Wednesday 31 January 2007

California lawmaker calls for light-bulb ban

California lawmaker calls for light-bulb ban


Sacramento, Calif. — How many people does it take to change a light bulb? In California, the answer could be a majority of the Legislature.

The electricity-wasting incandescent bulb would be banned — replaced by energy efficient compact fluorescents — under a bill that Assemblyman Lloyd Levine plans to introduce.

He says the spiral light sources are so efficient that consumers should be forced to use them. The compact bulbs use one-fourth the electricity spent in an equivalent incandescent.

“Incandescent light bulbs were first developed almost 125 years ago, and since that time they have undergone no major modifications,” said Mr. Levine, a Democrat from Los Angeles, said in a news release Tuesday. “It's time to take a step forward.”

Tuesday 30 January 2007

Blood workers strike Red Cross

Blood workers strike Red Cross

Hospitals across the region reported little to no effect on their blood supplies as about 160 union workers from the Greater Alleghenies Region of the American Red Cross stayed on strike for a second day.

"At this moment, it's not an issue," said Robin Jennings, a spokeswoman for Excela Health, which operates three hospitals in Westmoreland County, along with affiliates in Fayette and Indiana counties.

The strike started Sunday at 12:01 a.m. and involves members of the blood drive collection staff represented by Communications Workers of America Local 13000.

The union represents about 160 of the 700 workers at a Red Cross chapter that serves 100 counties in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia and Maryland.

Monday 29 January 2007

Clinton lets personality show during Iowa visit

Clinton lets personality show during Iowa visitFor Iowans with no other impression of Hillary Clinton than the one etched by the national media, her weekend Iowa swing was a primer on the various traits of the Democrat now asking for support in the state's lead-off presidential caucuses.

In Davenport on Sunday, as in Des Moines on Saturday, the party's national front-runner demonstrated aspects of her personality that don't often break through the media's veneer.

Sunday 28 January 2007

Mammography Rates Inch Downward

Mammography Rates Inch DownwardSummary: The latest report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that fewer American women are getting mammograms, a screening test that can find breast cancer early, when it is easier to treat. The finding troubles experts, who warn that skipping mammograms may eventually lead to higher death rates from breast cancer.

Saturday 27 January 2007

'Progress' in BA talks

'Progress' in BA talks

Talks aimed at averting next week's strike by British Airways cabin crew have continued with signs that some progress had been made.

The airline's chief executive, Willie Walsh, led the company's negotiators in secret meetings with officials from the Transport and General Workers Union including its general secretary Tony Woodley.

The talks lasted several hours and are set to continue throughout the weekend in the search for a last-ditch deal which would halt the planned walkout by thousands of stewards and stewardesses on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Pop sponge in microwave to kill nasty germs

Pop sponge in microwave to kill nasty germs Here's some good news for every- one who worries about germs: Zapping that soggy sponge in the microwave for a couple of minutes can pretty much sterilize it.
"Microwave irradiation is a cost- effective, practical, fast, easy and safe method of disinfecting household items," according to a study published recently in the Journal of Environmental Health.

Friday 26 January 2007

Cell phone companies launch mobile Linux group

Cell phone companies launch mobile Linux group
Six of the biggest names in cellular telephony have made good on a promise from last year and announced a new foundation to push Linux standardization and adoption on mobile phones.

Hardware-makers Motorola Inc., NEC Corp., Panasonic Mobile Communications Co. Ltd. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., and carriers NTT DoCoMo Inc. and Vodafone Group Services Ltd. said last June that they planned to work together on a Linux-based open software platform for mobile phones.

Does Apple Have the Backbone to License FairPlay?

Does Apple Have the Backbone to License FairPlay?Critics say Apple's digital rights management system, FairPlay, forces anyone using iTunes to use an Apple music player for the rest of their lives. Perhaps they're on to something. If Apple thinks it makes the best digital media players in the world, why lock consumers in with a tightly guarded DRM system? Licensing FairPlay would be a tremendous show of confidence from Apple.

Wednesday 24 January 2007

Salad offers such variety, try a different one each day

Salad offers such variety, try a different one each dayThough we aren't staunch advocates of eating at your desk (even though we do it all the time), bringing lunch from home is a good way to save money and calories.

When you can't stand the thought of one more low-fat, low-calorie, low-sodium protein-with-pasta microwaveable entree, consider the salad.

You could eat salad five days a week and never get bored as long as you change the flavors. Look for interesting dressings or make your own. You decide if they should be fat-free, low-fat or fully loaded.

Think about global flavors: Asian, Latin, Southwestern or French. Adding protein to the greens will hold off hunger longer, though it is smart to have some fruit and nuts handy for later in the afternoon.



Tuesday 23 January 2007

Dogs may promote good health

Dogs may promote good healthWells, of Queen's University in Belfast, said dogs can aid in the recovery from heart attacks and give early warning of an approaching epileptic seizure.It is possible that dogs can directly promote our well-being by buffering us from stress, one of the major risk factors associated with ill-health, Wells said.

Monday 22 January 2007

Robot nurses could be on the wards in three years, say scientists

Robot nurses could be on the wards in three years, say scientists

ROBOT nurses could be bustling around hospital wards in as little as three years.

The mechanised "angels" - being developed by EU-funded scientists - will perform basic tasks such as mopping up spillages, taking messages and guiding visitors to hospital beds.


They could also be used to distribute medicines and even monitor the temperature of patients remotely with laser thermometers.

Working in teams, the intelligent robots will be able to communicate with each other and co-ordinate their duties.

Scientists from the universities of Warwick, Cardiff, Dublin and Newcastle are among the engineers and software experts taking part in the "IWARD" project. They aim to have a three-robot prototype system ready by 2010.

It is hoped the machines will ease pressure on hospitals and free staff to spend more time with patients.

By helping to keep wards cleaner, they could also cut infections by hospital superbugs such as MRSA. Each "nursebot" will consist of a mobile platform mounted with a module of sensors and equipment for different tasks.

It might be fitted with a laser thermometer which can measure body heat from a distance, or cleaning equipment to mop up spills.

While the hardware and modules can employ off-the-shelf technology, making the robots sufficiently intelligent and autonomous will require ground-breaking work.

Project leader Thomas Schlegel, from the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany, has teamed up with experts from the University of Warwick to develop the advanced software.

