Underdeveloped brain makes young drivers more prone to car crashes

Melbourne, Apr 28 (ANI): A new study claims to have found the reason as to why young drivers are involved in so many car crashes: underdeveloped brains.

According to Dr Lisa Wundersitz, from the Centre for Automotive Research, the underdeveloped brains make young drivers more impulsive and less able to properly assess risks.

Wundersitz said research has shown that inexperience, distractions from modern technology and a cultural tendency to “take risks” were the reason for most accidents, reports The Couriermail.

“There is a biological element the prefrontal cortex of the brain is not fully developed until they are in their 20s,” she said.

“This means their long-term planning skills, reasoning and impulse skills are all lacking.

“Typically, a lot of people might speed because they love the adrenaline rush it”s sensation seeking.

“I guess you want to experience certain impulses and as we get older, you might have the same impulse but you will think of the consequences as well.”

Wundersitz also blamed modern technology for the increase in young driver crashes.

“You have mobile phones, GPS, iPods, entertainment screens it can be quite distracting.

“An inexperienced driver suddenly has to divide their attention between driving and these distractions.

“It”s more difficult for them than a more experienced driver, where the driving process is more automated,” she said. (ANI)

Cellphones may soon make alarm clocks history

London, Aug 26 (ANI): Time is running out for the traditional alarm clock, thanks to the scientific miracle called mobile phone.

According to a UK poll of nearly 1,500 people, the timepiece that charts its origins back to Ancient China, is on its way to disappear from people’s bedside cabinets.

The study, carried out by Rightmobilephone.co.uk, found that, of those polled 82 per cent owned a mobile phone, with over half of them using it as an alarm clock, reports The Telegraph.

Robert Egan, a fellow of the British Horological Institute, has witnessed the slide in their popularity.

“It is a trend that we are seeing, people are even using mobiles instead of wrist watches now.

“It’s just another sign of modern technology taking over from mechanical things.

“I think in terms of travelling mobile phones are going to be the thing, these are changing times,” he said.

One in five British people used handsets for the Internet, organising their week, taking photos or films and waking up in the morning, the study found.

Neil McHugh, Co-managing director, said: “Phones have evolved from simple communication handsets to now provide us with a wealth of information on the go and schedule our social occasions.

“The advances in mobile technology may in the near future threaten such traditional stand alone devices such as cameras, music players and alarm clocks.” (ANI)

Club Alanzo Cruises project to divest 58 percent, seeks partner

Mumbai, June 29 (ANI/Business Wire India): Alanzo I and Alanzo II are the two traditional wooden ships under Club Alanzo Cruises and are expected to be the luxuriest traditional wooden ships, these ships are also known as Chinese junks.

Alanzo I, which is 49.5 m (162.40 ft) long, will accommodate 12 passengers while Alanzo II, which is 160 m (524.93 ft) long, can accommodate about 160/ 200 passengers.

Club Alanzo Cruises is seeking project partner and the volume of the investment for Club Alanzo Cruises comprising of Alanzo I and Alanzo II is estimated to be about Euro 250 million, this includes the construction cost and one year running of the cruises.

The promoters are willing to divest 58 per cent stake in the project and has already invested Euro 1.3 million.

The ships in the Club Alanzo series represent a unique and new concept at an international level.

They combine the Chinese traditional wooden shipbuilding design of the junks with luxury interiors inspired by various traditional cultural styles by taking advantage of the advances of modern technology.

This combination results in the production of ships in the ‘extra’ class which are solely intended for clients in the growth markets of luxury cruises and luxury chartered yachts.

The first ship Alanzo I that is currently being constructed, occupies a niche in both market segments because of its design, the way in which she is constructed will offer the comfort of a cruise traveling to some of the most beautiful areas of the world which have previously only been accessible to smaller sailing yachts. Both the ships are really innovative which can also act as catalysts for economic success.

Alanzo II, although planning and design of the cruise is ready, is now waiting to start its construction work. The implementation phase for this ship will start once Alanzo I have been put into service or may be earlier. This vessel historically was first built during 1405-1435 known as Zheng He treasure ships in the fleet of Chinese Admiral Zheng.

Both the ship is completely made of wood and is a reproduction of a historic and pirate Chinese junk.

Project manager Shweta Jain states that the ships will be repositioned at Europe and will be based in Barcelona for cruises to Nice, Cannes, Monaco or the Balearic Islands. From January to the end of May, the ships are mainly to be used in the Caribbean before it moves to the Mediterranean.

