Dollar rises amid mounting global economy fears |
- Dollar rises amid mounting global economy fears
- US health officials take hints for healthy eating from French classrooms
- Jog and charge your smartphone with Ampy
- Magnetic shoelace closure system allows for hands-free shoe removal
- Scotland’s Strachan: Euro 2016 group too tough to call
- Pharrell works with Ladurée to create Americana-flavoured macarons
| Dollar rises amid mounting global economy fears Posted: 14 Oct 2014 05:51 PM PDT
In a sign of market anxiety that drove investors to the safe-haven currency, the yield on the 30-year US Treasury bond fell below 3.0 per cent for the first time since late May 2013. The euro was under pressure after further gloomy data in Germany, Europe's largest economy and the engine of eurozone growth. The euro slumped to US$1.2659 (RM4.14) around 2200 GMT from US$1.2753 late Monday. "The already-downbeat sentiment was hurt further after the release of some more gloomy data from the eurozone," said Fawad Razaqzada, an analyst at Forex.com. The widely watched ZEW investor confidence index fell by 10.5 points to minus 3.6 points in October, its lowest level for expectations since November 2012, and the first time since then that it has been in negative territory. It was the 10th month in a row that the index has fallen. "ZEW's financial market experts expect the economic situation in Germany to decline further over the medium term," said ZEW president Clemens Fuest. "Geopolitical tensions and the weak economic development in some parts of the eurozone, which is falling short of previous expectations, are a source of persistent uncertainty. These factors are tarnishing growth expectations in Germany," he said. Germany later in the day cut its economic growth forecasts to 1.2 per cent in 2014 and 1.3 per cent in 2015, from 1.8 per cent and 2.0 per cent, respectively. The worsening outlook for German growth adds to concerns about the eurozone economy, which some analysts say is flirting with recession and is already holding back world recovery. — AFP  |
| US health officials take hints for healthy eating from French classrooms Posted: 14 Oct 2014 05:49 PM PDT
With a fresh croissant on each desk and a pen in hand, the class of eight and nine year-olds were encouraged to use their five senses to examine the pastries at length and describe the experience, as the delegation looked on. The pupils in the Paris suburb of Roissy-en-Brie were taking part in a three year-old government programme to promote food awareness and healthy eating in schools, and had previously carried out similar taste tests on bread and cheese. The Director of Food Management in New York City for public schools, Stephen O'Brien, said he and colleagues — representing cities including Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles — had much to learn from France's "premiere culture" for food. The stakes are higher than promoting refined palettes. According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, (OECD), the rate of childhood obesity in French children is under half that of the United States. "I do think that by teaching food culture in schools you can tackle the adverse effects of over-eating, obesity, sodium, all of those things that are becoming chronic throughout the world, not just in the United States," O'Brien said. "These students will remember this lesson for their whole lives." But will the students really take the time to size up and sniff their evening meal after school because of these occasional "taste classes"? "When the children go home in the evening, do they think about a lesson about verb conjugations or vocabulary? I don't know," said head teacher Yannick Choulet. "I'm not revolutionising family lives, that's not the point. But what I want to teach is curiosity, pleasure at the table, that's something fundamental." Food culture While the health benefits of an afternoon spent munching on croissants might be marginal, Choulet said that other school projects, including promoting eating fruit at break times, can have a real impact on health. The government is keen to celebrate France's foodie culture, with the "gastronomic meal of the French" on the list of the "Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity" drawn up bu the UN culture and education agency UNESCO."Today what's been done in France can be an example used elsewhere so I think that we have a special feature, a culture. It has to be promoted, looked after, and developed above all, and that all happens with children," Agriculture Minister Stephane Le Foll said at a giant taste class at Paris's town hall surrounded by children wearing paper chef hats. Although online parenting forums are peppered with gushing posts about the diverse eating habits of French children, the picture is more complex. O'Brien pointed out that obesity rates in the United States have actually stabilised if not started to fall, while the OECD says that obesity in French boys, at least, is on the rise. As far as pupil engagement is concerned, though, the benefits are clear. Sitting up next to the whiteboard, Anne-Florelle agreed it was more fun than an average French or Maths lesson, and finished her croissant before any of her neighbours. "We're eating, and I love to eat!" she said. — Reuters |
| Jog and charge your smartphone with Ampy Posted: 14 Oct 2014 05:45 PM PDT
