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Cell use may trigger brain cancer: WHO




Mumbai: Its now official: overusing cell phones could possibly trigger brain cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) has, after years of dawdling, ruled that there is indeed an unhealthy link between tumors and mobile phones electromagnetic radiation.
On Tuesday, WHO and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified radiofrequency electromagnetic fields as Group 2B agents that could possibly be carcinogenic to humans.

The cell phone-cancer link has been strongly debated for over a decade,but scientists had so far maintained that there is no indelible proof to nail electromagnetic radiation as the culprit.But the mood seems to have changed because of the phenomenal increase in the number of mobile phone subscriptions5 billion globally and over 600 million users in India alone.The summation seems to be that its better to use prevention rather than hunt for cure(s) for mobile-related maladies.

The WHO/IARC classification is the result of a week-long deliberation between 31 scientists from 14 countries in Lyon,France.


Cell scare: Don’t panic, limit use

Mumbai: A statement released on Tuesday by the working group categorically said that there is an increased risk of gliomaa malignant form of brain cancer associated with wireless phone use.The WHO has warned that excessive cell phone usage could trigger brain cancer.International news agencies quoted Kurt Straif,the scientist in charge of editing the IARC reports that will be published in Lancet Oncologys July 1 edition, as saying,There is some evidence of increased risk of glioma and another form of non-malignant tumour called acoustic neuroma.

What has emerged as an area of major concern is the extensive use of mobile phones among the youth.The number of users is large and growing,particularly among young adults and children, the working group said.The unwritten rule seems to be the WHO finding last year that problems could begin for those who have been speaking on a mobile phone for over 30 minutes every day for over 10 years.

Doctors have,however,asked people to not panic but be cautious.Mobile phones are useful tools,but one should limit the use.Basically,you should cut down on talk time or use SMS, said Dr Shashank Joshi,honorary editor of JAPI (Journal of Association of Physicians of India).
Cancer surgeon Dr P Jagannath said,We have to ask people to either limit their calls or use more of handsfree.Manufacturers should be instructed to produce mobile with safe radiation levels. He said the government should,in line with PUC certificate for vehicles,come up with EMR standards for cell phones and base towers.

Officially,India reacted with caution.Union health secretary Dr V M Katoch said,There appears to be a lot of attention generated by WHOs classification for electromagnetic radiation.But we will first go into the scientific merit of what has been said,analyze it and then react.
The Indian medical fraternity feels vindicated with the WHO/IARC classification.Said Dr Joshi,We,in India,talked about the cancer-cell phone link three years back in our study. The review study,published in JAPI,said that there is no denying that excessive use of phone could lead to health hazards in general and cancer in particular.Its not just cancer,cell phones can affect peoples hormonal levels,lead to acoustic neuromas in the ears and even anxiety about ring tones, said Joshi.

In February,an inter-ministerial committee formed by Union Ministry of communications and IT concluded that radiation from mobile phones and towers poses serious health risks,including loss of memory,lack of concentration,disturbance in the digestive system and sleep disturbances.
The IARC monograph is based on WHOs Interphone study, which was published in the International Journal of Epidemiology last year. The report had suggested that using a mobile phone for more than 30 minutes each day could increase the risk of glioma.

The IARC Monograph Working Group also discussed electromagnetic fields arising from occupational exposures to radar and to microwaves; environmental exposures associated with transmission of signals for radio,TV and wireless telecommunication and personal exposures associated with the use of wireless telephones.