Jain also one percent equity holder states that it makes more business sense to divest to a professionally managed equity partner preferably who can share its expertise and backed with strong financial support in a professional manner as the project clientele is targeted for the high-end market and there exist a vacuum for this segment.

Partners of Brus Chambers, Solicitors, and the best-known shipping law firm are also partners and advisers to this project.

The project has already hotel partnered with Dubai’s iconic Burj Al Arab and the Sandy Lane hotel in St James, Barbados. The emphasis remains largely on the luxury end of the market.

A Goettingen, Germany born conceptualiser and Promoter, Mr. Alanzo Langecker. holds the right to the ships. A new company is proposed to be established and subsequently the title rights for the wooden ship will be transferred to the new company.

Langecker states that the project is conceptualized to sail as a luxury ship and the whole business idea is centered around building heritage replica vessels. (ANI)

Andhra takes to Jasmine cultivation

Krishnagiri (TN), June 21 (ANI): Grown extensively over almost 800 hectares of agricultural land in Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu, Jasmine flower is changing the lives of the farmers exporting it to the Gulf countries.

Jasmine is easier and cheaper to grow. The flower is priced at almost 150 to 300 rupees per kilogram.

“We have nine acres of land on which we have planted jasmine flowers. We get a yield of around 100 to 150 kilograms of jasmine. We have a number of people working in the flowers garden. We fetch around Rupees 150 to 300 in the local markets,” said Saroja, a local farmer.

The government encourages the farmers by providing subsidies and modern technology. Besides, they also help the farmers market the produce.

“We encourage the farmers in the schemes and other aspects also, marketing aspects, storage aspects, about wholesale markets, and all this comes in the schemes, its not that we support farmers by only giving them subsidies and technical know-how’s we give them up support up to the marketing level,” said Surendaran, assistant director of horticulture department, Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu.

The farmers though want the government to extend financial assistance so as the area under flower cultivation increases. The farmers are also demanding setting up of cold storages so as to preserve the flowers for a longer time.

The flower industry in the state fetches almost three billion rupees per annum from foreign exports. Owing to the favourable weather, other than jasmine, tuberoses, roses, marigolds, chrysanthemums are also grown in the area. By Jai Kumar (ANI)

Bandra- Worli sea link in Mumbai to open after June 15

Mumbai, 27 (ANI): The much awaited Bandra Worli Sea Link (BWSL) built over the Mahim Creek of Arabian Sea and providing faster access to commercial bus in central and south Mumbai from western suburbs will open for public after June 15.

This was confirmed by the authorities of Maharashtra government on Tuesday.

The BWSL is an eight-lane, cable-stayed bridge, which will link Bandra and the western suburbs of Mumbai with Worli and central Mumbai, is the first phase of the proposed West Island Freeway system.

The sea link will enable speedy travel between Bandra and Worli, cutting travel times up to one hour.

“The Worli sea link looks very beautiful under proper lighting. It will not only provide relief to people from traffic congestion but it will also become a tourist attraction in future. It is a symbol of modern technology,” said Dr. Vimal Mundra, Minister of Public Works Department, Maharashtra, Mumbai.

The Rs. 16340 million project of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSTRDC) is being executed by the leading private civil engineering firm, Hindustan Construction Company.

The BWSL project is one of the most highly recommended links by transport studies conducted for the metropolitan region over the last forty years.

The work of this project is almost complete and the final touch-up work is in progress at a fast pace. (ANI)

Jennifer Aniston saves message tapes of her exes

Washington, May 25 (ANI): Jennifer Aniston had admitted that she likes to save messages from her old boyfriends.

The former ‘Friends’ star, who was previously married to Brad Pitt and has also dated singer John Mayer, model Paul Sculfor and actor Vince Vaughn – believes that modern technology has changed dating styles.

The 40-year-old star also confessed that she pines for the old fashioned approach to romance, insisting she loves listening back to answering machine messages left by her ex-lovers.

“I am not an Internet person and it’s so unreal to find an honest person online,” Contactmusic quoted her as saying.

“I loved it when we used to have an answering machine – it was great to check your messages over and over again. By the way, I still have those tapes of messages. I like saving them,” she added. (ANI)

Internet pushing more girls towards cyber bullying

Sydney, May 11 (ANI): An Australian expert is concerned that with the advent of the Internet, children, especially girls, are becoming even meaner while bullying other girls online.

