by rakesh | Sep 2, 2006 | World News
Motions are also being tabled in the UK Parliament, the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Assembly, and it is planned for other countries to follow suit.
This is believed to be the first time that a global animal protection campaign has been initiated in the US and European Parliaments on the same day, and signals an international drive to end non-human primate experiments.
The ADI campaign has the backing of Twiggy, Alexei Sayle, Jenny Seagrove, Carol Royle, and Uri Geller who this week have appeared online urging people to back a primate test ban. The call is also backed by over 150 animal protection groups around the world indicating how momentum is gathering on this especially sensitive area of animal research.
International Primate Day will be marked with activity in Europe and the USA, with a new report on non-human primate experiments being delivered to Tony Blair at 10.30am on Friday, 1 September. The new ADI report will highlight not only the similarities between humans and other primates, but the crucial differences that are so important in biomedical research, as well as the non-animal techniques that could be used instead.
Jan Creamer, Chief Executive of ADI: “Earlier this year, people in the UK were horrified by the terrible side effects suffered by human volunteers, caused by the test drug TGN1412. The drug had been given to monkeys in doses 500 times stronger without such side effects.”
The report is accompanied by a new video and photographs taken this summer inside Europe’s largest laboratory monkey supply facility. The facility in Camarles, Spain currently holds several hundred macaque monkeys from Mauritius but has a capacity for around 3,000. Europe currently uses a total of approximately 7,500 macaques a year, so ADI fear the centre could fuel an explosion in EU monkey experiments.
It’s time for change
The EU is currently considering plans to overhaul animal experimentation rules under EC Directive 86/609, including a possible ban on experiments on chimpanzees and a review of the future of experiments on monkeys in the EU. If the EU takes a stand as is hoped, then it would be logical for the US to do the same.
A Written Declaration is being sponsored in the European Parliament by UK MEPs David Martin, Vice-President of the European Parliament (Labour–Party of European Socialists); Robert Evans (Lab–PES); Sajjad Karim (Liberal Democrats–Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe); together with Portuguese MEP Paulo Casaca (PES), President of the Inter Group on Animal welfare and Swedish MEP Carl Schlyter (Green Party). The declaration supports International Primate Day and urges:
“… the Commission to propose an end to all non-human primate experiments in the revision process of Directive 86/609 EC on the use of animals in scientific procedures, specifically: to prohibit chimpanzee experiments and the use of wild-caught primates in the EU and phase out all non-human primate experiments in the EU over the next 6 years.”
Jan Creamer: “There is a genuine opportunity to end the suffering of primates in laboratories. The EU has recognised this and MEPs have before them the chance to take huge step forward. These animals are our closest relatives; almost all of the primate species share more than 90% of their genetic make up with us, with chimpanzees and humans differing by as little as 2% of DNA. The similarities in behaviour, emotions, and intellectual performance between ourselves and our fellow primates are striking. It is time for the European Union to take action to protect the primate nations.”
The motion before the US House of Representatives is being tabled by Nancy Pelosi (Democrat), the Majority Leader of the House of Representatives.
The motion before the Scottish parliament is being tabled by Chris Ballance (Green Party).
An Early Day Motion before the UK Parliament has been tabled by Colin Challen MP (Lab), and has the backing of fourteen MPs – Bob Russell, David Drew, Andrew Dismore, Derek Wyatt, Eric Illsley, Kelvin Hopkins, Greg Knight, Jeremy Corbyn, Ann Cryer, Andrew George, David Taylor, Rudi Vis, Betty Williams, Linda Riordan.
ADI’s London office will be rallying supporters in the UK to call on their MEPs to sign the declaration and ADI San Francisco will be doing the same in the US.
by rakesh | Sep 1, 2006 | India News
Sept. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ —
Cancer patients in the Indian state of Gujarat can now receive state-of-the-art image-guided radiotherapy (IGRT) treatments using equipment from Varian Medical Systems (NYSE: VAR), with the opening of a new radiation oncology center at Apollo Hospital, Ahmedabad. On Thursday, August 24, clinicians delivered the first IGRT treatment at the center to a prostate cancer
patient in his 70s.
The new facility was established through an alliance between the Comprehensive Blood and Cancer Center (CBCC) of Bakersfield, California,
USA, and Apollo Hospital Groups, one of the largest healthcare groups in South and South East Asia.
The CBCC facility at Apollo Hospital is the first treatment center in South Asia to offer IGRT using a treatment system that combines imaging and treatment technologies on a single machine. Radiation is delivered using Varian’s Clinac(R) iX linear accelerator equipped with an On-Board Imager(TM) device for imaging and tumor tracking.
“This is a great moment for cancer care in India,” said Gitesh Patel, CBCC’s vice president for business development. “We are offering Indian
cancer patients the same standards of care that we offer to our patients in the U.S. That meant outfitting the Indian center with Varian’s cutting edge
technology for efficient delivery of accurate and precise image-guided radiation therapy treatments,” said Ravi Patel, MD, founder of CBCC.
