Kajian: Sambung belajar di hari tua kurangkan risiko nyanyuk |
- Kajian: Sambung belajar di hari tua kurangkan risiko nyanyuk
- Reuters Video: President Keita says Mali will not shut down
- Taiwan’s Hou snatches Golden Horse best feature, best director titles
- Researchers have developed a new tool for diagnosing diabetes
- KOZO: Making minimalist designer wear affordable for all
- Chai kuih: A savoury vegetable snack that packs quite a punch
| Kajian: Sambung belajar di hari tua kurangkan risiko nyanyuk Posted: 21 Nov 2015 05:00 PM PST
Kajian itu, dinamakan Projek Otak Sihat Tasmania, meneliti 359 pelajar berusia antara 50 hingga 79 tahun yang menamatkan pengajian sekurang-kurangnya setahun. Tiada seorang peserta dalam kajian itu mengalami masalah nyanyuk, lapor agensi berita AFP semalam. Menurut kajian itu, yang diterbitkan di jurnal Persatuan Psikologi Amerika minggu ini, ujian kognitif diambil sebelum dan selepas pengajian, dengan peserta dinilai semula setiap tahun sepanjang tempoh tiga tahun selepas pengajian. Hasilnya, 90 peratus daripada mereka yang menamatkan pengajian menunjukkan peningkatan ketara dalam keupayaan berfikir; berbanding hanya 56 peratus peserta yang tidak mengambil sebarang pengajian. Ketua penyelidik Dr Megan Lenehan berkata hasil kajian itu menarik kerana ia menunjukkan masih belum terlambat untuk memaksimakan keupayaan otak walau usia makin lanjut. "Kami merancang untuk terus memantau peserta terbabit bagi melihat sama ada pengajian kolej boleh membantu melengahkan atau mengurangkan kesan nyanyuk," belai dipetik berkata. Hasil kajian penuh boleh dibaca di sini.  |
| Reuters Video: President Keita says Mali will not shut down Posted: 21 Nov 2015 04:55 PM PST Duration: 01:31, Published 22 Nov 2015 Mali's President, Ibrahim Keita, visits the Radisson Blu hotel where 19 people were killed in an Islamist militant attack, vowing that the assault would not force Mali to shut down. — Reuters |
| Taiwan’s Hou snatches Golden Horse best feature, best director titles Posted: 21 Nov 2015 04:48 PM PST
As expected, "The Assassin" grabbed the two most coveted prizes — best feature and best director awards — in a tense contest between 39 film nominations at the 52nd edition of the Golden Horse, touted as the Chinese-language equivalent to the Oscars. Accepting the award for best director, 68-year-old Hou termed shooting films as his "life-time work and dream" and pledged to keep making them for the rest of his life. "I want to thank my team for their hard work and want to thank the jury for awarding this honour," he told stars and guests at the ceremony at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipeh. "I hope I can shoot more films with the Tang Dynasty as a backdrop. I read lots of stuff about this when I was a student," he added. "The Assassin," which led the field with 11 nominations, also snaffled up awards in the categories of best cinematography, best makeup/costume design, and best sound effects. Hou was also awarded Outstanding Taiwanese Film-maker of the Year, for what organisers describe as his "achievement and uncompromised perseverance." Set in ninth-century China, "The Assassin" is a slow-burning minimalist movie with Taiwanese megastar Shu Qi playing a highly trained female assassin sent back to her home province to kill its governor, who is also the man she loves. Hou won the best director category for "Assassin" at Cannes in May and has since said he is hoping the movie will garner an Oscar. Also up for best film were "Thanatos, Drunk" from Taiwanese director Chang Tso-chi, a drama about two sons of an alcoholic mother and their dysfunctional lives; Hong Kong director Philip Yung's crime thriller "Port of Call;" black-and-white movie "Tharlo," the tale of a shepherd by Tibetan director Pema Tseden; and "Mountains May Depart," a family saga from Chinese director Jia Zhang-ke. Film critics had praised the strong field, but Hou was favourite to win. "I'm not saying the other films are not good — they are all good, but not good enough to take on 'The Assassin'," Kelly Yang, a Taipei-based cinema critic, told AFP. Hou's foray into ancient China tapped "fundamental human nature, which is universal," said Yang. Taiwan dominates nominations Shu Qi of "The Assassin" surprisingly lost to Hong Kong star Karena Lam in the contest for the best leading actress title. Lam plays a woman struggling to cope after her fiance is killed in a car accident in "Zinnia Flower." "I want to thank my father in heaven. I felt he was with me while we were shooting the film," Lam said accepting her award in tears. Feng Xiaogang, better known as a commercial film director in China, beat Taiwan's Lee Hong-chi to claim the best leading actor title for his role in "Mr Six", which tells of an old 50-something-year-old neighbourhood kingpin. Earlier in the day, hundreds of fans arrived at the venue defying rain and screaming upon seeing their idols walking down the red carpet. Among the stars were Taiwanese film-maker Ang Lee, Japanese actor Satoshi Tsumabuki and Korean actress Ha Ji-won. This year's awards list was dominated by Taiwan, which had around 40 percent of nominations, one of the best homegrown showings in recent years, when Hong Kong and China have outshone Taiwanese competitors. Ninety-one-year-old Hong Kong actress Li Lihua, who has been twice crowned as best leading actress in the Golden Horse awards, was honoured with a lifetime achievement award. — AFP-Relaxnews |
| Researchers have developed a new tool for diagnosing diabetes Posted: 21 Nov 2015 04:40 PM PST
