Unwanted guests in the form of poisonous caterpillars could be making their way to London just in time for the Olympic Games, according to media reports.
While authorities are reportedly setting up missile launchers on the rooftops of homes, nature’s own threat to the games may be lurking in oak trees. The larval form of the oak processionary moth can cause vomiting and dizziness if their hairs are inhaled, potentially “bringing misery to millions of spectators,” warns The Telegraph in the UK this week. Read more…
Poisonous caterpillars may ‘ruin’ London’s Olympic Games
A guide to the glitziest galas from the biggest labels
All of the glamorous galas taking place during the Cannes Film Festival are almost as eagerly anticipated as the movie premieres and prizes, and for 2012 Armani is the latest house to announce its involvement, by supporting charities including Sean Penn’s Haitian Relief Organization.
The Italian fashion house will present a gala evening May 18 in support of Sean Penn’s J/P HRO (Haitian Relief Organization); Paul Haggis’s Artists for Peace and Justice; and Petra Nemcova’s Happy Hearts Fund and their work in Haiti since its devastating 2010 earthquake.
Read more…
Smartphones the indispensable thing
More Americans can’t live without their smartphones anymore.
A study released Monday shows people using their mobile devices increasingly to settle a dispute, coordinate a meeting, find a restaurant or get emergency information. Read more…
(Français) James Cameron ouvre la porte à “Avatar 4″, au détriment d’autres films
L’emploi du temps de James Cameron se borne à étendre l’univers d’Avatar, a-t-il confié dans un long entretien accordé au New York Times. Le cinéaste canadien, qui planche depuis 2010 sur les volets deux et trois de son long métrage aux 2,78Mds$ de recettes, en a profité pour laisser entendre qu’un quatrième épisode pourrait voir le jour.
“Je ne suis pas intéressé par la mise en chantier de quoi que ce soit. Je suis dans le business Avatar. Point. Je prépare Avatar 2, Avatar 3, peut-être Avatar 4. Je ne vais pas produire les films d’autres personnes. Je ne suis pas intéressé par la lecture de scénarios [de tiers]“, a tonné le réalisateur âgé de 57 ans. Read more…
(Français) Moins d’e-mails pour moins de stress
En cas de niveau élevé de stress au travail, une récente étude préconise de se déconnecter de sa boîte de réception.
Une étude publiée le 3 mai par l’Université de Californie, à Irvine, en collaboration avec une équipe de chercheurs de l’armée américaine, montre que les personnes qui s’abstiennent de lire leurs messages tout au long de la journée ont un niveau de stress mois élevé que les autres. Read more…
India’s top architect warns of urban breakdown
There’s a note of despair in his voice as Charles Correa, India’s most famous modern architect, discusses the multiplying shiny high-rise apartment blocks sprouting across the nation.
“You see the big ads — ‘Buy your house, it’s time you moved up in life’ — and it’s a horrible project. Twenty-five identical buildings, some swimming pools somewhere, and the angle is such that you see all 25 of them,” he says. Read more…
More US teens postponing sex
More US teenagers are postponing sex than in 1995, and hormonal contraceptive use is up among those who are sexually active, said US health authorities on Thursday.
However, disparities in safe sex practices remain, with white teenagers more likely to regularly use contraception than African-Americans or Hispanics, said the report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Read more…
East Asians short-sighted for snubbing outdoors
Snubbing the outdoors for books, video games and TV is the reason up to nine in ten school-leavers in big East Asian cities are near-sighted, according to a study published on Friday.
Neither genes nor the mere increase in activities like reading and writing is to blame, the researchers suggest, but a simple lack of sunlight.
Exposure to the sun’s rays is believed to stimulate production of the chemical dopamine, which in turn stops the eyeball from growing elongated and distorting the focus of light entering the eye. Read more…
Antarctic waters changing due to climate
The densest waters of Antarctica have reduced dramatically over recent decades, in part due to man-made impacts on the climate, Australian scientists said Friday.
Research suggests that up to 60 percent of “Antarctic Bottom Water”, the dense water formed around the edges of Antarctica that seeps into the deep sea and spreads out through the world’s oceans, has disappeared since 1970. Read more…
London’s Olympic stadium opens with 2,012 hours to go
More than 40,000 spectators watched as a cascade of white balloons was released to open London’s Olympic stadium on Saturday, exactly 2,012 hours before the Games begin.
Capping off an evening of music, comedy and fun sports events, Paralympic gold medal-winning archer Danielle Brown shot arrows at spinning targets to select the name of a youngster in the audience to open the east London stadium. Read more…