He told The Engineer magazine: "The idea is not only to have mobile robots but also a full system of integrated information terminals and guide lights, so the hospital is full of interaction and intelligence.

"Operating as a completely decentralised network means that the robots can co-ordinate things between themselves, such as deciding which one would be best-equipped to deal with a spillage or to transport medicine."

He said the robots could provide a valuable service guiding people around the hospital. A visitor would state the name of a patient at an information terminal and then follow a robot to the correct bedside.

If the nearest robot was not sure of a patient's location, it could seek help by communicating with others in the right area.

The robots will be fitted with sensors and cameras, allowing them to avoid collisions while travelling through wards and corridors. High-speed lanes could allow them to move from place to place quickly.

The robots would also employ face and voice recognition technology to communicate with patients and spot unauthorised visitors.

"But the human-robot interaction will be tricky, as the robots will have to be able to deal with people with different injuries and disabilities as well as the elderly and seriously ill patients," said Mr Schlegel.

Sunday 21 January 2007

Bill would require girls to be immunized against HPV

Bill would require girls to be immunized against HPV

SACRAMENTO - When authorities approved a vaccine last summer that prevents most cervical cancers, experts cheered it as a breakthrough in fighting a disease that kills 3,700 American women each year.

Now, a Bay Area lawmaker wants to make sure California girls get that vaccine, which guards against certain strains of human papilloma virus, known as HPV, that can cause cervical cancer. Assemblywoman Sally Lieber has introduced legislation that would require girls to be immunized against HPV before they enter the sixth grade.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that parents get the vaccine for their daughters, ideally when they're aged 11 and 12. But the proposal to mandate vaccination in California, AB 16, is causing quite a stir because HPV is transmitted only through sexual contact.

Mark Mangin of San Jose, Calif., saw his sister die, at age 32, from a different kind of cancer, ovarian, a decade ago. So when he saw a television ad for the new vaccine Gardasil, Mangin wrote his wife a Post-it note reminder to research it.

Mangin said they may talk to their family doctor about whether their three daughters, who attend Leland High and Castillero Middle schools, should get the shots. And he's generally OK with the state mandating the vaccine.

But the subject does give him pause. How much would he want to tell his daughters about Gardasil? Would kids chatter about their shots in homeroom or at lunch?

"It's very complicated," he said. "You don't explain anything to your kid when they get a measles shot. The thing that crossed my mind is, what will the kids think? Will they think it's OK to have sex if you get this vaccine?"

At least 10 states from Maine to Texas are considering HPV bills.

Lieber, who already stirred debate with her recent proposal to ban spanking young children, knows the issue is fraught for many families. But, she said, California requires vaccinations for Hepatitis B, which is transmitted through sexual contact and intravenous drug use.

"This is the first time we have a chance to prevent a virulent form of cancer," Lieber said, adding, "What we're trying to do is prevent disease, not mandate morality."

The state allows parents to decline any vaccination for their children for medical reasons or because of personal beliefs, Lieber stressed. But some bill critics say that option is little publicized.

"This, to me, is clearly an issue between a child and a parent, especially when we know that this vaccine is for a disease that is shown to only occur through sexual activity," said Republican state Sen. George Runner. "The point is that I have certain values and issues to which I deal with my daughter on. And it seems like it sends an inconsistent message about sexual activity."

Runner, a father of two, said he is all in favor of a public information campaign about the vaccine. But he would vote against mandating it.

Human papilloma virus is the most common sexually-transmitted disease in the United States, affecting about 20 million people at any time. Each year, there are about 6.2 million new infections, according to the Atlanta-based CDC.

People with HPV rarely exhibit any symptoms. However, some strains of the virus can carry serious consequences, causing cervical cancer and genital warts. Some 10,000 women in the U.S. are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year; about 3,700 die from it.

Gardasil is effective against the strains of HPV responsible for 70 percent of cervical cancers and 90 percent of genital warts. It does not protect against other sexually-transmitted diseases, AIDS or pregnancy.

Merck's Gardasil, given in three shots over six months, costs $360. It's covered by nearly all insurers. Other pharmaceutical companies are working on their own HPV vaccines.

The state's Medi-Cal program covers the shot for girls 18 and younger. The Schwarzenegger administration has proposed $11 million in additional funding to get the vaccine to 50,000 Medi-Cal recipients aged 19 to 26.

Republican Assemblywoman Bonnie Garcia, a mother of, is passionate that women learn about the vaccine.

"One thing I've told people with a religious objection is, `Your daughter could be a virgin on her wedding day, but you don't know where her partner has been,'" said Garcia. "Once you take off your clothes and get naked, you're at risk."

But she's also reluctant to mandate it. "I don't think that will get out of" the Assembly, she said. "It's really about having parents buy into it."

By late last year, all Kaiser Permanents facilities in Northern California had received the vaccine. It's free to Kaiser patients whose doctors prescribe the vaccine.

"There isn't resistance" to it, said Dr. Ruth Shaber, Kaiser's director of women's health for Northern California. But, "we're surprised. We had expected more women to come in on their own" requesting it, because of Merck's aggressive "One Less" series of television ads.

Shaber said her own 12-year-old daughter has gotten the first Gardasil shot. And she recommends it to her patients. But, "my push would be for more public information."

It's so new, she said, that no one knows how long the vaccine is effective for. Initial studies didn't find any serious side effects from the vaccine, but there's a "remote possibility" that new side effects could emerge as the vaccine is more widely used.

Parent Mia Burnham, who has a 12-year-old son and a 13-year-old daughter at Castillero Middle School in San Jose, leans in favor of a bill.

"I would tell my daughter, `This could protect against an STD,'" she said. "'And we would want it for you because we would hate for you to get cervical cancer if we could have prevented it.'"

AB 16 will get its first hearing sometime this spring. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he hasn't seen the bill yet and doesn't have a stance on it.

---

HPV FACTS

The human papilloma virus, or HPV, is the most common sexually transmitted disease in the United States and it can lead to cervical cancer. A Bay Area lawmaker wants to require girls to get a vaccine against it before entering the sixth grade.

_Number of people affected by HPV: About 20 million in the U.S.

_New cases each year: 6.2 million

_Health effects: Usually causes no symptoms, but certain strains can lead to cervical cancer and genital warts.

_Cervical cancer data: 9,700 new U.S. cases a year. 3,700 deaths.

