Being polite during movies, now more than just manners.

When you are seeing a films at the movies, how many times do you hear someone asking for silence? Or People who is texting through their cellphones making you lose the attention on the movie? Well, for all that people that earn our hate every time they make us miss the climax of the movie, the reason to finally be polite has arrived: Cinemark – a major operator of cine theaters – has created a new app for iPhone: CineMode, it will encourage “mobile phone addicts” to stop clicking the Send button on their smartphones in order to reward them with movie coupons if they maintain quiet during the movie.

But, how does it work? Really simple, just before the film starts a message is displayed on the screen that will remember users to turn on the app on their smartphones, and will also show the rules which users have to follow in order to gain the coupons: put their phones on vibrate mode and avoid texting or calling when the movie is still being played (the app will detect if the user doesn’t follow the rules).

I don’t know about you, but a really think that this is a perfect example of how an industry can develop creative ideas in order to ensure the comfort of their clients. Cinemark was able to use smartphones tech to stop the use of smartphones, in this case, during a film being presented in a theater.

Do you know any other example of a good app that has being developed recently? What are your favorite apps?

                

Cold War in space?

So an eclipse is coming next, How could we see, appreciate or at least have an image of it? We have indeed appreciated it since yesterday November 13th, but how can we have access to this valuable information? The answer is the Proba-2’s SWAP imager.

The Proba-2’s SWAP imager is a spacecraft that is part of the Technology Demonstration Programme. The TDP is in charge of demonstrating new technologies and scientific breakthroughs. 

This spacecraft is in orbit since 2^nd November 2009 from the Plesesk Cosmodrome, Russia. The Proba-2’s SWAP imager started picturing the sun in the same month of its launching and has been operating since then. The image capture results even better than those in specialized astronomical centers on earth or by the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA).

This spacecraft was not only destined for taking pictures of the universe, but also for testing new experiments and technology that has to be tested in orbit given the high risk of some technologies to be tested on the soil of the planet.

Satellites such as the Proba series increase the possibility to test due to the fact that the devices it is equipped with are quite enough for technologies testing.

Let’s go back a bit to the picturing featuring of this apparently amazing device. Wouldn’t you think this could be a device for espionage? Think of the country that developed this satellite and the history between this country and his twentieth-century rival: U.S.

More information

College paper about the topic

Media coverage: Esa News

Media coverage; Huffington post

The brain's power to modify our genes !

What if I say that your DNA does not choose your destiny? or If  I say that just you have the power to choose your future, genetically speaking.
That assumption "knocks down " the idea that people are born with  non alterable genetic information. That means that our destiny is not in our DNA information, indeed,  our DNA and destiny can be modified just with our brains...
Scientific researchs have demonstrated that from 87% to 98 % of the mental and physical illnesses come from our thoughts instead  of a single gene because, genes acts together to produce effects on us, rejecting the idea that there is just one specific gene which causes a specific illness.
Our thoughts, feelings, and emotions can determine our brain given that they stimulate the creation of new thoughts networks, which can lead into the stimulation of genes. Those genes are always charged by what we think, feel, or even the environment in which we are involved. Those emotions and thoughts can have a strong impact on us, given that they can provoke a specific illness, or  can make you feel as healthier as a 15 year old teenager. It just depends on your thinking and emotional "habits". The more positive you think, the better you may feel.
For instance, it is proved that deppression can bring about other illnesses such as cancer or tumours. Also, stress can be related to cancer and heart attacks because it alters most of our organism's functions.
So, careful on what you think or feel.. You are the only one in charge of your emotions; you have the control of your body and even of your genes, so it is up to you to take advantage or accept the consequence of this amazing feature.
 Think positively and live happy ,the life is yours !
For further information visit Dr. Leaf's Blog

Find out the real power of our minds !

Earthquake predictions: is it more a future project or a reality?

Chile is a south-american country that characterizes for being seismically active; thousands of earthquakes occurs in this area annually. Fortunately, most of them are practically imperceptible for the population, but history has shown us that some of the most violent and destructive tremors in the last century took place in our territory: Valdivia (1960) and Constitucion (2010.) For those reasons, it has become the subject of research for many international scientists and other amateur investigators interested in the topic of quake predictions.

After February 27, 2010, many geophysicists, seismologists, and even structural engineers decided to come to visit the place where the epicentre of the disaster was located since they saw there a great opportunity for collecting crucial data that in a future might help them to develop a system for the prediction of  precise Earth movements. In this sense, Dr. Jeff Genrich, a professor at California Institute of Technology, explained that nowadays, quake scientists are able to make predictions of seismic movements, but they can ensure the level of certainty of them. 

