Topics

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Faculty Forum / Bacterial waste makes you feel fuller for longer

« on: December 14, 2014, 10:49:50 AM »

It may not sound very appetising, but an edible powder made from waste excreted by bacteria in our guts may help people to avoid gaining weight.

Stabilising a person's weight could have a major health impact, says Gary Frost of Imperial College London, because as people on Western diets grow older, they tend to put on between 0.3 and 0.8 kilograms per year on average.

A fatty acid called propionate is released when the bacteria in our gut digest fibre. Propionate makes people feel full by activating cells in the large intestine that produce the satiety hormones GLP-1 and PYY: these tell the brain that it's time to stop eating.
Link:http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn26698-bacterial-waste-makes-you-feel-fuller-for-longer.html#.VI0Zu9inaKE

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Faculty Forum / Taking Style to the Street

« on: December 13, 2014, 12:25:31 PM »

David Terry is 50 years old, H.I.V. positive and homeless. He spends his nights at Bailey House, a nonprofit in Harlem that provides housing for people living with H.I.V., and his days wandering the streets. “I get very depressed because it’s like I’m on the treadmill going 80 miles an hour with the brakes on,” he said.

But for one hour the other Sunday, life slowed down to a happy pace. Sitting on a park bench on the corner of East Houston and Chrystie Streets, Mr. Terry was getting a haircut from Mark Bustos, a professional stylist with a celebrity clientele.
Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/11/style/a-hair-stylist-provides-free-cuts-to-the-homeless.html

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Faculty Forum / Experts against chemical use

« on: December 13, 2014, 11:07:35 AM »

Experts and officials from a joint meeting in Dhaka yesterday suggested not using any chemical for the oil spill clean-up in the two rivers of the Sundarbans. Some TV channels earlier quoted BIWTA Chairman Shamsuzzoha as saying the salvage ship Kandari-10 would spray an adhesive to increase the density of the oil which will....

Link: http://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage

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Faculty Forum / Cisco’s Networks Will Analyze Us

« on: December 13, 2014, 10:53:07 AM »

Another giant of tech hardware aims to make money by selling insights.

Cisco Systems announced Thursday what it calls “connected analytics,” a mix of hardware, software and services based on sensor data. The idea is to offer rapid analysis of fast-changing information, like the people moving through a store, or beer sold in a stadium, so that companies can respond in time.

The strategy may also be a way for Cisco, which celebrated its 30th anniversary Thursday, to extract more money from the data transmission networks it has installed for customers.

Link: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/12/11/ciscos-networks-will-analyze-us/?ref=technology

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Faculty Forum / Finding the Best Ways to Cut Utility Costs

« on: December 13, 2014, 10:50:50 AM »

By now, we all are supposed to know that many devices like computers, printers, phone chargers and DVRs should be unplugged to save energy costs when we’re not using them. And we also should be aware that properly adjusted thermostats can save money as well.

But managing all those devices for optimum savings presents a hurdle. “People are so busy, no one is going to run around their house and unplug things,” said Suzanne Jones, interim president of the Association of Energy Services Professionals, an industry group.

Link: www.nytimes.com/2014/10/22/your-money/finding-the-best-ways-to-cut-utility-costs.html

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Faculty Forum / Digital Tools Help Users Save Energy, Study Finds

« on: December 13, 2014, 10:46:45 AM »

Giving people the means to closely monitor and adjust their electricity use lowers their monthly bills and could significantly reduce the need to build new power plants, according to a yearlong government study.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/10/technology/10energy.html

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Faculty Forum / Energy Efficiency May Be the Key to Saving Trillions

« on: December 13, 2014, 10:44:23 AM »

Compared with eye-catching renewable power technologies like wind turbines and solar panels, energy efficiency is nearly invisible. But advocates say doing more with less power may be an even more critical weapon in the fight against climate change and offers big economic benefits, too.

Worldwide, governments, companies and families could be saving trillions of dollars by improving efficiency with cars that go farther on less fuel and improved appliances, light bulbs and factories, experts say.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/01/business/energy-environment/energy-efficiency-may-be-the-key-to-saving-trillions.html?ref=earth

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Faculty Forum / 28 Months on Mars

« on: December 13, 2014, 10:41:03 AM »

NASA’s Curiosity rover has explored Gale Crater for 833 Martian days, or Sols. And it has found evidence, written in red rocks and sand, of lakes and streams on a warmer, wetter, habitable Mars.

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/12/09/science/space/curiosity-rover-28-months-on-mars.html?ref=science&_r=0