_New vaccine: Gardasil, which is effective against HPV strains causing 70 percent of cervical cancers and 90 percent of genital warts.

_Recommended recipients: Girls 11- to 12-years-old or before onset of sexual activity. Can be given to girls as young as 9. Also advised for 13- to 26-year-olds.

_Cost: $360 for a set of three shots over six months. Covered by vast majority of insurers.

_Side effects: No serious ones reported; some pain at injection site.

Google plots e-books coup

Google plots e-books coupGOOGLE and some of the world’s top publishers are working on plans that they hope could do for books what Apple’s iPod has done for music.

The internet search giant is working on a system that would allow readers to download entire books to their computers in a format that they could read on screen or on mobile devices such as a Blackberry.



With 380m people using Google each month, the move would give a significant boost to the development of e-books and have a big impact on the publishing industry and book retailers.

Jens Redmer, director of Google Book Search in Europe, said: “We are working on a platform that will let publishers give readers full access to a book online.”



Saturday 20 January 2007

Full text of president's radio adress

Full text of president's radio adress

Good morning. For many Americans, the new year began with a resolution to live a better and healthier life. Whatever goals you have set for yourself this year, one goal we can all share is reforming our Nation's health care system.
Americans are fortunate to have the best health care system in the world. The government has an important role to play in our system. We have an obligation to provide care for the most vulnerable members of our society -- the elderly, the disabled, and poor children and their parents. We are meeting this responsibility through Medicare, Medicaid, and the State Children's Health Insurance Program. We must strengthen these vital programs so that they are around when future generations need them.
For all other Americans, private health insurance is the best way to meet their needs. But rising health care costs are making insurance too expensive for millions of our citizens. Health care costs are growing more than two times faster than wages, and this is making it harder for working families to buy insurance on their own. Rising costs are also making it harder for small businesses to offer health coverage to their employees. Our challenge is clear: We must address these rising costs, so that more Americans can afford basic health insurance. And we need to do it without creating a new Federal entitlement program or raising taxes.
Our Nation is making progress toward this goal. We created Health Savings Accounts, which empower patients and can reduce the cost of coverage. We are working to pass Association Health Plans, so that small businesses can insure their workers at the favorable discounts that big businesses get. We must pass medical liability reform, so we can stop the junk lawsuits that drive costs through the roof and good doctors out of practice. We've taken important steps to increase transparency in health care pricing, and give patients more information about the quality of their doctors and hospitals.
One of the most promising ways to make private health insurance more affordable is by reforming the Federal tax code. Today, the tax code unfairly penalizes people who do not get health insurance through their job. It unwisely encourages workers to choose overly expensive, gold-plated plans. The result is that insurance premiums rise, and many Americans cannot afford the coverage they need.
We need to fix these problems, and one way to do so is to treat health insurance more like home ownership. The current tax code encourages home ownership by allowing you to deduct the interest on your mortgage from your taxes. We can reform the tax code, so that it provides a similar incentive for you to buy health insurance. So in my State of the Union Address next Tuesday, I will propose a tax reform designed to help make basic private health insurance more affordable -- whether you get it through your job or on your own.
As we reform the Federal tax code, we will also support the innovative measures that states are taking to address the problem of the uninsured. Governors across the Nation have put forward plans to make basic private health insurance more accessible for their citizens. When I go before Congress next week, I will announce a new effort -- led by Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt -- to help governors reduce the number of people in their states without private health insurance.
All of these changes are based on a clear principle: Health insurance should be available, it should be affordable, and it should put you and your doctor in charge of your medical decisions. I look forward to working with Congress to pass the initiatives that I lay out next week, so we can help millions more Americans enjoy better care, new choices, and healthier lives.


Unique compromise could end tiny fly's grip on SoCal town

Unique compromise could end tiny fly's grip on SoCal town

This city lives in the shadow of a 1-inch fly that zooms around like a hummingbird.

For more than a decade, the Delhi Sands flower-loving fly has been the only fly on the federal endangered species list, its best hope of survival pinned on prime breeding habitat in this city east of Los Angeles. For just as long, city officials have fought to get it off the list, arguing that restrictions on building on its habitat have cost tens of millions of dollars in economic development.

Now, however, the working-class city is offering a new proposal to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that could help relax the insect's economic clout: hassle-free development in one neighborhood in exchange for a pristine preserve nearby. The compromise could end a stalemate that has left the city with limited commercial development and the fly's best habitat marred by rusting refrigerators, off-road trails and homeless encampments.

"I'm thinking there's hope we'll finally find a good solution to a problem that has been intractable for many years," said Dan Silver, executive director of the Endangered Habitats League, an environmental group that tracks Southern California's desert ecosystem. "We'll look back and say, 'Gee, there was a lot of foresight in protecting that.'"

Apple to charge $1.99 for 802.11n update

Apple to charge $1.99 for 802.11n update

Apple has confirmed that it intends to charge customers a fee to download the software that will enable the built-in 802.11n functionality in its Wi-Fi cards which shipped in some MacBook and MacBook Pro systems. Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced that all Core 2 Duo and Intel Xeon-based Macs -- with the exception of the 17-inch 1.83GHz Core 2 Duo iMac -- already has the 802.11n chip during his keynote speech at Macworld. The fee, which Apple says amounts to $1.99, will appear on the company's website once its new AirPort Base Station begins shipping next month. Customers who purchase the new Base Station will receive the software update for free, but Apple has said it is required to charge customers for the software upgrade due to generally accepted accounting principals, according to News.com.

"The nominal distribution fee for the 802.11n software is required in order for Apple to comply with generally accepted accounting principles for revenue recognition, which generally require that we charge for significant feature enhancements, such as 802.11n, when added to previously purchased products," said Apple spokeswoman Lynn Fox.

The new wireless standard boasts a large increase in bandwidth over the previous 802.11g standard, offering a longer range while providing backward compatibility with older wireless standards. The 802.11n standard will likely see ratification later this year, but the Wi-Fi Alliance has said it will begin certifying products based on a draft of the standard.

Friday 19 January 2007

Health care players offer plan for uninsured

Health care players offer plan for uninsured


WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Many of the leading players in U.S. health care joined together as "strange bedfellows" on Thursday to propose what they called a politically practical plan to provide health insurance to more than half of the 47 million Americans who lack it.

