn't existent in the current internet.

By the what did it predict?

Claimed hits

The Web Bot is claimed to have predicted several events prior to them occurring, most notably the September 11 attacks and the 2003 Northeastern United States blackout. However, many believe the predictions are vague and, at best, pseudoscientific.

    1.September 11 attacks - In June 2001 Web Bot predicted that a catastrophic event would occur within the next 60–90 days.However, during this same period, the 2001 Harehills riot, Tropical Storm Allison, a Vladivostokavia Tupolev Tu-154 jetliner crashed on approach to landing at Irkutsk, Russia, the 2001 Bradford race riots, the Howard Street Tunnel fire, and over 200,000 demonstrators protested at the 27th G8 summit with some property damage and injury taking place all occurred. "A catastrophic event" is such a vague statement that it could have covered any of these situations.
    2.2001 anthrax attacks
    3.American Airlines Flight 587
    4.Space Shuttle Columbia disaster - In January 2003 the web bots were going on and on about a "maritime disaster". However, in that same year, the MV Mitali, a double decked ferry, was capsized by collision with a cargo vassel in Bangladesh, with at least 130 people confirmed dead on April 2003. The Fu Shan Hai, a Chinese bulk carrier, sank after a collision on 31 May 2003. The RMS Mülheim, a German cargo ship run ashore on on 22 March 2003. Nevertheless, the Web Bot owners zeroed in on a non-maritime event as their "prediction".
    5.Northeast Blackout of 2003
    6.2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
    7.Hurricane Katrina and its devastation
    8.Dick Cheney hunting incident
    9.BP Oil Spill

Misses

    1.A massive earthquake in Vancouver and the Pacific Northwest was predicted to occur on 12 December 2008.
    2.A "global coastal event" in mid-2009, which Ure and High said that they recommended people to stay away from coastal areas.
    3.A complete collapse of the US dollar beginning in 2009.
    4.The US dollar completely collapses, or Israel bombs Iran. In reaction to this crisis, administration of U.S. President Barack Obama would have been thrown into major chaos ten days later.[2][14]
    5.buildup of tension was to begin July 11, but nothing noticeable happened to cause such buildup.

Future predictions

    1.November 17, 2010 - The web boat warns of a big tipping point, possibly World War III.
    2.catastrophe in 2012 - The Web Bot has gained most of its notoriety for contributing to the 2012 phenomenon by predicting that a cataclysm will devastate the planet in the year 2012, possibly a reversing of Earth's magnetic poles or a small series of nuclear attacks leading up to a major attack during the year. The prediction does not necessarily call for a complete end of the world

The following come from the Web Bot Project BlogSpot report on a radio interview with High and Ure:

1. No warfare between Israel and Iran, at least not until November.
   2. Six very large earthquakes are yet to come during the rest of 2010.
   3.A major tipping point will occur between November 8 – 11, 2010, followed by a 2-3 month release period. This tipping point appears to be US-centric, and could be a dramatic world-changing event like 9-11 that will have rippling after-effects. The collapse of the dollar might occur in November.
   4. From July 11, 2010 onward, civil unrest will take place, possibly driven by food prices skyrocketing, and the devaluation of the dollar.
   5.No exact information on the December 14th missile launch (beginning of World War III) has been confirmed, but the predictions show it may happen.
   6. A second depression, triggered by mass layoffs, bankruptcies, and the popping of the "derivatives bubble," will see people moving out of cities.
   7. After March 2011, the revolution wave will settle down into a period of reformation.
   8.A "data gap" has been found between early 2012 running through May 2013. One explanation is that "our civilization gets knocked back to a pre-electronic state," such as brought about by devastating solar activity.
   9. A new benign form of capitalism will emerge during 2017-2020.