Today's News -> Tomorrow's Future
Archive for February, 2010
RBS to pay bonus on lower-than-estimated losses
Feb 25th
Royal Bank of Scotland Group, which is 84 per cent owned by the government, said its net loss narrowed and will pay investment bankers £2.93bn in salaries, bonuses and benefits, of which £1.6 billion is for bonuses.
The losses narrowed to 3.6 billion pounds ($5.5 billion) for 2009 from 24.3 billion pounds a year earlier, CEO Stephen Hester told reporters and added that the bank will return to profitability only in 2011. Writedowns increased to a whopping 13.9 billion pounds, but “appear likely to have peaked,” the Edinburg based lender said. The stock reacted positively to news and jumped 8.6 per cent as the announcement.
CEO Stephen Hester will forgo his own bonus of up to £1.6 million over public anger over such payments. The move echoes move by Bob Diamond and John Varley, senior executive at Barclays, despite Barclay’s not taking any direct government aid.
RBS, which needed 45.5 billion pounds in taxpayer-funded support, recent sold its stake in RBS Sempra commodities to JP Morgan for $1.7 billion.
BSNLs broadband offers Browsing Speeds of up to 24 Mbps
Feb 24th
BSNLs broadband is now being made available with Digital Subscriber Loop (VDSL) Technology which shall prevent us from the slow Internet connection that has been the cause of great issue for most of the users as it greatly affects productivity and fast access to websites loaded with video and other media content.
A new plan that offers broadband speeds of up to 24Mbps has been launched by the state-owned telecom operator for which the subscribers will have to shell out Rs. 4,999 a month for speeds up to 16 Mbps and Rs 9,999 a month for speeds of up to 24 Mbps. This new high-speed broadband now comes with Digital Subscriber Loop (VDSL) Technology. This shall greatly contribute to BSNL’s success story and shall bring within its ambit lot many new customers and shall enhance the confidence of existing customers.
But there are some bad things along with it as well like the speed of 24 Mbps broadband can be made available only to customers who are located at a distance of up to 500 metres from the BSNL exchange and the speed of 16 Mbps broadband can be made available only to those residing up to about 1 km away from the BSNL exchange.
Pentax rolling X90 ultra-zoom camera
Feb 19th
Pentax is planning to roll out the Pentax X90 ultra-zoom camera, which is the latest upgrade of its previous variant X70, the first ultra-zoom camera of the group in the digital market.
The all new X90 is equipped with 12 megapixels 1/2.33 in CCD sensor with image stabilizer in it; it has a CCD look alike feel and gels best in the older X70. The sensitivity of the new model ranges from 80 to 6,400. Pentax has worked a lot on its sensitivity with an improvement after the X70. However noise, is persistent in the latest model.
The key attributes of the digital box includes 26x optical zoom lens which have a focal range of 26-676mm at f/2.8-5.0, equipped in a lightweight and compact body.
The added feature which makes the camera go gaga is the optical viewfinder embedded in it. It could be well adjusted so that the user can adjust the viewfinder’s focus matching the eyesight.
The X90 super zoom includes all the manual controls, with shutter, in addition to the pre programmed auto exposure mode.
With many features the digital box imbibes automatic exposure, allowing the user to automatically trigger the shutter while taking the snap.
Earlier version, X70 has battery issue with it but as of now the X90 has approximately 50 per cent longer battery life span than its predecessor.
As of now there is no such confirmation from the group upon the X90′s availability, or the expected sales churn out of the new leap.
11 new genetic variations linked to type 2 diabetes
Feb 13th
Scientists from Michigan Technological University have identified 11 new genetic variants linked to Type 2 diabetes. With the help of Ensemble Learning Approach (ELA) software, the researchers have isolated 11 variations within genes—called single nucleotide polymorphisms, SNPs or snips, associated with type 2 diabetes. “With chronic, complex diseases like Parkinson”s, diabetes and ALS [Lou Gehrig''s disease], multiple genes are involved,” said Qiuying Sha, an assistant professor of mathematical sciences.
“You need a powerful test,” Sha added. To test their model, the researchers analyzed over 1,000 people in the United Kingdom, half with type 2 diabetes and half without. They identified 11 SNPs that, singly or in pairs, are linked to the disease with a high degree of probability. ELA is used to compare the genetic makeup of unrelated individuals to sort out disease-related genes.
The team has also developed another approach, which uses a two-stage association test that incorporates founders” phenotypes, called TTFP, that can examine the genomes of family members going back generations.
Treating vitamin D deficiency cuts heart disease risk
Feb 4th
Treating vitamin D deficiency with supplements may help to prevent or reduce a person”s risk for cardiovascular disease and a host of other chronic conditions, say researchers.
According to two new studies at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in Murray, Utah, preventing and treating heart disease in some patients could be as simple as supplementing their diet with extra vitamin D.
The finding has been presented at the American College of Cardiology 59th annual scientific session in Atlanta.
“Vitamin D replacement therapy has long been associated with reducing the risk of fractures and diseases of the bone,” says Dr. J. Brent Muhlestein, MD, director of cardiovascular research at the Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute. “But our findings show that vitamin D could have far greater implications in the treatment and reduction of cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions than we previously thought.”
For the first study, researchers followed two groups of patients for an average of one year each. In the first study group, over 9,400 patients, mostly female, reported low initial vitamin D levels, and had at least one follow up exam during that time period. Researchers found that 47 percent of the patients who increased their levels of vitamin D between the two visits showed a reduced risk for cardiovascular disease.