The plan envisioned more federal funds to help more children enroll in existing public programs, new tax credits and expanding eligibility for the Medicaid insurance program. Its backers were unable to say how much this would cost the U.S. government.

Perhaps the most noteworthy aspect of the proposal -- offered as the new Democratic-controlled Congress mulls how to address the twin problems of uninsured Americans and escalating health care costs -- was who crafted it.

It was hammered out over two years by 16 groups and companies that in the past often bickered with one another, including leading drug and insurance companies, health plans, the American Medical Association, hospital groups, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and consumer advocates.

Dr. Jeremy Lazarus, a senior AMA official, called the participants "the major players in health care" and said the idea is "to cover as many people as possible as quickly as possible."

The AFL-CIO and the SEIU labor union that represents service workers pulled out before the plan was finished, as did the National Association of Manufacturers.

Participants highlighted what they saw as the urgency of the problem -- 46.6 million Americans without any health insurance in a rich country of 300 million people -- and pledged to work together to demand government action.

Thursday 18 January 2007

MySpace Developing Parental Notification

MySpace Developing Parental Notification

NEW YORK -- The popular online hangout MySpace.com has been quietly developing software designed to give parents the bare-bones of what their kids are doing on the site.

The tool, which will alert parents of the username, age and location a child lists on personal MySpace pages known as profiles, is designed to spark conversations about Internet safety.

But it is also meant to give kids enough room to maneuver lest they flee to rival social-networking sites such as Facebook or Xanga. Unlike third-party monitoring software available for sale, the free MySpace tool won't let parents see their kids' password-protected profiles or any communications they have with friends.



Microsoft Expands Vista Options

humor
Microsoft Expands Vista Options

Microsoft is increasing the ways that users can purchase Windows Vista, and upgrade to premium versions.

Upgrade Pricing, Discount Promotions

Tomorrow, the company is expected to announce pricing for a previously revealed consumer upgrade system for Vista called Windows Anytime Upgrade. Microsoft has said it will put all of the versions of Vista on one DVD in packaged form, or on a PC if the OS comes pre-installed. Users will get a product activation key that can activate whatever edition of Vista they purchase, and then can use that to install the OS.

However, if a user decides he or she wants to upgrade to a more feature-rich version of Vista than the one originally purchased--such as from Home Basic to Home Premium--Microsoft will allow a customer to pay $79 for a product activation key for that upgrade rather than requiring that customer to go out and purchase the edition at full price, which for Home Premium would be $159.

Thursday will also see Microsoft unveil a promotion through June 30 intended to inspire computer enthusiasts with more than one PC in the home to upgrade more than one computer to Vista.

Dubbed the Windows Vista Family Discount, it will allow a customer who buys the retail boxed version of Ultimate to purchase digital licenses for Home Premium for $49 each that can be installed on up to two other PCs in the home. As I've explained in the past, the suggested retail price for Windows Home Premium is $159.

Vista, Office to be Available as Downloads

Microsoft will also announce tomorrow that, for the first time, users will be able to purchase its Windows OS by downloading it over the Internet.

On Jan 30, various consumer versions of Windows Vista--such as Windows Vista Home Basic, Windows Vista Home Premium and Windows Vista Ultimate--will be available at the company's Windows Marketplace. Microsoft Office 2007 will also be available on the site, marking the first time customers can purchase the productivity suite by downloading it.

The company revamped the site in August, adding a new feature called Digital Locker, which keeps track of a customer's license key online so that software can be downloaded and securely purchased over the Internet. This feature is one of the reasons Microsoft now feels it is safe enough to distribute Windows Vista and Office over the Web.



Oracle blocks 51 security holes

Oracle blocks 51 security holes

Oracle released a quarterly patch update on Tuesday containing 51 fixes, one less than originally expected.

The January 2007 update contains security bug fixes that address vulnerabilities in a wide range of Oracle enterprise software products including flaws in Oracle Database, Application Server, Enterprise Manager, Identity Management, E-Business Suite, Developer Suite, and the PeopleSoft software packages.

More than half the patches (26 of the 51) involve Oracle's flagship database software products. Nine of these might be exploited without the benefit of knowing a user name or password, potentially making them far easier to exploit. Of these, eight involve Oracle HTTP Server. The promised, but delayed, security fix also affects Oracle's database software.

The Oracle patch batch also includes 12 new security fixes for Oracle Application Server, eight of which may be remotely exploitable without authentication, as well as seven new security fixes for the Oracle E-Business Suite. Three patches for Oracle PeopleSoft Enterprise PeopleTools, one of which may be remotely exploitable without logging on, and six patches for Oracle Enterprise Manager (five remotely exploitable) complete the unfestive 51.

Secunia reports that the impact of some of the vulnerabilities is unclear while others might be harnessed to gain access to sensitive information, run denial of service attacks, or conduct cross-site scripting and SQL injection attacks.

Oracle has been criticised in the past over the time it takes to develop security patches, and been asked to be more transparent about its security practices. In October, during its last release cycle, Oracle began rating the severity of bugs in its applications according to the Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS), an industry-wide initiative designed to standardise vulnerability rating. Oracle rates this quarter patch batch at 7.0 in a scale from zero to 10, where 10 indicates impending internet meltdown (or some such calamity).

Amichai Shulman, CTO of Israeli database and application security firm Imperva, reckons that some of the vulnerabilities are more severe than Oracle suggests. In particular, he highlighted flaws in Oracle's HTTP server that might be exploited remotely without authentication. "The SSL implementation flaw is the worst of the lot," he added.

A number of the flaws might lend themselves to SQL injections attacks. Exploits would not be difficult for a skilled hacker to craft, Shulman added. Meanwhile, applying the patches would normally involve downtime so it might be some time before enterprises are ready to roll-out fixes.

Long lead times are involved in developing database packages, and this is as true for IBM as it is for Oracle. For this reason releasing Oracle updates on a monthly instead of quarterly basis is unrealistic, according to Shulman.

He added that although Oracle is making some progress in improving its patching process it ought to to be more flexible about the possibility of releasing unscheduled fixes closer to the time when the most severe security flaws are discovered.