TAKE A BREAK FROM YOUR HANDSET



WHO-IARCS CELL PHONE-CANCER LINK

IARC Monographs identify environmental factors, such as chemicals, complex mixtures, occupational exposures, physical and biological agents and lifestyle factors, that can increase the risk of human cancer. Since 1971,over 900 agents have been evaluated, of which approximately 400 have been identified as carcinogenic or potentially carcinogenic to humans

Group 1

The agent is carcinogenic to humans, based on sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans

Group 2

This category includes agents for which,at one extreme,the degree of evidence of carcinogenicity in humans is almost sufficient,as well as those for which,at the other extreme,there are no human data but there is evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals.Agents can be either Group 2A (probably carcinogenic to humans) or Group 2B (possibly carcinogenic to humans)

Group 2A

This means there is limited evidence of carcinogenicity in humans and sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals

Group 2B

Agents so classified have limited evidence of carcinogenicity in humans and less than sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals Some agents (without inadequate evidence of carcinogenicity in humans and animals) may be classified as 2B based on mechanistic and other relevant data

Group 3

The agent is not classifiable as to its carcinogenicity to humans

Group 4

The agent is probably not carcinogenic to humans

WHAT INDIAN SCIENTISTS\DOCTORS HAVE SAID SO FAR

An inter-ministerial committee formed by Union ministry of communications and IT in February 2011 concluded that radiation from mobile phones and towers poses serious health risks,including loss of memory,lack of concentration,disturbance in the digestive system and sleep disturbances t It also attributed the disappearance of butterflies,bees,insects and sparrows vanishing from big cities to mobile phone-related radiation t Three years ago,Journal of Association of Physicians of India (JAPI) editor Shashank Joshi carried a comprehensive review on the harmful effects

The review said:



1 Thermal effect:

Exposure to very high radio frequency power densities (100 mW/cm2 or more) can heat biological tissue and increase body temperature

2 Neurological:

Predominant one-sided usage,high daily usage and exposure for a large duration of time (usually more than 10 years) have been found in some studies to raise the risk of brain tumours

3 Psychiatric:

Experts report increasing incidence of ringtone anxiety in which users imagine their phone to be ringing or feel it vibrating

4 Cardiovascular:

Mobiles can cause electromagnetic interference in the working of implanted pacemakers

5 Endocrine:

A French group studied the influence of electromagnetic fields emitted by GSM-900 cellular telephones on steroid and pituitary hormone levels in healthy males and discovered that levels dropped

6 Reproductive:

Rats subjected to mobile radiation were found to have damaged DNA and low sperm count

7 Miscellaneous:

A study said that prolonged use of a cellphone leads to inactivity and is associated with an increased risk of obesity

WHAT TO DO WITH CELLPHONES NOW

Limit the use to essential calls and keep them short, particularly in rural areas. Or,simply,text  Allow children to use a cell phone only in cases of emergency. Since their skulls are developing, radiation can penetrate deeper than in adult’s Do not make a call when the signal strength is at one bar or less. It essentially means the phone must work harder to establish a connection t Buy a phone with a low specific absorption rate (SAR),which is a way to measure the quantity of RF energy that is absorbed by the body

Source: Times of India 

9:20 PM | Posted in | Read More »

BMW X5 and X7 SUV coming soon




BMW is all set for the launch of their seven seater SUV. Named X7, this SUV will be in direct competition to Range Rover, Audi Q9 and Mercedes Benz GLC. Bigger and more spacious than the X5 and X6 by the same auto manufacturers, the X7 is being brought out basically for the company’s Chinese customers who love their big vehicles.

Vibrant and forceful, the SUV from BMW is all set to take to the roads by storm. Spacious interiors which can easily and comfortably accommodate upto seven passengers, the SUV is crafted to exhilarate and set the pace with precision and pedigree. BMW is well known for their luxury cars that offer not only style and comfort but also great mileage and performance.

However, there has been no official statement issued by the company on when this model will be finally introduced into the market or any information on pricing of the SUV. But judging by past performance of BMW one can only expect the best.

2:50 AM | Posted in , | Read More »

Samsung Launches Galaxy SII




Samsung further extends its Galaxy Family with the latest release of Samsung Galaxy SII Model: GT-I9100.  The handset comes in a slim (8.49mm) and lightweight (116g) encasing having equipped with dual-core processor with Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system.