As obesity levels continue to rise, playing a factor in the rise of Type 2 diabetes, doctors are finding it increasingly difficult to distinguish between the two types of the disease accurately. A more accurate diagnosis with the new genetic test would be valuable for diabetes sufferers as the two different types can be treated in different ways. Whilst Type 1 diabetes needs to be treated with insulin injections, Type 2 diabetes can be controlled through diet, exercise, and a healthier lifestyle. The study was headed up Dr Richard Oram, a lecturer at the National Institute for Health Research and specialist in Diabetes and Nephrology at the University of Exeter Medical School who commented that, "There is often no going back once insulin treatment starts. This may save people with Type 2 diabetes from being treated with insulin unnecessarily, but also stop the rare but serious occurrence of people with Type 1 being initially treated with tablets inappropriately and running of the risk of severe illness." The team suggest running the genetic test alongside the existing and more common diagnostic tests, and are now looking at how to develop a test that can be run quickly and cheaply in any clinical laboratory. A copy of the study's abstract can be found online here. The news comes shortly after a team of scientists from Tec de Monterrey in Mexico and the University of Houston in the USA announced that they had developed a test that could soon make it possible to diagnose Type 2 diabetes with just a saliva sample and a smartphone. Still in the development phase, this new device could be of particular benefit to communities without easy access to healthcare as it avoids the use of needles. Published in the science journal Investigacion y Desarrollo, the team's report explains how the user can easily check in just a few seconds if they have Type 2 diabetes simply by using a cartridge adaptable to a device such as a smartphone, which will then emit a fluorescent light if the disease is present in the saliva. — AFP-Relaxnews |
| KOZO: Making minimalist designer wear affordable for all Posted: 21 Nov 2015 04:39 PM PST
Rin relocated to Malaysia five years ago. Before joining the retail and fashion world, she was a teacher in Singapore. When she was younger, her friends would teach part-time but she preferred working in fashion retail. "I really enjoyed working for fashion retail even though my friends told me I wasn't earning much compared to them," she said.
On September 3, Rin launched KOZO at Fabspy. Her debut collection for Fall/Winter 2015 featured minimalist looks, clean and structured lines. Rin's personal taste for simple things is also reflected in the collection. The basic colour palette she consistently uses are her own personal favourite, which is black, and colours like white and grey. The pieces are also made from smooth-to-touch and textured fabrics like 100 per cent Japanese cotton and knit cotton. Rin's rationale behind these choices is purely because of their suitability for our tropical weather since comfort is important to her. Moreover these fabrics also maintain a certain structure needed for the designs.
Prices were also kept reasonable from RM100 to RM200. According to Rin, launching KOZO with the collaboration with Chew was a good thing because it was a comfortable process for Rin. Both of them are friends and they are on the same wavelength when it comes to fashion design.
"My signature KOZO piece from Episode 1 would be the X cropped top," said Rin. Featuring an 'X' double-breasted crop tank with long side drapes that reach up your ankles, it is very Asian-influenced. According to Rin, it is the statement piece for Episode 1 and for every season, she will introduce one statement piece. It may be a bit revealing to wear it all the time so Rin encourages people to wear it with other outfits such as a dress underneath or a long sleeved top.
If you are curious about what KOZO means, it has Asian roots. "It is actually a plant in Japan that is used to make paper. It is versatile, you can make thin paper out of it, or a sturdy or hard structured. Basically, it is like styling it on your own," said Rin. You will be surprised to discover that KOZO is priced reasonably, with pieces from RM100 to RM200. "As our designs are minimalistic, we can play around with different fabrics and still keep our costs affordable." It was Rin's idea to make it affordable so that different women can own at least a few pieces of KOZO.
As KOZO is a relatively new label, Rin is working on building the website and hopefully create a following for the brand. Her dream is to have a flagship store where she can also design accessories such as bags and jewellery for KOZO. "When I have my flagship store next time I will also expand my lines, having a basic range, a plus range and so on," said Rin whose customers are mainly people in their twenties and thirties. The clothes are manufactured locally, while the fabrics are sourced from the Asian region.
In the future, Rin hopes to unveil her second collection by next year. "My next collection will hopefully come out before Chinese New Year," she said. Keeping true to the DNA of KOZO's brand values, the next collection will also consist of timeless and season-less pieces, including one or two statement pieces. For more on KOZO: |
| Chai kuih: A savoury vegetable snack that packs quite a punch Posted: 21 Nov 2015 04:38 PM PST
The steamed vegetarian dumpling is one of those Chinese snacks that is a Teochew and Hakka hybrid. Though the chai kuih is often known as a Teochew kuih, it is sometimes also known as a Hakka kuih. The chai kuih, which translated literally means vegetable cake, is made with very simple ingredients and despite its pale, plain colour, it packs quite a punch in flavours. The most commonly found chai kuih are those with yambean and chives as fillings but there are also variations with some people adding pumpkin, carrots, dried shrimps, mushrooms and even chicken strips. The soft, white, glossy skin of the chai kuih is made with wheat starch and tapioca starch that is slowly mixed with water and oil before it is gently cooked to form a dough. As for the fillings, the shrimps and vegetables are stir fried with some seasoning before it is wrapped with the prepared dough. Each scoop of vegetables will be carefully wrapped in the soft dough before it is steamed. The dumplings will have an almost transparent glossy sheen when cooked. Nowadays, these vegetable dumplings are hard to find as not many food stalls sell them in Penang. Here are five places to try chai kuih: Soon Lee Hou Coffee Shop, Sungai Bakap, Jawi Kedai Kopi & Makanan Mutiara, Jalan Tembikai, Bukit Mertajam Lee Huat Cafe, Jalan Masjid Negeri 77 Food Yard, Jalan Burmah Cecil Street market, Cecil Street |
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