Aug 27, 2011

Blueberries faked in cereals, muffins, bagels and other food products

The blueberries found in blueberry bagels, cereals, breads and muffins are REAL blueberries right? Wrong! Award-winning investigative journalist Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, exposes the deceptive chemical ingredients and dishonest marketing of "blueberry" products from big-name food and cereal companies. The blueberries, it turns out, are made from artificial colors, hydrogenated oils and liquid sugars. See more episodes at www.FoodInvestigations.com 


Blueberries have long been touted as a superfood, high in antioxidants, vitamin C, and manganese. And unlike other superfoods like acai berries, bee pollen, and wakame seaweed, blueberries are accessible and attractive, so they're an easy sell to anyone skeptical of health food.
So this reputation could be why blueberries are in so many packaged foods, from muffin mixes to salad dressings. They appear to add nutrition and deliciousness that might otherwise be lacking. Nevermind that actual, fresh blueberries are only in season about 2 to 3 months out of the year -- the blueberry harvest goes on all year at the grocery store.

But have you actually read the labels on those supposedly blueberry-filled products?
Some of them, like Target Blueberry Bagels and General Mills Total Pomegranate Blueberry Cereal, might be fooling consumers into thinking the food has something it doesn't. While manufacturers state they're still within the U.S.'s admittedly loose labeling laws, many of those blueberry-promoting products are made without genuine blueberries.
The Consumer Wellness Center recently produced a Food Investigations video that looked at the actual blueberry content of several widely available packaged foods. This expose shows how Kellogs, General Mills, Betty Crocker, and other brands advertise plump, whole blueberries in their cereals and mixes, but deliever dextrose, corn flour, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, sugar, citric acid, artificial flavor, and food colorings Blue #1 and Red #40 instead.

Aug 22, 2011

Breastfeeding . Why Human milk is irreplaceable?

World Breastfeeding Week  1–7 August 2011

      World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year from 1 to 7 August in more than 120 countries to encourage breastfeeding and improve the health of babies around the world. It commemorates the Innocenti Declaration made by WHO and UNICEF policy-makers in August 1990 to protect, promote and support breastfeeding.

      Breastfeeding is the best way to provide newborns with the nutrients they need. WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding until a baby is six months old, and continued breastfeeding with the addition of nutritious complementary foods for up to two years or beyond.

Introduction to Breastfeeding

          Breast milk is thought to be the best form of nutrition for neonates and infants. The properties of human milk facilitate the transition of life from in utero to ex utero. This dynamic fluid provides a diverse array of bioactive substances to the developing infant during critical periods of brain, immune, and gut development. The clinician must be familiar with how the mammary gland produces human milk and how its properties nourish and protect the breastfeeding infant.

Aug 14, 2011

In China 1.3 million websites have been shut in 2010

Chinese web users are frequently blocked from accessing sites such as Youtube...

More than one million websites closed down in China last year, a state-run think tank has said. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences said there were were 41% fewer websites at the end of 2010 than a year earlier.
Chinese officials have tightened regulations on the internet in recent years, and they launched a crackdown on pornography websites in 2009.
The academy's researcher said there was no link, insisting China had a "high level of freedom of online speech".
Liu Ruisheng said that despite the declining number of sites, the number of web pages had risen to 60 billion during 2010 - a 79% increase on the previous year.
"This means our content is getting stronger, while our supervision is getting more strict and more regulated," he said.
Civil rights campaigners have long railed against China's web censors, who impose controls known as the Great Firewall of China.
A number of websites are routinely blocked, such as the BBC's Chinese language service, and social media sites like Facebook, Youtube and Twitter.

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Aug 3, 2011

What Color Eyes Would Your Children Have?

           What Color Eyes Would Your Children Have? is an interactive eye color calculator which allows visitors to explore and learn about genetic inheritance. Using this online exhibit visitors can see the probabilities of their children's eye color or that of their parent's children. In addition, adjustments for populations that have predominantly brown or green eyes can be made.
          Working closely with The Tech Museum of Innovation, Ideum designed and developed this interactive application as part of the Understanding Genetics online exhibition. The program was developed using Macromedia Flash.

Jul 27, 2011

What's Your Learning Style?