Donna Cross, a professor of child and adolescent health at Edith Cowan University, says that internet anonymity encourage girls to say things they might not say face-to-face.

And with the lack of immediate feedback from a cyber victim or playground audience, cyber bullies do not hesitate going to any lengths to torture their targets.

“The extent to which they can be nasty is greater than ever before,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Cross as saying.

Cross says that the effects of cyber bullying may be more damaging than playground bullying, not just because the slander and humiliation could be sent around the world and could last indefinitely.

She claims that victim paranoia is heightened when the bully is anonymous, which is usually the case online.

“She’s not sure who to avoid. If someone laughs in the playground, she wonders if they’re laughing at her,” said Cross.

But still, if the damage to the cyber victim is potentially greater, the same goes or the perpetrators when exposed.

“What these girls have done is dreadful, but at 14 or 15 we’ve all done really stupid things. Unfortunately their stupid things are so public they’ll be affected for a long time,” she said.

While boys also used modern technology to harass and taunt, it was the intimacy of girls’ relationships that has made them particularly vulnerable when a friend turns foe.

In fact, girls also spent more time on social networking sites than boys.

Cross says that young people do not realise the ramifications of online cruelty.

She suggests that parents set rules, monitor sites, and even become friends on their children’s Facebook or MySpace profiles. (ANI)

Mulayam Singh assures farmers batter price for crops

Gorakhpur, Apr 12 (ANI): Samajwadi Party (SP) chief and former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav on Sunday wooed farmers by assuring them batter rates for their crops.

“It has been reported that a farmer spends as much as Rs. 950 to produce a quintal of wheat. For rice it is Rs. 1000. The SP will demand the new government, whosoever it is, to give the farmers Rs. 1,400 per quintal for wheat and Rs. 1,500 rupees per quintal for rice,” Yadav said while addressing an election rally here.

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav clarified that the party’s manifesto for the Lok Sabha did not at all say anything about stopping use of computers or to ban English education in schools.

“The party was never anti-computer or teaching of English in schools. But the SP always supported that the poor and rural people should not be affected by modern technology or English in the schools,” he added.

Yadav further said that his party always demanded for promoting mother tongue as the base of teaching in schools just as it was done in other parts of the world.

Meanwhile, Congress spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that Samajwadi Party’s manifesto was an instance of putting the clock back.

Singhvi also ridiculed the SP for its promise to curb English medium of education and use of computers.

“Samajwadi Party is not our associate. We have made it clear. Our thinking and philosophy do not match. But even if they were our associates, the Congress does not support such a thing. The heritage of Congress is that of Rajiv Gandhi’s ‘young India’. He brought computer and internet to India. He was the one to bring down the voting age from 21 to 18. We cannot be associated with such a party or thinking. Be it an ally or otherwise,” he added. (ANI)

Matthew McConaughey’s Airstream trailer obsession

Washington, Apr 3 (ANI): Matthew McConaughey insists that his Airstream trailer enables him to travel across America without hampering his career.

The actor says that the modern technology has made life easier for him.

“I can communicate just as well from the Airstream, run everything right there. I can do it better. My thoughts are better when I’m on the road. I’m more creative,” Contactmusic quoted him, as telling the news issue of America’s Men’s Journal magazine.

“I can get to anyone at anytime – if I need to meet someone… ‘Well, here’s where I am. I’m going east coming up here out of Idaho. I’ll be in Missoula in about five hours. Why don’t you fly up to Missoula, I’ll pick you up, and we’ll drive east from there, we’ll do our thing on the road, and I’ll drop you off at the next airport.’

“It works like a charm,” he added. (ANI)

Replacing nature with technology may spawn major psychological problems

Washington, April 2 (ANI): University of Washington experts have warned that the way modern technology has been breaking people’s connections with the natural world may give rise to a major psychological problem.

“We are a technological species, but we also need a deep connection with nature in our lives,” said Peter Kahn, a UW developmental psychologist.

Kahn and two of his UW graduate students, Rachel Severson and Jolina Ruckert, explored how humans connect with nature and technological nature.

Writing in the current issue of the journal Current Directions in Psychological Science, the researchere revealed that they looked at the psychological effects of interacting with various forms of technological nature and explore humanity’s growing estrangement from nature.

They even cited an earlier experiment that showed that people recovered better from low-level stress by looking at an actual view of nature rather than seeing the same real-time high-definition television scene displayed on a plasma window.

