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Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/1/hi/programmes/click_online/9526787.stm
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Friday, July 1, 2011
Russia plans Arctic army brigades
Warmer temperatures are making access to the Arctic easier Russia's defence minister has said he plans to create two specialist army brigades to be based in the Arctic.
The announcement comes days after Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Russia would strongly defend its interests in the region.
The brigades could be based in Murmansk, Arkhangelsk or other areas, Russian news agencies reported.
Anatoly Serdyukov said Russia had studied the specialist Arctic troops in Finland, Norway and Sweden.
The BBC's Daniel Sandford, in Moscow, said Russia's plans to increase the number of troops stationed in the Arctic still seem to be at an early stage though earlier announcements had mentioned only one brigade.
"The General Staff is currently working on plans to create two such units," Mr Serdyukov was quoted as telling media by state news agency Itar-Tass.
He said his ministry was still in the process of working out specifics, such as troops numbers, weapons and bases, but a brigade includes a few thousand soldiers.
Just this week, Mr Putin said that Russia would "expand its presence in the Arctic" and "strongly and persistently" defend its interests.
At the same time he promised to look after the region's vulnerable ecology.
It is believed that there are substantial unexploited reserves of gas and oil under the Arctic Ocean.
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-europe-13997324
Sleep is key to athletic prowess
The true value of sleep is often overlooked, researchers say The value of sleep has been reinforced by yet another scientific study.
Research published in the journal Sleep suggests that sleeping longer can markedly improve physical performance.
When Stanford University's male basketball team was asked to sleep for 10 hours a night for around six weeks, their shooting accuracy improved by 9%.
The study at the US university found that getting enough sleep and rest was as important as training and diet for elite athletes.
Cheri Mah, researcher at the Stanford Sleep Disorders Clinic and Research Laboratory, who worked with the basketball players, said that sleep was often overlooked.
"Intuitively many players and coaches know that rest and sleep are important, but it is often the first to be sacrificed," she said.
The researchers asked the players to maintain their normal night-time schedule (sleeping for six to nine hours) for two-to-four weeks and then aim to sleep 10 hours each night for the next five-to-seven weeks.
Cheri Mah Stanford University“Many athletes testified that a focus on sleep was beneficial to their training and performance.”
During the study period, players stopped drinking coffee and alcohol. They were also asked to take daytime naps when travel prevented them from getting 10 hours of night-time sleep.
The study found that the players ran faster timed sprints (16.2 seconds at the start of the study compared with 15.5 seconds at the end), their shooting accuracy improved by 9% and their fatigue levels decreased.
The athletes also reported improved performance during competitive basketball games.
The findings suggest that it is important for sleep to be prioritised over a long period of time, not just the night before match-day, Mah says.
She called optimal sleep an "unrecognised, but likely critical factor in reaching peak performance".
She said the findings may be applicable to recreational athletes as well as those performing at school or at a higher level.
Before the study began, Mah and colleagues also discovered that many of the athletes felt sleepy during the day.
This indicated that they were carrying sleep debt accumulated from chronic sleep loss, she said.
"The athletes were unaware that it could be negatively impacting their performance.
"But as the season wore on and they reduced their sleep debt, many athletes testified that a focus on sleep was beneficial to their training and performance."
Derk-Jan Dijk, professor of sleep and physiology at the University of Surrey, said we should look at sleep in the same way as exercise.
"We should look at sleep as an active process. Getting enough sleep is a positive thing which will help you perform in all aspects of life.
"It may be that extra sleep leads to more effective training routines and helps us learn patterns better. Practice makes perfect - and that happens more quickly if you get enough sleep."