    Learning styles refer to the ways you prefer to approach new information. Each of us learns and processes information in our own special ways, though we share some learning patterns, preferences, and approaches. Knowing your own style also can help you to realize that other people may approach the same situation in a different way from your own.
Take a few minutes to complete the following questionnaire to assess your preferred learning style. Begin by reading the words in the left-hand column. Of the three responses to the right, circle the one that best characterizes you, answering as honestly as possible with the description that applies to you right now. Count the number of circled items and write your total at the bottom of each column. The questions you prefer will offer insight into how you learn.



1. When I try to concentrate...

I grow distracted by clutter or movement, and I notice things around me other people don’t notice.

I get distracted by sounds, and I attempt to control the amount and type of noise around me.

I become distracted by commotion, and I tend to retreat inside myself.

2. When I visualize...

I see vivid, detailed pictures in my thoughts.

I think in voices and sounds.

I see images in my thoughts that involve movement.

3. When I talk with others...

I find it difficult to listen for very long.

I enjoy listening, or I get impatient to talk myself.

I gesture and communicate with my hands.

4. When I contact people...

I prefer face-to-face meetings.

I prefer speaking by telephone for serious conversations.

I prefer to interact while walking or participating in some activity.

5. When I see an acquaintance...

I forget names but remember faces, and I tend to replay where we met for the first time.

I know people’s names and I can usually quote what we discussed.

I remember what we did together and I may almost “feel” our time together.

6. When I relax...

I watch TV, see a play, visit an exhibit, or go to a movie.

I listen to the radio, play music, read, or talk with a friend.

I play sports, make crafts, or build something with my hands.

7. When I read...

I like descriptive examples and I may pause to imagine the scene.

I enjoy the narrative most and I can almost “hear” the characters talk.

I prefer action-oriented stories, but I do not often read for pleasure.

8. When I spell...

I envision the word in my mind or imagine what the word looks like when written.

I sound out the word, sometimes aloud, and tend to recall rules about letter order.

I get a feel for the word by writing it out or pretending to type it.

9. When I do something new...

I seek out demonstrations, pictures, or diagrams.

I want verbal and written instructions, and to talk it over with someone else.

I jump right in to try it, keep trying, and try different approaches.

10. When I assemble an object...

I look at the picture first and then, maybe, read the directions.

I read the directions, or I talk aloud as I work.

I usually ignore the directions and figure it out as I go along.

11. When I interpret someone's mood...

I examine facial expressions.

I rely on listening to tone of voice.

I focus on body language.

12. When I teach other people...

I show them.

I tell them, write it out, or I ask them a series of questions.

I demonstrate how it is done and then ask them to try.

Total

Visual:

                          

Auditory:

                           

Tactile/Kinesthetic:

                          

The column with the highest total represents your primary processing style. The column with the second-most choices is your secondary style.
Your primary learning style:                                                         
Your secondary learning style:                                                     
Now that you know which learning style you rely on, you can boost your learning potential when working to learn more. For instance, the following suggestions can help you get more from reading a book.
If your primary learning style is visual, draw pictures in the margins, look at the graphics, and read the text that explains the graphics. Envision the topic or play a movie in your thoughts of how you’ll act out the subject matter.
If your primary learning style is auditory, listen to the words you read. Try to develop an internal conversation between you and the text. Don’t be embarrassed to read aloud or talk through the information.
If your primary learning style is tactile/kinesthetic, use a pencil or highlighter pen to mark passages that are meaningful to you. Take notes, transferring the information you learn to the margins of the book, into your journal, or onto a computer. Doodle whatever comes to mind as you read. Hold the book in your hands instead of placing it on a table. Walk around as you read. Feel the words and ideas. Get busy—both mentally and physically.
More information on each style, along with suggestions on how to maximize your learning potential, is available in the book Learn More Now (Hoboken, NJ; John Wiley & Sons, 2004).


  Learn More... 

    Learning techniques   http://research.cs.queensu.ca/~skill/learning.html 
    Learning how to learn http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gkelly68/LearnToLearn/LearningIndex.htm
    Learning toolbox            http://coe.jmu.edu/learningtoolbox/studentstart.htm 
    Multiplication: Learning Times Tables for 8s and 2s http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SawsAyyrFkQ
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