Eight members of the Philadelphia Orchestra who were stuck on a tarmac in Beijing for three hours gave fellow passengers an experience of a lifetime when they took out their violins and cello and played an impromptu concert.
Plenty of mobile phones captured the musical magic of the not-quite-in-flight entertainment.
(WATCH the video below from ABC News)
Greenhouse gas emissions in Brazil fell by nearly 39 percent in the five years before 2010, largely because of reductions in the amount of forest loss, according to a new government report.
Fifty years separate the two friends, Collin and Ernest, but together these two have managed to accomplish the miraculous after Colin was involved in a horrific car accident as a teen, and was paralyzed from the chest down.
Ernest, who’d recently retired as an engineer, heard about the accident through his church and felt what he described as “a calling” to help the teenager, whom he’d never met, though they attended the same church.
He called Smith’s family and offered his services to the young athlete’s overwhelmed, working parents. But, wait…
The extent of his “services” would inspire awe in anyone who noticed that Ernest arrives at the house every day before dawn to get the boy ready for college, putting in 12 hours a day at his side, and coming back the next morning.
(WATCH the video below, or READ the story from ABC News)
Canada’s economy created a surprising 95,000 jobs in May, the biggest monthly gain in 11 years, and most were full-time positions and in the private sector, Statistics Canada said on Friday in a report showing the economy may be gaining momentum.
The stellar performance handily beat market expectations for a 15,000 gain.
Media reports about substances that are supposedly hazardous to your health may cause suggestible people to develop symptoms of illness even when there may be no actual cause.
This is the conclusion of a new study that involved 147 adults, half of whom were given suggestive news reports about the dangers of wi-fi just before being placed in front of a laptop.
The researchers tried to reproduce a “nocebo effect”, which is the opposite of the pain-reducing effect known as a placebo.
The study illustrates how media reports about health risks may trigger or amplify nocebo effects in some people, actually causing symptoms which might otherwise not be warranted.
Frequently, the media reports on the potential health risks associated with the electromagnetic fields (EMFs) produced by cell phones, cell phone masts, high-voltage lines, and Wi-Fi devices. People who believe they are sensitive to electromagnetic fields report symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, burning or tingling sensations on their skin, and they attribute these effects to this radiation. Some people actually skip work or move to remote regions to get away from electrical equipment altogether.
Magnetic resonance imaging has demonstrated that the regions of the brain responsible for pain processing are indeed active in these instances.
“However, tests have shown that the people affected are unable to tell if they have really been exposed to an electromagnetic field,” explained Dr. Michael Witthöft of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz. “In fact, their symptoms are triggered in exactly the same way if they are exposed to genuine and sham fields.”
“The mere anticipation of possible injury may actually trigger pain or disorders,” he added. “This is the opposite of the analgesic effects of placebos.”
Witthöft undertook the current study in collaboration with G. James Rubin during a research stay at King’s College in London. The 147 test subjects were first shown a television report. One group of participants watched a BBC One documentary, which dealt in no uncertain terms with the potential health hazards supposedly associated with cell phone and WiFi signals. The other group watched a report on the security of Internet and cell phone data.
Then all the subjects in both groups were exposed to fake WiFi signals that they were told were real. Even though they were not exposed to any radiation, some of the subjects developed characteristic symptoms: 54 percent of the subjects reported experiencing agitation and anxiety, loss of concentration or tingling in their fingers, arms, legs, and feet. Two participants left the study prematurely because their symptoms were so severe that they no longer wanted to be exposed to the assumed radiation. It became apparent that the symptoms were most severe among the subjects who had viewed the documentary about the possible hazards of electromagnetic radiation. (Bottom photo by Flying Pete, on Morguefile.com)
“The study thus demonstrates that sensationalized media reports on potential risks, which often lack scientific evidence, can have a significant effect on the health of large sections of the population,” concluded the report. “Such speculation on health hazards most likely has more than just a short-term impact like that of a self-fulfilling prophesy; it is likely that over the long term some people begin to believe that they are sensitive and develop symptoms.”
The success story of Lloyd Chen, 17, is the stuff that dreams are made of.
Raised in poverty by a single mom who emigrated from South Korea to the U.S., the young man from Elk Grove, California, recently received nearly $3 million in full scholarships, earning one at every top university he applied to.
He’s chosen to attend Harvard University, which he said was his “dream,” starting this fall.
Donations have poured in from around the world to help the three women found a month ago, held captive for a decade in a Cleveland house.
The Cleveland Courage Fund, a tax-free trust, was set up to collect the donations and, so far, $825,000 has come from across the country and overseas.
Cleveland area businesses and community groups are donating and holding fundraisers — from youth soccer teams to the Corned Beef Company, from pro football players to local news outlets.