“What do we compare technology to? If we compare it to no nature, technological nature works pretty well. But if we compare it to actual nature, it doesn’t seem to provide as many psychological benefits,” Kahn said.

They have also talked about a study that showed that compared to interacting with a real dog, children’s interactions with robots were not as social or deep.

“Robot and virtual pets are beginning to replace children’s interactions with biologically live pets. The larger concern is that technological nature will shift the baseline of what people perceive as the full human experience of nature, and that it will contribute to what we call environmental generational amnesia,” Ruckert said.

Kahn added: “Poor air quality is a good example of physical degradation. We can choke on the air, and some people suffer asthma, but we tend to think that’s a pretty normal part of the human condition.

He likened the situation to the effort to convince people that climate change is a serious challenge.

“People might think that if technological nature is partly good that that’s good enough. But it’s not. Because across generations what will happen is that the good enough will become the good. If we don’t change course, it will impoverish us as a species,” he said. (ANI)

Dr. Ramesh Madav successfully tests GPS/GIS enabled tree census

Mumbai, Mar 24 (ANI/Business Wire India): Dr. Ramesh Madav, Chairman, Enbitech and CEO of Terracon Ecotech Pvt Ltd, successfully tested the most modern Tree Census Methods, using GPS and GIS.

The testing was done in presence of various technocrats, Municipal Corporation and Government representatives.

This is for the first time in India that such sophisticated technology will be used on such a grand scale.

Having completed Tree Census for Municipal Corporations of Thane, Nanded, Mira Bhayendar, Kalyan Dombivali, Navi Mumbai, Nashik and Greater Mumbai, Dr. Madav has become synonymous with Tree Census in India. Dr. Ramesh Madav, Founder and CEO of Terracon Ecotech Pvt. Ltd has been involved in various organisations and NGO’s for over two decades and has become an authority on Tree Census in India.

With extensive experience and research, Dr. Ramesh Madav, now has upgraded the Tree Census activity with modern technology and gadgets such as GIS and GPS, which will not only increase the accuracy, but will also bring in state-of-the-art upgradation of the activity.

The next Tree Census of the Thane Municipal Corporation, which is due soon, would be done using the GPS technology. Dr. Ramesh Madav, recently successfully tested the Digitisation of Tree census through the GPS and GIS.

“I have always believed in making use of technology to the benefit of mankind, especially in the environment field, as technology can help us achieve greater and accurate results,” said Dr. Ramesh Madav.

This would be the second tree census conducted by Dr. Ramesh Madav for the Thane Municipal Corporation; the first tree census for Thane Municipal Corporation was conducted in 2002.

“With modernization of the technology we will move from Tree Census to Tree inventory, as the entire data would be accessible on your desktop, for any addition or deletion of the trees, which will help the municipal corporations to keep a tab on Tree felling and new plantations”, added Dr. Ramesh Madav

Terracon Ecotech is already in advanced stage of talks with the various municipal corporations across India such as Vadodara, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Bangalore, New Delhi, and Hyderabad.

Terracon, is a leader in this category of tree census in India, and have developed indigenous software, which is another first in the country. (ANI0

Jane Fonda keeps in touch with fans through online diary

London, Mar 06 (ANI): Legendary actress Jane Fonda has found a new way of keeping in touch with her fans-using the Internet to share her thoughts with them.

Fonda, 71, said that she was a “complete Luddite” in the past, and was not too familiar with the Internet.

However, she has finally begun communicating with her fans through her website janefonda.com.

Jane Fonda revealed that since the time she has embraced the modern technology, she feels closer to her fans and often posts bulletins about her new Broadway play ’33 Variations’.

“I thought it would be interesting to bring people through this process with me. I was a complete Luddite before. I only Googled for the first time this past summer. But this is a gratifying experience and I hear from all sorts of people, many of whom say they have left the theatre inspired by this play,” the Daily Express quoted her as saying.

Jane even revealed that she was working on a follow-up to her 2005 autobiography, My Life So Far.

“I’m about 10 chapters in,” Fonda added. (ANI)

Jane Fonda keeps in touch with fans through online diary

London, Mar 06 (ANI): Legendary actress Jane Fonda has found a new way of keeping in touch with her fans-using the Internet to share her thoughts with them.

Fonda, 71, said that she was a “complete Luddite” in the past, and was not too familiar with the Internet.

However, she has finally begun communicating with her fans through her website janefonda.com.

Jane Fonda revealed that since the time she has embraced the modern technology, she feels closer to her fans and often posts bulletins about her new Broadway play ’33 Variations’.