According to Vivek Bansal, MD, radiation oncologist at Apollo Hospital Ahmedabad, the first patient is continuing treatment with daily
radiotherapy sessions administered five days per week over a period of seven weeks. The treatment team uses the On-Board Imager prior to each
treatment to precisely locate a set of gold markers that have been implanted into the patient’s prostate gland in order to accurately account for any changes in tumor position from day to day.
“The prostate moves around constantly due to normal physiological processes,” Bansal said. “With the On-Board Imager, we can detect very small displacements and make appropriate corrections. We use it in radiographic mode to detect the gold marker seeds and reposition the
patient, and then we generate a three-dimensional cone-beam CT image to verify the accuracy of our positioning corrections.”
The treatment system also incorporates Varian’s respiratory gating technology for synchronizing treatment with the patient’s normal breathing pattern. This will enable Bansal to treat lung and other tumors that move
as the patient breathes. In addition, the center has installed Varian’s technology for delivering image-guided brachytherapy — a way of treating
cancer from inside by precisely placing tiny radiation sources in or near a targeted tumor.
“Working together with Apollo Hospitals, we are bringing an array of cancer treatment technologies, resources, and clinical capabilities to the people of Gujarat,” said Gitesh Patel, adding that clinicians at the new
radiation oncology facility were recruited locally. In addition to their medical training, he said, they have attended educational programs
sponsored by Varian Medical Systems at the company’s training facility in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The World Health Organization estimates that in India overall, there are over 800,000 new cases of cancer and nearly 600,000 cancer-related
deaths documented each year. “The Varian technology facilitates fast, accurate treatment,” Gitesh Patel said. “Despite being one of the most industrialized states in India, Gujarat is afflicted with one of the most
alarming cancer incidence rates per 100,000 people. We’re going to help a lot of them.”
by rakesh | Sep 1, 2006 | Business
ATI Technologies Inc. (TSX: ATY)(NASDAQ: ATYT) today announced Xilleon® 260, the first System-on-a-Chip that supports Full HD for worldwide DTV (digital television) standards including Europe, Japan, Korea and North America. Xilleon 260 is designed to help consumer electronics manufacturers meet and surpass the high quality video and audio expectations of home theater enthusiasts. ATI is showcasing DTV solutions at IFA from September 1 to 6, 2006 in Berlin, Germany.
Xilleon 260 follows the outstanding success of Xilleon® 240 currently found in TV solutions from leading consumer electronics manufacturers. Xilleon 260 includes an exceptionally powerful video pipeline for SD and HD content. Advanced features include HD deinterlacing, 3D comb filter, dynamic contrast, noise reduction, sharpness, and color control to deliver top quality end-to-end performance. Xilleon 260 also offers a full audio subsystem for home theater applications.
“Xilleon 260 addresses the needs of worldwide TV manufacturers for mainstream and high end applications,” said Dave Di Orio, Vice President & General Manager, DTV Group, ATI Technologies Inc. “Xilleon 260 incorporates all the key technologies in a single chip solution that help to reduce the overall TV design cost compared to traditional multi-chip solutions. We’re confident that Xilleon 260 reaffirms ATI’s technology leadership position in the DTV market.”
Xilleon 260 is currently sampling to customers.
About ATI Technologies
ATI Technologies Inc. is a world leader in the design and manufacture of innovative 3D graphics, PC platform technologies and digital media silicon solutions. An industry pioneer since 1985, ATI is the world’s foremost graphics processor unit (GPU) provider and is dedicated to deliver leading-edge performance solutions for the full range of PC and Mac desktop and notebook platforms, workstation, set-top and digital television, game console and handheld device markets. With fiscal 2005 revenues of US $2.22 billion, ATI has more than 3,400 employees in the Americas, Europe and Asia. ATI common shares trade on NASDAQ (ATYT) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (ATY).
by rakesh | Sep 1, 2006 | World News
A grant was made by TPRF to Yayasan Dian Desa (YDD), a disaster-relief organization in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, to rebuild damaged water wells and restore the supply of much-needed water to the people living in this area most affected by the earthquakes. Many water wells were blocked as debris from collapsed buildings obstructed the flow of water. YDD is undertaking the restoration and reconstruction of 100 wells with its team of volunteer engineers working hand-in-hand with earthquake survivors. This partnering approach enables the survivors to become part of restoring their quality of life and to gain a sense of ownership, pride, and responsibility for the work.