The women have started using the money and lawyers for all three women say they are happy, safe and healing, according to the TODAY show.
(READ the story in the Toronto Sun)
1,500 tons of food that would have gone to waste will now go to UK charities every year thanks to an innovative plan by the British grocery chain, Asda.
Teaming up with hunger charity FareShare, Asda will divert surplus refrigerated food that arrives from suppliers, ensuring it won’t end up in the trash bin.
The number of whales migrating off Australia’s Queensland coast is predicted to hit a 50-year high this season, said the species conservation manager for the reef.
Solar engineers have developed an innovative method to dramatically improve the electrical efficiency of solar panels while also reducing the cost.
The team at University of New South Wales has discovered a mechanism to control the deficiencies in any lower grade silicon, which is by far the most expensive component in solar cells.
“The process makes lower-quality silicon outperform solar cells made from better-quality materials,” says Professor Stuart Wenham from the School of Photovoltaics and Renewable Energy Engineering at UNSW, the school which still holds the world-record for silicon cell efficiency at 25%.
While making a speech in front of the Israeli parliament, the education minister burst into a laughing fit that went viral on Tuesday on Israeli websites.
Hearing the opening sentence for the first time, Shai Piron, who is also a rabbi, could not get past the words dealing with a proposed law against smuggling cell phones into Israel’s prisons: “Mr. Chairman, distinguished Parliament, the aim of this legislation is to deal with a serious phenomenon – the penetration of prohibited objects into prisons.”
The giggling began to spread in the chamber, with other members wiping their eyes and grinning.
Connecticut is set to become the first state to require labeling of foods that contain genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.
With a bill requiring the labeling of genetically engineered foods, Connecticut’s legislative leaders Saturday acknowledged a movement that has muscled its way from the scientific fringe to political mainstream.
In many child drownings, adults are nearby but have no idea the victim is dying. There is very little splashing, no waving, and no yelling or calls for help of any kind. Such reactions are only seen on TV.
To get an idea of just how quiet and undramatic from the surface drowning can be, consider this: It is the No. 2 cause of accidental death in children, ages 15 and under (just behind vehicle accidents)—of the approximately 750 children who will drown next year, about 375 of them will do so within 25 yards of a parent or other adult. In some of those drownings, the adult will actually watch the child do it, having no idea it is happening.
For the third year in a row Australia has been named the happiest place to live among developed nations, according to the latest ranking issued by the Organization for Economic Cooperation. The US placed 6th, after Sweden (2nd), Canada (3rd), Norway (4th) and Switzerland.
The first step in overcoming disease might be believing in the cure. But how can such a positive mindset be nurtured in scared children and families who are facing chemotherapy treatment?
Big applause to global advertising giant JWT for enlisting the world’s top super heroes to help kids believe in the power of healing medicine.
JWT paired two of its clients, a Brazilian cancer center with Warner Bros., who enlisted their Justice League comic book illustrators to create superhero stories that transform chemotherapy into a “Superformula.”
An interfaith group in Virginia has shown what a grassroots group can do when working together for positive change — in this case, helping some of the 20,000 families who lost homes in the 2008 foreclosure crisis.
VOICE (Virginians Organized For Interfaith Community Engagement) managed to get pledges of $30 million from Bank of America, General Electric and the Virginia Housing Development Authority to help such families in Manassas and Prince William County.
Andrew Pawelczyk barely missed a beat when his cymbals broke during the Star Spangled Banner in the middle of a public assembly. Now, online viewers and the news media are hailing his patriotic response as the YouTube video goes viral.
By the time the bombs should have been “bursting in air”, Andrew’s cymbal was already on the ground, the handle left in his hand. He looked down in amazement, slowly placed the other cymbal on the ground and stood up, slowly, and turned toward the flag and solemnly saluted.
There won’t be a dry eye in your house after watching the Hungarian shadow theatre company “Attraction” perform on Britain’s Got Talent. Stunning dance dramatics feature only the shadows of their bodies.
(WATCH the video below)
Even with the popularity of digital media, people are still captivated by flipping through words and pictures in a tangible, physical book — especially when it’s personalized. School yearbooks, for instance, may never go out of style.
Enter Likebooks for the digital age. Apple for years has been offering a publishing service for making books and cards from user’s iPhoto libraries with captions. Now, Facebook users have the option of placing their social network activity into a book. The Likebook service allows users to create personalized, physical books based on status updates, pictures, and the comments from friends.
The nation’s largest retailer announced Monday that it will be delivering produce from farms to stores faster by buying fruits and vegetables directly from growers.
The plan is to source about 80 percent of fresh produce directly, explained Jack Sinclair, executive vice president of the food business in the U.S. for Wal-Mart.
