Daily Archives: March 19, 2014

Shift workers beware: Sleep loss may cause brain damage, new research says

Posted on by
Reply

sleep-loss

 

Are you a truck driver or shift worker planning to catch up on some sleep this weekend?

Cramming in extra hours of shut-eye may not make up for those lost pulling all-nighters, new research indicates.

The damage may already be done — brain damage, that is, said neuroscientist Sigrid Veasey from the University of Pennsylvania.

The widely held idea that you can pay back a sizeable “sleep debt” with long naps later on seems to be a myth, she said in a study published this week in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Long-term sleep deprivation saps the brain of power even after days of recovery sleep, Veasey said. And that could be a sign of lasting brain injury.

The discovery that long-term sleep loss can result in a loss of brain cells is a first, Veasey said.

They hope their research will result in medicines that will help people working odd hours cope with the consequences of irregular sleep.

 

 Անկախ

Chinese media: Kindergartens suspected of drugging students to boost attendance

Posted on by
Reply

չինաստան

 

Kindergartens in three Chinese provinces are accused of giving prescription drugs to children without their parents’ knowledge, according to Xinhua, China’s state-run news agency.

The drugs were given to prevent the children from getting sick in order to boost attendance, the news agency reported. The schools get paid based on attendance.

The scandal started last week in one kindergarten in the city of Xi’an and has now spread to several in the country, prompting China’s education and health ministries to require its local branches to check all kindergartens and primary schools for illegally administered drugs, according to the Global Times newspaper.

Almost 2,000 children who attended the suspected kindergartens are receiving medical attention as some reported side effects from the medication, such as dizziness, stomachaches, leg pains and genital swelling, Xinhua said.

Some angry parents of the affected kindergartens rallied in front of the facilities and local government buildings.

 

 Անկախ

Woman finds 100 MILLION lire in her safe – only to be told it’s worth NOTHING because Italy has had the euro for more than a decade

Posted on by
Reply

100 միլիոն լիրա

 

A woman who found 100 million lire in cash which would be worth £43million has been told the money is worthless because the currency is no longer in use.

Claudia Moretti discovered the cash a few months ago stashed in a safe at her uncle’s home which she had inherited following his death.

Ms Moretti, who lives in Pesaro on the Adriatic coast, was delighted to be given the house and said she was stunned when she found the fortune in the safe.

However, her hopes of being set up for life were dashed when she went to Italy’s central bank (Banca d’Italia) to have the cash exchanged into euros where she was told the money was now worthless.

She hired lawyers to challenge the decision but they were unsuccessful because before adopting the euro currency on January 1 2002, Italy’s central bank had set a time limit for the exchange of the lira.

Any coins or banknotes not presented to the bank before December 6, 2011, were then declared worthless.

Italy had the strictest time limit of all 18 eurozone countries, although Finland, France and Greece were just a year behind with a 2012 deadline.

The central banks of nine eurozone countries, including Germany and Ireland, set no limit for exchanging banknotes from the old national currency.

 

 Անկախ