A grant had been given earlier to the Indonesian Development of Education and Permaculture (IDEP) Foundation to feed 900 people for three weeks as they began to recover from the earthquakes and resulting tsunami. Dr. Michael Ricos, coordinator of IDEP’s Disaster Management Department, reported: “An entire mountain village came out to see us, and people’s faces soon lit up at the sight of the food aid we had brought. Several people were moved to tears by the fact that someone has remembered them, and my hands were firmly grasped by an elderly lady with tears in her eyes and a smile that said it all.”
Immediately following the first earthquake on May 27, 2006, TPRF had made a generous contribution to the United Nations World Food Programme for food aid to tsunami victims. WFP was one of the first relief organizations on the ground bringing food aid to people in need.
The Prem Rawat Foundation provides clean water and food to people worldwide who are most in need. Prem Rawat has spent the last four decades traveling around the world with the message that each person can find fulfillment by discovering “a peace that is already within, waiting to be discovered.”
by rakesh | Sep 1, 2006 | World News
The World’s Most Powerful Women Elizabeth MacDonald and Chana R. Schoenberger 08.31.06, 6:00 PM ET The Special Report published in Forbes Magazine tells where women stands in the World. It was amazing to see some of great personalities from India in the list....
by rakesh | Aug 31, 2006 | India News, National
The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh inaugurating an exhibition ‘Where Women Lead’ at the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of Lady Shri Ram College, in New Delhi on August 31, 2006. (PIB)
by rakesh | Aug 30, 2006 | Business
Inaugurating the National Workshop on Promotion of Co-generation/Captive Power Plants in Pulp and Paper Mills, organized by his Ministry here today, Shri Muttemwar said that the waste generated by rapid industrialization can be utilized for generating power through waste-to-energy conversion technologies. This can address the challenge of waste disposal and Green House Gas (GHG) emission besides making the industry self-dependent for power. Shri Muttemwar explained the imperative to encourage greater use of renewable energy and to reduce dependence on fossil fuels in the backdrop of crude oil prices crossing $75/barrel and coal prices doubling in international market in recent years.
The Minister emphasized the importance of such projects in the paper and pulp sector, which is one of the energy intensive and highly polluting sector. He underlined the fact that compared to average fuel consumption per unit output by various industries in India, this sector consumes twice the amount of fuels. He added that paper industry is eminently suited for power co-generation as 75-85% of energy is required for process heat and 15-25% as electrical power. Further, large quantity of wastewater generated in pulp and paper industry can be used for generating biogas through biomethanation of the effluents, which in turn can be utilized for production of thermal energy electricity.
Shri Muttemwar also informed that his Ministry is implementing various programmes/schemes for installation of co-generation projects based on biomass and energy recovery from industrial waste. Financial assistance is extended to encourage setting up of such projects, which in addition to providing energy & helping in creative disposal of waste, also helps to cut down transmission and distribution losses.
On this occasion, Shri Muttemwar released the National Master Plan (NMP) for Development of Waste-to-Energy prepared by the Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources under the UNDP/GEF assisted project on High Rate Biomethanation Processes. He said that the NMP provides a framework for waste-to-energy programme for the country by covering all the waste streams from urban and industrial sector. The primary objective of NMP is to catalyze additional decentralized power generation capacity through projects for energy recovery from urban and industrial wastes in a cost-effective manner by deployment of technologies that are suitable to the Indian conditions. The NMP is expected to serve as a Road Map for planning and implementation of projects in the urban and industrial sectors, in a phased manner over the next decade.
The Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources has organized the one-day workshop in association with Cogeneration Association of India and Indian Agro & Recycled Paper Mills Association to discuss various issues including Policy & Financing, Technology Configurations & Case Studies and Action Plan for promotion of Cogen/Captive Power Plants at Pulp & Paper Mills. The Workshop was attended by representatives of industry from all over the country along with State Nodal Agencies.
by rakesh | Aug 30, 2006 | Business
Addressing the company’s directors here, he said SAIL’s growth plan needs to be completed within three years instead of five as scheduled earlier. He called upon them to take all steps to make the organization strong enough not only to withstand all impediments but develop into a leading international enterprise as well. Shri Paswan asked the SAIL management to opt only for the best proven technology and never compromise while implementing the modernization and expansion plans. He directed them to speed up the expansion of its distribution network covering each district in the country to make quality steel available to the consumers.
The SAIL Board accorded approval for three new projects at an estimated cost of Rs. 350 crore. The projects cleared include the re-building of the Coke Oven Battery (COB) No.6 at the Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) at a cost of Rs. 176 crore. This project will help the BSP meet its coke requirement for enhanced hot metal capacity envisaged in its modernization and expansion plan on a sustained basis. It would be the 6th COB of SAIL to be taken up for revamping and retrofitting with the state-of-the-art pollution control measures under this growth plan.
Another project approved at the SAIL Board Meeting was installation of a computerized project system at the Steel Melting Shop (SMS)-II of the Bokaro Steel Plant at a cost of Rs. 31 crore. The on-line process system is the latest of its kind and will be integrated with the existing system for improvement in the quality of steel produced by SMS-II and for upgrading its efficiency.