Wednesday 17 January 2007

Sims Line Grows with Laptop-Friendly Games

Sims Line Grows with Laptop-Friendly Games


Just when you thought The Sims franchise couldn't grow any bigger, Electronic Arts has announced a whole new line of Sims games. The Sims Stories allow you to "play through all the great moments of your Sim's life," all from the comfort of your recliner. Geared toward laptop users, the Sims Stories features the ability to start and stop quickly when you open/close your laptop's lid, as well as play in a window while still staying up on email and IM.

Sims Life Stories, coming out February 6, is the first title in the line. It features a new Story Mode, in which you can follow the lives of two different characters and their love lives through twelve chapters. For instance, in one storyline, you'll play along as the character Riley decides whether she'll ditch one boyfriend in favor of another. (This is deep stuff, people.) If that sounds a bit too Days-of-Our-Lives for you, you can also play in classic mode, which is similar to the open-ended play in the original game.

Life Stories will be followed up by two other Sims Stories titles: Pet Stories and Castaway Stories, which will strand you and your Sims on an island so you can indulge all your Lost fantasies.

Tuesday 16 January 2007

US doctors plan 1st womb transplant

US doctors plan 1st womb transplant

New York: Many women cannot bear children because they either have a malfunctioning uterus or their wombs have been damaged due to cancer and other problems.

However, doctors in New York hospital plan on the first womb transplant in the United States. They are screening women who may be fertile enough to bear children, according to The Washington Post.

The womb can be removed after a first successful conception. So there is no need to take anti-rejection drugs through out life.

Said Giuseppe Del Priore of the New York Downtown Hospital, â€Å“The desire to have a child is a tremendous driving force for many women. We think we could help many women fulfill this very basic desire.”

However, objections have been trickling in from various quarters, according to the Post.

Many transplant, fertility specialists and medical ethicists have raised questions of whether the procedure has been tested successfully on animals and whether the transplant may put the woman and the foetus at risk.

"This raises a set of very difficult medical and ethical questions," Thomas H Murray, who heads the Hastings Center, a bioethics think tank said.

He thinks, â€Å“it's very questionable” and would be â€Å“very hard to justify."

However, various experts have also opined that the plans highlight the unique status that childbearing holds in the United States.

They feel that with the availability of such options as adoption and surrogacy, women will go ahead to experience it.



HP Develops New Chip Technology

HP Develops New Chip Technology

Company researchers describe a method that will allow more transistors on a chip, leading to faster computing and lower power use.


Hewlett-Packard researchers may have figured out a way to prolong Moore's Law by making chips more powerful and less power-hungry.

Today HP Labs said it created a method of using a "crossbar switch" that more efficiently routes signals inside a common kind of chip called an FPGA (field programmable gate array). The technology could lead to the creation of chips packed with far more transistors on board, leading to faster computing times.

HP calls its new technology field programmable nanowire interconnect (FPNI). The lab hopes to make a prototype chip using the technology within a year, and HP believes it could produce chips that contain a 15-nanometer crossbar by 2010.

Keeping Moore's Law Alive

HP is one of a host of companies developing ways to keep chip innovation moving along despite looming size barriers. The battle is to keep alive Moore's Law, which states that the number of transistors on a chip will double about every 18 months. Moore's Law has been the driving force behind increasing computing speeds and the decreasing cost of electronics gear over the 40 years since it was coined by Intel cofounder Gordon Moore.

Even Moore has said his law can't go on forever because the nature of exponentials is that you push them until disaster eventually strikes. So far, the technology industry has pushed those limits to 65-nanometers for mass-produced chips. There are about 3 to 6 atoms in a nanometer, depending on the type of atom, and there are a billion nanometers in a meter. Some scientists believe the atom may be the limit.

Intel is always working on new ways to make chips smaller and more powerful. In addition, scientists from IBM last year said they created circuit patterns as tiny as 29.9 nanometers using a technique called deep-ultraviolet (DUV) optical lithography.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing has also worked on the problem, using a fish fin design to ratchet down the size of working transistors to a minute 25-nanometers. It named the transistors Omega FinFETs.

Current Technologies

FPGA chips are often used in networking devices such as those made by Cisco because they can be reprogrammed using software instead of needing to be replaced. It's an important consideration in routers, which are often in tough-to-reach places.

The most common type of chip is called an ASIC, or application specific integrated circuit. As the name implies, it is made to perform one task, such as allow a mobile phone to receive call signals. ASICs cannot be reprogrammed.

The research, by Greg Snider and Stan Williams of HP Labs, is in the January 24 issue of Nanotechnology magazine. Their paper, titled "Nano/CMOS Architectures Using Field-Programmable Nanowire Interconnect," is available for free for 30 days from publication.

Monday 15 January 2007

Tails of the unexpected not such a blast

Tails of the unexpected not such a blast

The sight of the brightest comet in Australia's skies for more than 40 years drew a mixture of amazement and disappointment from thousands of Sydneysiders who set their eyes on the western horizon at sunset last night.

Comet McNaught, named after acclaimed Australian comet discover and astronomer Rob McNaught, revealed itself shortly after 8pm above a swathe of haze hanging over the Blue Mountains.

Hundreds of people watched the cosmic phenomenon in the western sky from Observatory Hill, while many more found unobstructed views elsewhere across the city.

And if you missed it, you should have another chance to see it tonight - they are even taking bookings at Sydney Observatory (phone 9921 3485) - for about 54 minutes after the 8.09pm sunset.

Because it will be further from the sun, the contrast of the comet against a darker sky could make it appear more spectacular.

Sydney Observatory astronomer Nick Lomb said it was "certainly the brightest comet I've ever seen".

"It was impressive because it was very bright. It could be seen very early on in the twilight."

"It was brighter than the planet Venus, which is very bright for a comet."

Those with a pair of binoculars were able to appreciate the comet's shape, he said.

"It was visible to the naked eye but it was more spectacular in a pair of binoculars. You could see the head of the comet but also the tail. There was a short, stubby tail with the head of the comet."

Not since 1965, when the Ikeya-Seki comet passed by, has the world seen such a bright comet.

Dr Lomb said Comet McNaught was about 100 times brighter than the 1986 Halley's Comet, although Halley's might have appeared more spectacular because it revealed itself against a night sky rather than a twilight sky.

While Dr Lomb was impressed by it, others, such as 29-year-old Jasmine Bruce, said it didn't quite live up to expectations.