However, early this year, a group of four Brazilian publicists called Quake Red Alert appeared in our national scenery claiming that they had developed an effective formula based on algorithms that helps them to foresee where and when an event will happen. They used the media to forecast their finding, specially TV programs and Tweeter. The popularity of the team did not stop increasing after they succeeded in some of their predictions. Equally, they were received lots of experts'critics since nobody already knows how their method works; consequently, it is not possible to prove it empirically

Probably, neither scientists nor the Salfate's friends are convincing enough since there is no strong support for saying that it is possible or not to predict an earthquake. So it is just a matter of beliefs. The only thing that I can assure is that Chile will follow shaking, so it is important for you to have a plan in case of emergency since prevention is the only way to save lives. In this web page, you can find some pieces of advice that will help you to get prepared in case of a new quake.

Killing Cancer

Chemotherapy can make a patient of an advanced non-small cell lung cancer, can, according to the statistics, live few time more than one patient who is not trying chemotherapy. But although chemotherapy seems the only way to alleviate the grief caused by lung cancer, there is actually another way. 

There is a drug called Erlotinib (Tarceva®) which attacks the cells that proliferate due to the cancer inside the lungs. It, according to a clinic study, “targets a protein called the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR).” The EGFR causes cells to divide, and to eventually create tumors; That is, Erlotinib attacks directly to the source of creation of tumors, and consequently, attacks the protein that is found at high levels in patients with lung cancer.

A study conducted to test the drug was carried and the results were encouraging for long-time smokers. Between August 2001 and January 2003, scientists took round 700 people with advanced NSCLC (non-small cell lung cancer), who were randomly given half of them the new drug and the other half placebos. Ming-Sound Tsao, M.D. of the University of Toronto in Ontario lead the research, and concluded that patients who took the drug showed a 6.7 months survival probability, meanwhile patients who did not showed a 4 months survival chance.

It seems like this is the drug smokers would apply to buy when their cancer gets worse, but is this something all nice and sweet? Would smokers buy this drug?

More Information

 Media coverage: Youtube

Clinic Article

The drug: Erlotinib

All Americans Will Receive A Microchip Implant In 2013 Per Obamacare

Not too long ago a rumor regarding "Obamacare" (President Obama's Health Care legislation) signaling that every US citizen would be implanted Radio-frequency identification (RFID) microchips by March 2013. The implantable device would collect data from medical patients that include not only an identification of the patient but also health records and stanndardized analytic files.

But not everything is Sci-Fi; millions of animals have already been “microchipped”. This microchip acts as an encoded ID making it possible for owners to track down their pets. The device, which is smaller than a grain of rice, is implanted introduced in the shoulder blades of the pet with a special syringe. In the same way, U.S. military is currently developing health services that include the use of a microchip in the monitoring of marines’ health.

For what is worth, the information is a hoax. The implant was never included in “Obamacare” health legislation. It actually comes from an early health care reform which was never passed by the Congress. More importantly, no parts of either of those bills include anything about a mandatory implantation of any device under any circumstance. 

It might be a hoax, today but… What if the implantation of a device that gives full access to where you are and what you do is just around the corner? What would you do if someday the government made it mandatory for everyone to receive an implantable microchip for identification purposes? Would you take it?

To learn more about this controversial topic, you can read this article: "FDA approves computer chip for humans"

Mr. Quaker, our best friend!

Summer is coming and everybody is worried about their weight and health. Diets to reduce the percentage of fat and cholesterol are very popular among population but, most of the time they represent a risk to our health (think about the apple diet, crazy! Isn’t it?). The easiest solution is a really simple meal present in most of the kitchens around the World: the oatmeal!

A nutritionist said: “If you eat more oatmeal you can drastically improve the quality of your life.” The truth is that plenty studies prove that she is right. In fact, the regular consumption of ¾ cup of oatmeal at breakfast (or whenever you want) may reduce the risks for many diseases (type 2 diabetes, heart diseases and cholesterol), to help to lose weight and to reduce high blood pressure. Apply it directly to the skin also helps to reduce the acne and several skin problems, as well as the huge relief that a bath of it may produce to your stress.

Oatmeal amazing power comes from its high content of soluble fiber, vitamins and antioxidants. Eating a bowl of oatmeal also produces satiety and contributes just with a few calories, which helps us to lose weight! It is delicious (you can combine it with many elements such us honey and fruits) as well as healthy. So, stop feeling starving and start eating a bowl of oatmeal to feel strong and sexy! That’s the best diet ever.