It's a small lithium ion pack and when placed in a pocket or worn on an armband, it transfers kinetic energy for use and later charges devices just as fast as a wall charger, according to the company's Kickstarter page. Kinetic energy generated from walking, cycling, jogging — just about anything you do on your feet — can now be put to use without leaving a carbon footprint. Ampy comes with a corresponding app that tells you how much energy is in the reservoir: Normally one day's worth of walking provides three hours of smartphone charge and 72 hours of juice for your wearable tracker. The same can be accomplished in about one hour of cycling, according to the company's Kickstarter page, and 30 minutes of running. Smart watches get about 24 hours of juice relative to the aforementioned devices after the same amount of exercise. It's not a brand new concept: Tremont's nPower Peg, a "human-powered charger for handheld devices," retails for US$130 (RM426). But Ampy, which is smaller than a smartphone and fits easily into a pocket, has a significant advantage in terms of portability over the nPower Peg, which measures 27 cm. And in the same area, more tiny devices could come to market in the near future with Zhong Lin Wang unveiling his research about transforming "everyday motion" into a power source through a "triboelectric nanogenerator or TENG for short" earlier this year and anticipating market-ready devices within five years. The Ampy Kickstarter campaign doesn't end until November 10, but Ampy has already raised over US$130,000, well above its goal of US$100,000. Ampy can still be pre-ordered for US$85 and shipping is expected in June 2015. Orders outside the US should add US$15 for shipping and handling. — AFP-Relaxnews |
| Magnetic shoelace closure system allows for hands-free shoe removal Posted: 14 Oct 2014 05:43 PM PDT
With the campaign's end date of November 5 seeming far away, the number of backers is likely to shoot up from the more than 3,000 who have already pledged to put an end to the simple task that takes time in the big picture. The small, innovative gadget allows you to step into your shoes as you would slippers, and a simple flick of the wrist attaches the two magnet sides together. Zubits allow for hands-free shoe removal while affording all the stepping, twisting, turning and jumping you could possibly muster up during a workout. It's possible to pre-order Zubits for US$20 plus US$9 shipping and handling for orders outside the US. Delivery is estimated for January 2015. — AFP/Relaxnews |
| Scotland’s Strachan: Euro 2016 group too tough to call Posted: 14 Oct 2014 05:42 PM PDT
The Scots are aiming to qualify for the finals of a major tournament for the first time since 1998 but face a tough task with world champions Germany, Poland and the Republic of Ireland also fighting it out to make it to Euro 2016 in France. Strachan's side have made a good start to their campaign, following up a narrow defeat in Dortmund to the Germans in September with a win against Georgia and now a draw in Poland. However, the group has already thrown up some shock results with Poland picking up a historic win over Germany while John O'Shea's last minute equaliser handed Ireland a 1-1 with Joachim Loew's side yesterday. It means Poland top Group D with seven points on goal difference ahead of the Republic of Ireland. Scotland, who face Ireland in Glasgow next month, sit level with Germany on four points. Scotland boss Strachan said the group is too tough to call and predicts the qualifiers won't be decided until the last game. "This is the hardest group in the European Championships by far. This will go down right to the last day," Strachan said. "We have picked up four points in the last two games, which is fine, and we know that we could have picked up a point in Germany. I think we had more attempts on goal in Germany than we did tonight. "We have had two good performances away from home and one fantastic one against Georgia and that's all you can ask the players to do. You never know when you are going to get some big points. Improvement "The players are improving all the time. Over the last year the rhythm of their game has been good as is their understanding. "So, I'm really pleased with their performance and really pleased with their improvement." The Poles, still on a high following their historic win over Germany on Saturday, took a 12th-minute lead courtesy of Krzysztof Maczynski. Scotland immediately responded and Shaun Maloney fired the Dark Blues level in the 19th minute, before Steven Naismith gave Gordon Strachan's side the lead 12 minutes after the break. However, Arkadiusz Milik's wonder goal levelled matters in the 76th minute and Scotland were hanging on towards the end. "It was a draining game. There were a couple of things we could have done better but overall you can't ask for any more than what they did," Strachan added. "We probably would have liked to pass it a bit better but I think the surface had a lot to do with that because we are a bit smaller and like to move the ball about. "We're pleased that we dealt with a game played in front of a fantastic crowd and an atmosphere as good as I have witnessed in international football. "We dealt with going 1-0 behind and we played attacking players. We feel that is a strong part of our team and I believed in them. "Maybe the surface was a wee bit heavy for the smaller players but they did very well at times. "They were throwing everything at us in the last minutes. They were flinging the ball into the box and some diagonals but we dealt with it well as they are a tall and powerful side. "I suppose we're disappointed with one point but equally we could have lost it." — AFP |
| Pharrell works with Ladurée to create Americana-flavoured macarons Posted: 14 Oct 2014 05:40 PM PDT
To help celebrate his four-night concert run in the City of Light this week, the singer and style icon partnered with French concept store Colette and Ladurée to release a series of limited edition macarons, à la Americana. The peanut butter and cola-flavoured treats are available in Paris exclusively at Colette. Pharrell wraps up his 'Dear Girl Tour' with four dates in Paris, ending October 16. A box of six Pharrell macarons costs €17 (RM70.27) and is available for a limited time. — AFP/Relaxnews |
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