“I thought it would be interesting to bring people through this process with me. I was a complete Luddite before. I only Googled for the first time this past summer. But this is a gratifying experience and I hear from all sorts of people, many of whom say they have left the theatre inspired by this play,” the Daily Express quoted her as saying.

Jane even revealed that she was working on a follow-up to her 2005 autobiography, My Life So Far.

“I’m about 10 chapters in,” Fonda added. (ANI)

Jane Fonda keeps in touch with fans through online diary

London, Mar 06 (ANI): Legendary actress Jane Fonda has found a new way of keeping in touch with her fans-using the Internet to share her thoughts with them.

Fonda, 71, said that she was a “complete Luddite” in the past, and was not too familiar with the Internet.

However, she has finally begun communicating with her fans through her website janefonda.com.

Jane Fonda revealed that since the time she has embraced the modern technology, she feels closer to her fans and often posts bulletins about her new Broadway play ’33 Variations’.

“I thought it would be interesting to bring people through this process with me. I was a complete Luddite before. I only Googled for the first time this past summer. But this is a gratifying experience and I hear from all sorts of people, many of whom say they have left the theatre inspired by this play,” the Daily Express quoted her as saying.

Jane even revealed that she was working on a follow-up to her 2005 autobiography, My Life So Far.

“I’m about 10 chapters in,” Fonda added. (ANI)

Jane Fonda keeps in touch with fans through online diary

London, Mar 06 (ANI): Legendary actress Jane Fonda has found a new way of keeping in touch with her fans-using the Internet to share her thoughts with them.

Fonda, 71, said that she was a “complete Luddite” in the past, and was not too familiar with the Internet.

However, she has finally begun communicating with her fans through her website janefonda.com.

Jane Fonda revealed that since the time she has embraced the modern technology, she feels closer to her fans and often posts bulletins about her new Broadway play ’33 Variations’.

“I thought it would be interesting to bring people through this process with me. I was a complete Luddite before. I only Googled for the first time this past summer. But this is a gratifying experience and I hear from all sorts of people, many of whom say they have left the theatre inspired by this play,” the Daily Express quoted her as saying.

Jane even revealed that she was working on a follow-up to her 2005 autobiography, My Life So Far.

“I’m about 10 chapters in,” Fonda added. (ANI)

Ear analysis suggests Archaeopteryx was more birdlike than reptilian

Washington, Jan 14 (ANI): A new research has suggested that the earliest known bird, Archaeopteryx, had a similar hearing range to the modern emu, which suggests that the 145 million-year-old creature, despite its reptilian teeth and long tail, was more birdlike than reptilian.

The research was done by a team of paleontologists and biologists from London, Munich and Ohio.

Using innovative modern technology, the team has shown for the first time how the length of the inner ear of birds and reptiles can be used to accurately predict their hearing ability and even aspects of their behavior.

“In modern living reptiles and birds, we found that the length of the bony canal containing the sensory tissue of the inner ear is strongly related to their hearing ability,” said study co-author Paul Barrett, a palaeontologist at London’s Natural History Museum.

“We were then able to use these results to predict how extinct birds and reptiles may have heard and found that Archaeopteryx had an average hearing range of approximately 2000 Hz. This means it had similar hearing to modern emus, which have some of the most limited hearing ranges of modern birds,” he added.

Researchers previously have only been able to estimate how prehistoric animals heard by examining the skulls of damaged fossils and relating brain region size to hearing ability, based on comparisons to the animals’ modern relatives.

Computed tomography or CT imaging, however, allowed the team to accurately reconstruct the inner ear anatomy of various intact bird and reptile specimens.

Fifty-nine species were studied, including turtles, crocodiles, snakes and birds.

“By examining the three dimensional CT scans we were able to see for the first time the real relationship between hearing ability and behavior in extinct reptiles and birds,” said Stig Walsh, Natural History Museum palaeontologist and lead author on the study.

“The size of the cochlea duct (the bony part of the inner ear housing the hearing organ) in living birds and reptiles accurately predicts the hearing ranges of these animals. This simple measurement can therefore provide a direct means for determining hearing capabilities, and possibly behavior, in their extinct relatives, including Archaeopteryx,” he added.

According to Angela Milner, also from the Natural History Museum, “Our previous research has shown that the part of the ear that controls balance was just like that of modern birds, and now we know that Archaeopteryx had bird-like hearing too.” (ANI)