As you could see, oat is a complete meal. By eating it regularly we can not only reduce a size, but do it in a healthy way. Its higher levels of fiber helps us to decrease the possibilities to have cholesterol and heart problems, as well as diabetes in the future. I think that is increadibly easy. You can prepare it really quickly and save a lot of money. At least I will try to it my oatmeal and from now on Mr. Quaker will be my best friend.

This guy will teach you how to prepare the perfect bowl of oatmeal. Watch it, prepare it and enjoy it!

Here are other ideas to combine your oatmeal with healthy food and take this simple dish to the next level!

Interested? Look for more details here!

Using Science for Life Extension

Many people would give everything to make their lives longer; to see their grandchildren grow or to increase the number of experiences they live.

It is a fact that we all have to grow old and die someday, but the question is what are people willing to do to extend their lives?

Anti-aging medicine has appeared as a very controversial solution to the aging process of life. This technology refers to the study of ways of slowing down or reversing the process of aging. It is based on tissue reconstruction processes with stem cells, the use of artificial organs, and the molecular reparation of the human body, which, eventually, would give the body a younger condition.

These therapies offer people the possibility to have better lifestyles and to guarantee a more delayed arrival of death. This may sound amazing considering that most people fight against age and the idea of dying, however, when talking about the demographic consequences, or the unknown side effects that this technology can bring, opinions change.

While some politicians claim that the use of this technology will produce overpopulation, due to a decrease in the number of deaths; some scientists insist that extension therapies, should be given to everyone who believes that live is worth living. Furthermore, they state that anti-aging medicine has to be distributed equitably because everybody has the same right to live.

Consequently, it becomes important to ask ourselves how much are we ready to sacrifice to look younger and live more. Is it worth? Or, is it better to accept what life has for us? Are we ready to face the unknown side effects that this can produce?

Finally, considering the effects on population, is it a good idea to distribute this technology to everybody? Should we use it just for specific purposes?

Let's read more about this topic :  Life Extension: Science Fact or Science Fiction?

the queer gene... just a myth?

Born gay or made gay? That’s the question which divides society since the late 80’s, when homosexuality was removed from Mental Disease List, being considered as sexual option by many scientist, so it has no place in medicine field. Almost 20 years later, DNA studies started to demonstrate that the gay gene is real, so being gay seems to be not just an option (but it is definitely not a disease!). 

Gay people—and Lady Gaga—claim that they were born that way, implying that sexual orientation is an innate condition, biologically determined by genes in our DNA, and social or familiar influences have little or no impact in who you fall in love. Anthony Bogaert, a psychologist at Brock University in Canada postulates that the more older brothers a man has, more likely that that man would be gay. It’s explained because mother’s womb tends to reject male fetus, so   her organism “feminize” the future baby adding female hormones to avoid abortion.  Another important fact that might prove that being gay is something genetic is that if one identical twin is gay, the other one has more than 50% of possibilities of being also gay.

As you could see, the saying “gay from the crib” is not mistaken at all, and in the following two videos the previous ideas are going to explain in deep.

After having watched both videos, do you believe that some people were born gay or they made gay? If you could remove “the gay gene” from your future child, do you do it? If being gay is not an option, is correct to deny gay people basic rights as marriage or adoption?

Please see full article in : http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2006/jun/28/borngayormadegay

Microsoft New Translator Device..!

 Late last week in on a stage in Tainjin, China, the Microsoft Company published a video in which a new technology of translation is showed and explained. This technology can translate the speech of the user into a subtitled transcription, but what is the best of this creation is the fact that it can also play an audio with the original voice of the user speaking the second language! According to Rick Rashid, the director of investigation of Microsoft Company, this translator isn´t perfect but it is “very promising and we may not have to wait until the 22^nd century for a usable equivalent of Star Trek´s universal translator.”

Furthermore, the new technique used in this translator allowed the scientists to reduce the amount of mistakes that the last translator made in a 30%, which means that if the last translator used to mistranslate 1 out of 4 or 5 words, the new one will also have 1 error but out of 7 or 8 words. The hope is for just a few more years until technology can break down the language barriers, then we will be able to go wherever we want only with our translator device.

However, these new kind of devices make me think that the process in which robots and technology will replace lots of activities and works that humans use to do is still running to become real. Maybe, we are not so far from that future.

Personally, I really think that this device will never be as good as human because it can´t think. And it will never be able to do it. But, I would like to know your opinion about this. Do you think this creation will be good for us, as teacher of English? What about people who work on translation and interpretation? 

This is the Original Star Trek Uiversal Translator: 

If you want to see the device working, skip to about 7 minuutes and 30 seconds of this video...!