"We had a great view of the western horizon. There was a lot of cloud as the sun was setting so we watched in anticipation for quite a while," said Ms Bruce, who viewed it from Queens Park in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

"Then my friend spotted a bright light off in the distance which we got very excited about because we thought it was the comet. But then a guy sitting next to us with a pair of binoculars dashed our hopes telling us that it was an aeroplane.

"Then we could see a very faint light in the distance and we had much discussion about whether this was the comet or whether it was Venus. Then our friend with the binoculars confirmed that what we thought was Venus was in fact the comet.

"It was a little disappointing because the actual image of the sunlight reflecting off the aeroplane was actually a more exciting image than the comet."

Ms Bruce said it was not as impressive as Halley's Comet.

"My childhood memory of Halley's Comet was that it was actually brighter [than this one]. But when I borrowed some binoculars, I could see more clearly the tail of the comet and the image was a bit more spectacular than it was with the naked eye."

Human proteins produced in hens' eggs

Human proteins produced in hens' eggs

Scientists at the Roslin Institute in Scotland have laid the foundations for a new method of producing complex biomolecules: getting chickens to lay them in their eggs.

The team led by Helen Sang has genetically transformed hens to produce a mini-antibody, miR24, which is seen as a possible treatment for the skin cancer malignant melanoma. Other hens produced the antiviral compound beta 1a interferon.

Transgenic chickens developed at the Roslin Institute are chimeras containing a mix of modified and normal cells. The gene expressing the molecule of interest is combined with the gene for the main protein found in egg white, ovalbumin, together with the DNA sequence involved in regulating its expression. The sequences are incorporated in a viral vector that is inoculated into the embryo of new laid eggs.

At that stage the embryo contains about 60 000 cells and the foreign gene sequence is taken up by five per cent of them, including those of the future ovarian and testicular cells so that the protein can be expressed by future generations.

Roslin director Harry Griffin said the modified ovalbumin gene construct is stable and has been shown to be expressed in the second and third generations. Furthermore, because the protein is only expressed in the cells of the oviduct which manufacture ovalbumin, the process has no systemic effects on the health of the birds, he added.

The concentrations of the foreign proteins found in the egg white varies between the different transgenic chickens but in those producing human interferon it is a typically up to about 50ug/ml of albumin. That is rather lower than the concentration of a human protein alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT) that Roslin scientists produced in GM sheep milk some years ago. But the amount of interferon needed in treatment is much lower than the daily dose of AAT used to treat blood disorders. 'So the quantities we are producing are within the range of commercial interest,' said Griffin.

One of the many advantages of chickens over mammal species when used as bioreactors is the short generation time. So although Roslin only has small numbers of modified chickens, scale-up to a commercial sized flock would only take a few months.

Roslin's collaborators in the project are Oxford Biomedica, which developed the lentivirus vector, and Viragen, which aims to commercialise any products.

Viragen's managing director Karen Jervis said the process of purifying proteins in egg white is relatively simple and well understood, as vaccines have been made in eggs for more than 30 years. The only problem with albumin is that it is 'gloopy' and needs to be diluted before the products can be extracted by standard chromatography, she said.



Researchers develop new method for better earthquake warnings

Researchers develop new method for better earthquake warnings

Washington, Jan 14: Researchers have developed a new and better method to predict earthquakes.

The system uses a micro-tremor data (data for quakes with a magnitude of between -1 and 5) to analyse and estimate the complete stress tensor and monitor changes in the magnitude of stress and the instability of faults, making earthquake predictions more valid.

For their tests, researchers used data for micro-tremors in Iceland from 1990 to 2005 and found that the stress analysis accurately predicted impending earthquakes.

“This experience from Iceland therefore indicates that the sites of coming earthquakes can be determined years before they occur. What is crucial to whether the analysis is reliable is to what extent the small quakes are analyzed," said Ragnar Slunga, the lead scientist behind the project.

"Especially if the method is to be used to warn people immediately before a coming earthquake, a few days or a few hours before the quake, it's necessary to analyse very minor micro-tremors as well," Slunga added.

The project was co-ordinated by the Icelandic seismological network. '

Warning Issued on Satellite Maintenance

Warning Issued on Satellite Maintenance

The nation’s ability to track retreating polar ice, shifting patterns of drought, winds and rainfall and other environmental changes is being put “at great risk” by faltering efforts to replace aging satellite-borne sensors, a panel convened by the country’s leading scientific advisory group said.

By 2010, the number of operating earth-observing instruments on NASA satellites, most of which are already past their planned lifetimes, will likely drop by 40 percent, the National Research Council of the National Academies warned in a report today.

The weakening of these monitoring efforts comes even as many scientists and the Bush administration have been stressing their growing importance, both to clarify risks from global warming and natural hazards and to track the condition of forests, fisheries, water and other resources on an increasingly crowded planet.

Several prominent scientists welcomed the report, saying that while the overall tightening of the federal budget played a role in threatening earth-observing efforts, a significant contributor was also President Bush’s recent call for NASA to focus on manned space missions.

“NASA has a mission ordering that starts with the presidential goals -- first of manned flight to Mars, and second establishing a permanent base on the moon, and then third to examine Earth, which puts Earth rather far down on the totem pole,” said F. Sherwood Rowland, an atmospheric chemist at the University of California at Irvine, who shared a Nobel prize for identifying threats to the ozone layer.

In an e-mailed statement, John H. Marburger III, President Bush’s science adviser and director of the White House’s science and technology policy office, acknowledged there were many challenges to maintaining and improving earth-observing systems, but said the administration was committed to keeping them a “top science priority.”

The report, “Earth Science and Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond,” proposed spending roughly $7.5 billion on new instruments and satellite missions through 2020 that would satisfy various scientific and societal priorities while holding annual costs around what they were, as a percentage of the economy, in 2000.

“We’re trying to present a balanced, affordable program that spans all the earth sciences,” said Richard A. Anthes, the co-chairman of the committee that wrote the report and the new president of the American Meteorological Society.

The report is the latest in a string of findings from such panels pointing to dangers from recent disinvestment in long-term monitoring of a fast-changing planet.

“This is the most critical time in human history, with the population never before so big and with stresses growing on the earth,” Dr. Anthes said. “We just want to get back to the United States being a leader instead of someone you can’t count on.”