The handset has got advanced 4G (HSPA+ 21MBPs) connectivity along with a 1.2GHz dual-core application processor to enable web browsing, multi-tasking facilities which can be compared to a PC-like environment. Moreover, its brilliant graphics quality certainly impresses the users in addition to its fast responsive 3D user interface on the larger screen.  The device is equipped with Kies Air application, Wi fi direct,  HSPA+ connectivity, BlueTooth 3.0+HS, 8MP camera as well as camcorder with 1080p full HD recording and playback facility with Samsung’s allshare technology.

The Samsung Galaxy SII features Samsung’s new crystal-clear super AMOLED plus screen that provides the best color gamut quality, contrast ratio with edge sharpness by applying real stripe screen technology and an augmented sub-pixel count superior compromising battery performance.

2:43 AM | Posted in , | Read More »

Facebook Is Developing Ways to Share Media




Facebook is developing features that will make the sharing of users’ favorite music, television shows and other media as much a part of its site as playing games or posting vacation photos.

The company is in discussions with several online music services, including the European company Spotify, to develop a tab or widget that would display a user’s most-played songs and provide an easy way for friends to hear them, two people involved in the discussions said.

Facebook wants to do the same for other kinds of media, like video and news, said these people, who spoke only on condition of anonymity because the talks are confidential.

Facebook, which has nearly 700 million users, would not comment on its plans. But analysts and media executives said the company’s move into media was part of its ambition to become a hub for all types of activities on the Internet. And as the company sees it, people increasingly define themselves through the media they consume, they said.

In a statement, Facebook said, “We’re always looking for better ways to help people discover the most relevant content on Facebook but have nothing to announce.”
With media highlighted as a permanent and highly visible part of a user’s profile page, the company hopes to replicate the success it has had in becoming a top destination for games in other forms of entertainment. Mark Zuckerberg Facebook’s chief executive, hinted at the company’s plans during a presentation at the eG8 technology conference in France this week.

“Listening to music is something that people do with their friends,” Mr. Zuckerberg said. “Music, TV, news, books — those types of things I think people just naturally do with their friends. I hope we can play a part in enabling those new companies to get built, and companies that are out there producing this great content to become more social.”
Facebook has long worked to spread its tentacles across the Web, and to persuade media companies to use its data about connections between people to make their services more “social.” In France, Mr. Zuckerberg mentioned Netflix as one of the companies that had been in talks with Facebook.
Several music services, like Spotify and Pandora, already allow users to log in with their Facebook credentials, and they personalize their sites for users based on the activities of their friends. But Facebook wants to make it easier for users to tap into those activities on its site.

According to the people involved in the negotiations, Facebook’s various media partners would each have a part in a continuous feed displaying the songs a user is listening to or the video a user is watching. Friends could then gain access to the same content with a click. By using outside partners, Facebook itself would not license any content from record companies or television networks.

Facebook is known for tinkering with products until they are ready, and the features of Facebook’s new services for music and other media could change before they are released.

The effort could pay off in a big way if Facebook succeeds in devising features that would allow its members to pay for access to third-party music services using its online currency, Credits, said David Kirkpatrick, the author of “The Facebook Effect.”
“Music could be a gold mine, just like games have been a gold mine,” Mr. Kirkpatrick said.

Reports of Facebook’s talks with Spotify have surfaced repeatedly on technology blogs, leading to speculation that Facebook would work with the service to create a music channel. But people with knowledge of Facebook’s strategy say the company never wanted to tie itself to a single music service, preferring instead to work with multiple partners.

Spotify, which is available in seven European countries, has been in talks with major record labels for distribution in the United States. It already has Facebook connections: Sean Parker, an early Facebook investor, is also an investor in Spotify.
Jim Butcher, a Spotify spokesman, said, “We’re continuously working together to make the social experience on Spotify the best it can be and welcome relationships with any company looking to innovate by building more social value into the user experience.”
Last year, Facebook negotiated with Apple about bringing social features into iTunes. But the talks broke down and Apple created its own social network within iTunes, called Ping. It has not become popular with users.