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/health-13974130
Adobe lures unhappy Final Cut Pro X users with half-price video editing tools
To say the latest version of Final Cut Pro wasn't well received, would be a major understatement. Well, Adobe hasn't wasted any time taking advantage of consumer discontent, and is now offering dissatisfied users of Apple's video editing software a 50 percent discount to make the switch to its alternatives, Adobe Premiere Pro CS5.5 and CS5.5 Production Premium. If you're not feeling the latest iteration (or any version) of Final Cut Pro or Avid's Media Composer, the offer stands through September 30th. And here we thought Apple and Adobe had buried the hatchet. Full PR after the break.Continue reading Adobe lures unhappy Final Cut Pro X users with half-price video editing tools
Adobe lures unhappy Final Cut Pro X users with half-price video editing tools originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Jul 2011 16:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Microsoft shuts down utility monitoring service, proves you can't go Hohm again
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Microsoft shuts down utility monitoring service, proves you can't go Hohm again originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Jun 2011 17:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |Microsoft Hohm | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/30/microsoft-shuts-down-utility-monitoring-service-proves-you-can/
VIDEO: Morocco to vote on king's reforms
Morocco prepares to head to the polls to vote on a series of reforms and constitutional amendments proposed by King Mohammed. 
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/world-africa-13986174
7 days quiz
7 days quiz
It's the Magazine's 7 days, 7 questions quiz - an opportunity to prove to yourself and others that you are a news oracle. Failing that, you can always claim to have had better things to do during the past week than swot up on current affairs.
1.) Multiple Choice Question
Police in Newquay, Cornwall, say they will be confiscating certain items this summer in a crackdown on anti-social behaviour. Which of these is not on their list?
Sexually explicit inflatablesClothes with offensive slogansNovelty handcuffsSex toys2.) Multiple Choice Question
"I hadn't planned on doing it... it was just, yeah, sort of off the cuff." Said who?
A Murray fan who queued for 75 hours for a ticketAndy Murray bowing to the Royal BoxPrince William, joining a Mexican wave3.) Multiple Choice Question
A handbag belonging to the former British Prime Minister Lady Thatcher has fetched £25,000 ($40,000) at a charity auction in London. Who bought it?
A man said to be a fanThe Ronald Reagan museumA Russian oligarch4.) Multiple Choice Question
After a mini-heatwave, thunderstorms struck the South East of England on Tuesday. Which of these was not struck by a bolt out of the blue?
Gatwick Airport control towerSouthern Railway train servicesTelevision coverage of Wimbledon5.) Multiple Choice Question
Californian firemen created a video-cutie when they filmed the rescue of a four-week-old kitten from a metal pipe. But what did they name the animal?
PiperSqueezyMetallica6.) Multiple Choice Question
And sticking to the theme of animal names, Blue Peter has made its final broadcast from London ahead of its move to Salford. Which of the show's pets featured in a pop song?
Jason the Siamese
George the tortoise
Shep the Border Collie
7.) Multiple Choice Question
Which age group did figures reveal this week is driving most of Facebook's growth in the UK?
Under 18s30 to 40-year-oldsOver-50sAnswers
It's novelty handcuffs. The crackdown is because residents are worried that the behaviour of drunken revellers in Newquay is forcing families away from the town centre. It was Andy Murray. The player said he had only been told by a reporter that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were attending when he came off the practice courts. But he wasn't entirely convinced. It's the man believed to be a fan. The black glossy leather bag was owned by Lady Thatcher for more than 30 years and was on her arm during Cold War-era negotiations with the former American president, Ronald Reagan, and the then leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev. Air passengers at the West Sussex airport faced delays, as did passengers on several rail lines, including the Southern London to Brighton route. The roof over Wimbledon's centre court did spring a leak but there was no lightning. Piper was freed with the help of a mechanical cutter and has been adopted by a local television station employee. Although the firefighters have visiting rights. John Noakes' catchphrase "get down Shep" was incorporated into a pop song of the same name by The Barron Knights in 1978, reaching number 44 in the charts. It's the over-50s. According to research by Nielsen, in the last year the number of over-50s using the site has increased by 84%.Your Score
0 - 3 : Ignore
4 - 6 : Like
7 - 7 : Friend
For past quizzes including our weekly news quiz, 7 days 7 questions, expand the grey drop-down below - also available on the Magazine page (and scroll down).
This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/magazine-13977583
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