Satellite-borne instruments, using radars, lasers, and other means, have revolutionized earth and climate science, allowing researchers to accurately and efficiently track parameters like sea level, fields of winds across the oceans, tiny motions of the earth from earthquakes, the amount of rain in a cyclone and moisture in air, and the average temperature of various layers of the atmosphere.

The committee identified significant gaps in instrumentation or plans for satellites orbiting over the poles, around the equator, and positioned so that they remain stationary over spots on the rotating earth.

One of the most important aspects of such monitoring is having new satellites built and launched before old ones fail.

Without overlapping streams of data, it is hard to assemble meaningful long-term records that are sufficiently precise to reveal some new, potentially dangerous, trend amid the naturally variable conditions in oceans and the atmosphere, the report’s authors said.

The report went beyond discussing ailing hardware and said that the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy should do more to insure that society and science were benefiting fully from the reams of data flowing from orbiting instruments.

Typically, the satellites and sensors are developed and launched by the space agency and then, once they have proved useful in weather forecasting, climate research, and the like, are operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA.

That kind of handoff has caused many programs to falter, the report said.

“There’s a bias toward the new thing,” Dr. Anthes said. “NASA is a research and technology organization. Once they’ve demonstrated the technology, there’s not much interest in keeping doing it.”

Senior officials at NASA and NOAA welcomed the report and said its findings would be weighed as they sought ways to sustain earth observations in a time of tight budgets.

Sunday 14 January 2007

Australia cannot be stopped

Australia cannot be stopped

NOT even a hat-trick from New Zealand fast bowler Shane Bond could slow the relentless Australia cricket machine yesterday.

The home side faced a new rival, but it was the same result.

After months of dishing out punishment to England, Australia continued its perfect summer with a first-up thumping of the Black Caps in Hobart.

A brutal late-innings partnership of 90 runs from 70 balls between Australia's enforcers Andrew Symonds and Cameron White proved the difference between the teams at Bellerive Oval, pushing the home side to a first innings total the Kiwis then collapsed trying to haul in.

Set 290 for victory, New Zealand folded for just 184 in the 39th over after a steady stream of wickets from Australia's pacemen, including a maiden scalp for local boy Ben Hilfenhaus, swept them to a bonus-point win and showed the suggestions of an unbeaten summer are not too fanciful.

New Zealand showed feint signs of becoming sterner opposition than England courtesy of some individual brilliance, including Bond's hat-trick and a quickfire 84 from rookie Ross Taylor, but it was unable to match the ruthless efficiency of the all-round team effort of Australia.

As displayed in the Ashes, Australia players across the board stepped up to collectively smother any sign of resistance from the traditionally plucky Black Caps.

Hilfenhaus, called in as a late replacement for Glenn McGrath, was given a huge ovation from his home crowd when he snared his maiden limited-overs wicket in just his second over, trapping Brendon McCullum leg before for five to throw the New Zealand run-chase into early trouble.

While the bowlers finished the job, it was Australia's batsmen who had laid the foundation with a perfectly weighted innings of power and caution.

Seeing the Bellerive Oval pitch as a good for batting, Ricky Ponting had no second thoughts about putting New Zealand in the field after winning the toss. Australia's opening batsmen confirmed Ponting's instinct, as Adam Gilchrist and Matt Hayden raced to 0-69 after 10 overs.

Gilchrist departed on 61 from 58 balls.

Australia trundled through the middle overs as the Kiwis did a fair job of containing Michael Clarke for 33, Mike Hussey for 20 and initially Symonds.

But when White joined Symonds with 10 overs to go in the innings and the score at 5-196, it sparked a Twenty20-style finale from the burly all rounders.

White showed the value of his power hitting at No.7 when he opened the shoulders and smashed three big sixes, including two in one Daniel Vettori over. Symonds said it was unlikely there was a cleaner hitter than White in Australian cricket.

"You'd have to say so after that Twenty20 effort the other night (40 off 20 against England) and today," Symonds said. "It's not like he's just clearing the rope. When he hits it in the middle, it's maximum."

Symonds took the cue and the pair added 90 from 70 balls. Bond finally managed to halt the carnage with a hat-trick in the 50th over, just the second hat-trick in the Kiwis' limited-overs history, snaring White, Symonds and Bracken in as many balls during the final over.

White was caught deep on the mid-wicket boundary chasing late runs, Symonds caught behind also attempting a slashing stroke and Bracken was finally clean bowled with a slower ball.

Microsoft Offers Online Trial of Windows Vista OS

Microsoft Offers Online Trial of Windows Vista OS

Microsoft Virtual Labs launched a new Test Drive site to help give exposure to the Windows Vista operating system. The test drive site allows anyone to launch and try out various scenarios in a completely isolated, sandbox environment before they purchase and install the product on their own equipment.

In the past, many Microsoft applications have been made available on a test drive or trial basis by utilizing a Citrix client connection. The Vista OS trial is more of an "eat your own dog food" type demonstration as Microsoft is utilizing Microsoft Virtual Server to push out the trial.

In order to test drive this online trial, you must be using Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher, you must have JavaScript enabled, and you must install the ActiveX control "Virtual Server VRMC Advanced Control" from Microsoft. And don't forget about your popup blocking software. Mine complained numerous times as I tried to launch various scenarios within this test drive.

The Test Drive of the operating system is being powered by Microsoft Virtual Labs. In this particular test drive, Microsoft attempts to showcase four main areas of Windows Vista Business: Safe-Efficient-Connected-Collaborative. Each of these topics contains a number of videos and labs, which all-in-all total around 18.

While I personally found that the videos and step-by-step scenarios were all very helpful in learning about the product and how to use it, my experience with the actual hands-on Vista desktop interaction was quite slow. The video refresh and redraw of the graphics on this virtual machine was at times painful. But I expected that going into this demonstration, knowing how graphic intensive Windows Vista would be and combining that with the fact that I was using a remote connection over the Internet to run the test drive.

If you haven't installed or used Windows Vista yet, I invite you to try this product test drive. Visit the following Web site to begin your trial.



Saturday 13 January 2007

Taco Bell E. coli outbreak linked to Calif. lettuce

Taco Bell E. coli outbreak linked to Calif. lettuce

Prepackaged iceberg lettuce from California has been linked to two separate outbreaks of E. coli that sickened more than 150 Taco Bell and Taco John's customers late last year on the East Coast and in the Midwest, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Friday.

The news comes just months after officials fingered prepackaged California spinach in an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 that sickened more than 200 people and killed three.