 Souurce
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/27/technology/27facebook.html?_r=1&ref=technology 

5:44 AM | Posted in | Read More »

Google Wallet, Google Offers unveiled at event, Now pay with your phone with Google Wallet, Offers




Just as expected, Google unveiled its wireless payment system and its new Groupon-like deals site at a press event in New York on Thursday. Called Google Wallet and Google Offers, the two features can operate either separately or together to make it easier to pay for things in person and get deals while shopping.

"Our goal is to bring together all the pieces of the ecosystem. Your phone will be your wallet. Just tap, pay, and save," Google VP of commerce Stephanie Tilenius told the crowd. "We believe 2011 and beyond will be the age of MoLo—Mobile Local commerce."
Here's how the whole thing will work, starting with Google Offers. Just like Groupon, LivingSocial, and a plethora of other daily deal sites, a coupon for a local business will be sent to your inbox as an "offer of the day." It will also be able to send offers to people who check into certain businesses and make offers tied to certain places—Google said the service is "very contextually aware."

That's where Google Wallet comes in. Among other things, Google Wallet will be able to store your credit card information (Google's launch partners include MasterCard and Citi) as well as loyalty rewards, purchase points, and any saved-up Google Offers that might apply. Then, users who have Near Field Communications (NFC) enabled Android phones will be able to simply whip out their devices when shopping and tap them on electronic payment processors in order to get deals and pay for their goods.

Google said that more than 20,000 US merchants—including Macy's, Subway, American Eagle, Jamba Juice, CVS, and Walgreens—are already set up to work with Google Wallet, which functions with the PayPass systems that many merchants already have in their stores. Users don't even have to open up the Google Wallet app in order to pay, either; if they've already chosen which cards they want to use, they can simply tap the phone on the PayPass terminal.

But what about security? Google said that as long as the device's screen is off, NFC is disabled so that nearby skimmers can't steal any information. And NFC-capable Android phones—of which the Nexus S is the only one, for now—will store your credit card information on a secure chip that is both tamper- and laser-resistant. Even if you lose your phone, a thief wouldn't be able to extract the information on his own (though stopping that person from immediately buying thousands of Subway sandwiches with your phone could be a challenge).

The company said that the first markets it's targeting for Google Wallet are San Francisco and New York, with more on the way in the coming months. Google reps also said that more features are coming, such as digital receipts that transfer back to your Android device after you pay.
"We plan to aggressively enable everything a consumer would want to put in their wallet," Google VP of payments Osama Bedier said.

As we mentioned earlier, the Nexus S is currently the only Android phone available with NFC capabilities, but Sprint's Fared Adib said at the event that the carrier is working with Samsung, Motorola, and HTC to bring more NFC phones to the market. Google also indicated during a post-event Q&A that Google Wallet could even work with an NFC sticker on the back of a phone, and said that it's looking at bringing such stickers to market for those without NFC-capable phones.

Both Google Offers and Google Wallet have been rumored for some time now, so it was only a matter of time before the company made a public announcement. Apple is also expected to unveil a NFC-capable iPhone sometime in the future, but no one knows whether NFC will come as part of the next iPhone or the one after it.

Even if Apple does follow up with its own NFC offerings, it's clear that Google and its partners strongly believe in the future of Google Wallet. "There can be no doubt that today's announcement will be looked at as the inflection point where mobile payments move from concept to mass production," said Citi's Paul Galant.


http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/news/2011/05/get-discounts-pay-with-your-phone-with-google-wallet-offers.ars 

2:33 AM | Posted in | Read More »

NOKIA Low Cost Dual Sim Phone



NOKIA Low Cost Dual Sim Phone

Nokia has announced two new low-cost dual SIM dual-standby phones, the Nokia X1-01 and C2-00, due in India by the end of June. So far, only suggested pricing has been revealed, €34 or roughly Rs. 2,200 for the X1-01, and €45 or roughly Rs. 2,900 for the C2-00. Both are Symbian phones, with the Nokia X1-01 running Series 30, and the C2-00 running Series 40. India will probably be one of the ‘selected markets’ where these phones will also offer Ovi Life Tools services.

2:26 AM | Posted in , | Read More »

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