As on date, projects involving a total investment of around Rs. 17,300 crore are under various stages of implementation by SAIL. Among the major projects is the Rs. 1,553 crore expansion plan for the Salem Steel Plant.
by rakesh | Aug 30, 2006 | Rajasthan
The Relief Minister, Dr. Kirori Lal Meena informed this at a press briefing here on Wednesday. He said that Rs. 1.34 crores had been demanded for ex-gratia payment to families of deceased persons, Rs.124.27 crores for repair and restoration assistance for damaged houses, Rs.333.99 crores for immediate restoration of roads, Rs. 53.30 crores for restoration of drinking water supply, Rs.37.11 crores for restoration of water resources, Rs.28.77 crores for restoration of damaged tanks of PRIs, Rs. 520.65 crores for input subsidy to affected farmers, Rs.106.56 crores for medical and health care and Rs.212.24 crores for veterinary health care for livestock & replacement subsidy of dead animals.
Dr. Meena informed that Rs. 74.65 crores had been asked for restoration of power supply network, Rs.400 crores for miscellaneous things including damage to the mining and relocation of submerged villages, Rs.1230.08 crores for wage employment to affected families, Rs.10 crores for air dropping of essential services and hiring helicopters, Rs. 2 crores for evacuation of people affected, Rs. 10 crores for temporary accommodation, food and clothing and Rs. 50 crores for draining of flood water in affected areas.
The Relief Minister said that Rs. five crores had been demanded as cost for search and rescue and Rs. one crore as cost of clearance of debris.
The Secretary Relief Shri R.K. Meena informed that the State Government had spent Rs. 536.42 crores on relief operations so far. He said that state had an opening balance of Rs. 51.52 crores in the calamity relief fund in the year 2004-05. He said that the state received 163.66 crores from the Centre and after including the state share of Rs.54.55 crores the total Rs.218.21 crores were with the State Government. Thus over Rs.318 crores more had been spent in relief operation so far, he added.
by rakesh | Aug 30, 2006 | World News
A team led by Eun-Su Yang of the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, analyzed 25 years of independent ozone observations at different altitudes in Earth’s stratosphere, which lies between six and 31 miles above the surface. The observations were gathered from balloons, ground-based instruments, NASA and NOAA satellites.
The stratosphere is Earth’s second lowest atmospheric layer. It contains approximately 90 percent of all atmospheric ozone. The researchers concluded the Earth’s protective ozone layer outside of the polar regions stopped thinning around 1997. Ozone in these areas declined steadily from 1979 to 1997.
The abundance of human-produced ozone-destroying gases such as chlorofluorocarbons peaked at about the same time (1993 in the lowest layer of the atmosphere, 1997 in the stratosphere). Such substances were phased out after the 1987 international Montreal Protocol was enacted.
To measure ozone at different altitudes in the stratosphere, the team combined data from balloons and independent ground-based observing networks with monthly averaged satellite data. The satellite data came from five independent NASA and NOAA instruments.
Measurements were compared with computer predictions of ozone recovery that considered actual measured variations in human-produced ozone-destroying chemicals. The calculations took into account other factors that can affect ozone levels, such as sunspot cycle behavior, seasonal changes and stratospheric wind patterns.
“These results confirm the Montreal Protocol and its amendments have succeeded in stopping the loss of ozone in the stratosphere,” Yang said. “At the current recovery rate, the atmospheric modeling community’s best estimates predict the global ozone layer could be restored to 1980 levels — the time that scientists first noticed the harmful effects human activities were having on atmospheric ozone — some time in the middle of this century.”
The researchers concluded approximately one half the observed ozone change was in the region of the stratosphere above 11 miles and the rest in the lower stratosphere from six to 11 miles. The researchers attribute the ozone improvement above 11 miles almost entirely to the Montreal Protocol.
“Scientists expected the Montreal Protocol to be working in the middle and upper stratosphere and it is,” said co-author Mike Newchurch of the University of Alabama in Huntsville. “The real surprise of our research was the degree of ozone recovery we found at lower altitudes, below the middle stratosphere. There, ozone is improving faster than we expected, and appears to be due to changes in atmospheric wind patterns, the causes of which are not yet well understood. Until the cause of the recent ozone increase in the lowermost stratosphere is better understood, making high-accuracy predictions of how the entire ozone layer will behave in the future will remain an elusive goal. Continued careful observation and modeling are required to understand how the ozone recovery process will evolve.”
“Our study is unique because it measures changes in the ozone layer at all heights in the atmosphere, then compares the data with models as well as observations from other instruments that measure variations in the total amount of ozone in the atmosphere,” said Ross Salawitch, a senior research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
Results are published in the latest Journal of Geophysical Research.
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