It deals another blow to California's leafy greens industry, which dominates the nation's supply. The iceberg lettuce industry alone harvested $750 million worth of greens in 2005 — nearly 75% of the nation's crop. Most of it was grown in the Greater Salinas and Central valleys.

"It just adds more fuel to the fire of the need to address this," said Dr. David Acheson, chief medical officer for the FDA's food safety center.

The recent outbreaks apparently have vindicated concerns he voiced last September, when he unenthusiastically announced his agency's decision to lift a warning against eating fresh bagged spinach from California's Central Coast. He pointedly noted at the time that of the 20 E. coli outbreaks from lettuce and spinach since 1995, nine were linked to the Greater Salinas Valley.

"Until some fundamental fixes are put in place in the areas where this contamination is happening," Acheson said during a conference call with reporters, "there is obviously a concern that two months from now we'll be having the same conversation, talking about outbreak No. 21."

And, indeed, outbreaks No. 21 and 22 occurred about two months later. People began falling sick after eating at the fast food chains Taco Bell and Taco John's in November. In the Taco Bell outbreak, which involved restaurants in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware, seventy-one fell ill and 53 were hospitalized. The Taco John's outbreak involved three eateries in Minnesota and Iowa. Eighty-one were sickened, including 26 who were hospitalized.

Wider area affected

Outbreaks 21 and 22 also showed that problems in California extend beyond the Greater Salinas Valley, where the tainted spinach was grown.

Taco Bell's tainted lettuce was traced, via packaging, to farms in the Central Valley, although no specific sources have been named. The Taco John's produce was traced both to the Central Valley and to the coast south of Salinas.

As with the spinach outbreak, investigators suspect that the initial point of lettuce contamination occurred at the farms, not in processing or distribution, said Jack Guzewich, director of emergency coordination and response for the FDA's food safety center.

Conflicting land uses

One potential problem is the proximity of ranching and farming operations in parts of California. Cattle and other animals harbor the bacteria, which is shed in their feces.

Indeed, officials said, the same sub-strain of E. coli involved in the Taco John's outbreak was found in two unidentified "environmental samples" from dairy farms next to one of the chain's lettuce growers.

In the spinach outbreak, the implicated greens were ultimately traced to four farms in Monterey and San Benito counties. Near one of the farms, which was next to a cattle ranch, officials found the sub-strain that caused illnesses in cow manure, a wild pig's intestines and creek water.

The three successive outbreaks, all of which have run their course, also raise questions about what is causing them to occur with such frequency, said Trevor Suslow, a UC Davis food pathologist.

"The fact that it seems to be happening even more frequently, in a more compressed time frame, one would have to speculate something is either being missed or something has changed to elevate the level of risk or potential of contamination," Suslow said.

Tim Chelling, spokesman for the Western Growers Assn., said one possibility is increased vigilance by public health authorities, enabling outbreaks to be detected faster and with more precision.

"I think it's an indication of the heightened sensitivity of the food safety network," Chelling said. "At the same time, everyone here is treating it as the serious matter that it is."

Brian Dixon, spokesman for Cheyenne, Wyo.-based Taco John's International Inc., said it was a relief that investigators are making progress in their probe.

Student Loan Consolidation: Do It Now

Student Loan Consolidation: Do It Now


Student loan consolidation can save you hundreds of dollars a year onrepaying your student loans -- the process is not complex, and it's easy tofind a trusted name when using debt consolidation.

Check with your bank, or ask your parents if their bank has a family planor rate for student loan consolidation or debt consolidation.

Consolidating can simplify repayment and even lower your monthly payments,combining your existing loans and delivering great benefits.

The Federal Consolidation Loan is one of the best ways to streamlinerepayment, combining all of your federal loans into one new loan with onemonthly billing payment, eliminating bills from multiple lenders with theirmultiple fees.

Consolidation also makes it easier to met your payments, making only onepayment instead of 3-10.

Women's car insurance 'under less threat from hazardous driving'

Women's car insurance 'under less threat from hazardous driving'

Fewer female drivers risk their women's car insurance through potentially dangerous techniques in a bid to avoid being snapped by speed cameras.

The findings were made through research by Brunel University, which highlights that one in ten female drivers would employ hazardous driving techniques compared with four in ten male motorists, the Independent reports.

Drivers are believed to speed up when approaching a speed camera, brake suddenly when passing the device and then accelerate away, leaving room for accidents which could jeopardise men's and women's car insurance premiums.

According to the publication, there has been a sevenfold increase in the number of Britons attempting to avoid being caught by the cameras, with many motorists developing their own methods of not being snapped.

The number of speeding offences now detected by speed cameras has risen to 79 per cent from 30 per cent since their numbers increased, the publication states.

Recently, a motorists' pressure group in Essex stated that speed cameras in the area had no effect in cutting the amount of deaths on the area's roads.

Eight out of ten women's car insurance customers could save on their premiums with Kwik-Fit Insurance.

Friday 12 January 2007

PayPal to offer extra layer of protection

PayPal to offer extra layer of protection

PayPal provider of secure online payment transactions, and popular form of payment among users of EBay, the online auction leader, is currently testing a variant of RSA Security’s SecurID token.

The PayPal Security Key is free to business accounts but a $5.00 service fee will be issued to personal accounts. These accounts require users to enter a randomized six-digit code in correspondence with their username and password. Aimed at protecting consumers and members from fraud, the PayPal Security Key is currently in beta testing by PayPal employees. It will go into public testing in the next few months.

The key itself calculates a numeric password every thirty seconds, making the feature useful as the keys are designed for one use only. This type of security is already in place at several financial firms across the United States.

You can activate the feature under the profile section of your personal PayPal account, and from there, sign up to get the key. If you loose or break your key, a common problem for many who use these types of devices, PayPal said that you could still login to your account; only you will need to verify it. They did not say in their FAQ pages how you would verify your information but anyone who has ever called PayPal over the phone is familiar with playing twenty questions to prove your identity.

The new level of security offered by PayPal might stem from the fact it is often the target of phishing scams and many victims of online fraud stem from having their PayPal, and subsequently their bank accounts drained, because of it. The service, when launched officially, would be of great value to anyone who is persistent user of EBay or other online merchants with their PayPal account.

Several high street banks, such as HSBC, already offer this service to their business customers.