In a perfect world, people would diligently reapply suncreen every couple of hours to protect their skin from damaging solar radiation. But few people actually adhere to reapplication guidelines, and those who do hardly relish the task. To develop longer-lasting sunscreens, researchers are trying to answer a basic question: How do sunblock ingredients work? (via WSJ)
China’s Huishan Dairy raised millions of dollars by selling shadow bank products labelled as “low risk” to the public last year, only months before missed loan payments sent creditors scrambling to protect themselves, according to exchange listings in north-east China. Huishan’s share price plunged 85 per cent in Hong Kong on March 24 amid reports — which the company denies — that chairman and controlling shareholder Yang Kai embezzled Rmb3bn […]
The number of lease renewals at reduced rents is three times higher in Dubai than it was at the bottom of the last market trough in 2012, according to the managing director of CBRE Middle East. Preliminary findings from CBRE research expected to be published in May indicates that landlords are increasingly flexible on lease renewal terms as they seek to retain existing tenants rather than risk […]
Because current methods for assessing the viability of IVF-created embryos are not sufficiently reliable, more research on embryo development is needed, two experts write in a new review article. (via WSJ)
Huaqiangbei electronics market in downtown Shenzhen is a gadget geek’s paradise, selling everything from individual semiconductor chips to roll-up drum kits to hoverboards. For some, it is also the culprit for the declining fortunes of US wearable tech companies such as GoPro and Fitbit. “[Their] problem essentially is Shenzhen,” says Richard Windsor, founder of independent research company Radio Free Mobile. “It makes much cheaper cameras that are […]
Authored by Giulio Meotti via The Gatestone Institute, British multiculturalists are feeding Islamic fundamentalism. Muslims do not need to become the majority in the UK; they just need gradually to Islamize the most important cities. The change is already taking place. British personalities keep opening the door to introducing Islamic sharia law. One of the leading British judges, Sir James Munby, said that Christianity no longer influences […]
The Project Zero Prize sought bugs that gave an remote code execution on multiple Android devices when only the phone number and email address of the target device were known. Image: Laurent Delhourme, Getty Images/iStockphoto Google’s Project Zero bug-hunting group hoped that launching a special six-month hacker prize with a top payout of $200,000 would uncover novel remote code execution (RCE) attacks on Android. However, the prize […]
Here are the main questions facing markets as a new trading week and the start of the second quarter beckons. What are the likely drivers?A host of market-moving events confront investors as the calendar flips over to April. These include France’s presidential elections and the opening salvos of the UK’s divorce from the EU. But there is also the prospect of a sustained recovery in global activity, […]
Dubai’s residential market contracted during the first quarter of 2017, with rental rates falling by an average of 1 percent quarter-on-quarter over the period, a new report reveals. CBRE’s latest Dubai Market View said the dip was driven by an increase in available housing options amid more constrained demand. Meanwhile, landlords are becoming increasingly flexible with rental rates and tenants are able to negotiate, CBRE added. Residential […]
Samsung Galaxy S8. Photo by Michael Krigsman. Samsung’s Unpacked launch party this week for the long-awaited Galaxy S8 phone was a gadget lover’s dream. From the bright screen to its waterproof body, the phone is exciting. Although the Galaxy S8 and its larger brother/sister, the S8+, have received a lot of attention, one enterprise showpiece is a new docking station called the DeX Station , which is […]
The new Samsung S8, incorporating its virtual assistant Bixby, seen on display in New York Samsung’s Bixby is the new kid on the block of personal digital assistants and is likely to face a rough reception in a neighborhood dominated by tech sector rivals. Bixby—introduced at Samsung’s unveiling of Galaxy S8 smartphones—aims to help the South Korean giant break into a surging market for voice-activated virtual assistants, […]
A majority of first-year medical students changed their online behavior after participating in a social media and professionalism course, researchers have found. Their report highlights effective methods for teaching medical students about the importance of responsible social media use as it relates to their careers. (via WSJ)
Based on lab tests conducted in Switzerland, Black Insomnia could be the strongest coffee in the world. It contains 702 milligrams of caffeine per 12-ounce cup, which is far higher when compared to the same amount of Starbucks’ dark roast coffee, which contains only 195 milligrams of coffee . Mary Sweeney, from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, who conducts study on the effects of caffeine, said that Black […]
BEIJING Subjected to daily interrogations and blocked from leaving China for more than a week, Australia-based academic Feng Chongyi arrived home in Sydney on Sunday, vowing to return to the mainland later this year to complete his research. Feng, an Australian permanent resident who retains his Chinese passport, was conducting field interviews for a project on Chinese human rights lawyers and their political aspirations. “If they wanted […]
It can be a lonely business working outside a traditional office environment as a freelancer, independent professional or start-up entrepreneur. Given the costs associated with renting a commercial space, a popular option many choose in those circumstances is to build their empire from home. But while it can save money, this approach has downsides, not least when workers need quick access to a scanner, 3-D printer or […]
Researchers are experimenting with reducing drag on trucks with electric wind devices that mimic the way vortex generators increase lift on airplane wings. (via WSJ)
NEW YORK U.S. mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae (FNMA.PK) and Freddie Mac (FMCC.PK) may write down $21 billion of tax-related assets if there is a deep cut in the federal corporate tax rate as promised by President Donald Trump, according to an analyst at BMO Capital Markets on Friday. These assets, known as deferred tax assets, are items such as tax credits that may be used to […]
World Health Day is on April 7, and the World Health Organization has released a new statement on a slow and silent killer around the world that many are struggling to deal with- Depression. Between the stigma and the prejudice surrounding the disorder, and the lack of funding for the treatment and recovery of patients, depression has turned into a silent killer that tops the list of […]
Didi Chuxing may have defeated Uber, but China’s dominant ride-hailing platform is no match for the country’s local governments after being forced to gut its urban fleet to comply with regulations. Didi’s core business of cheap ride-hailing now faces a tough fight in the big urban markets, which it built after a bruising battle with local and foreign rivals. Uber ceded the Chinese market — its largest — […]
Understanding how small organic ions stabilize gold nanoparticles may allow for better control, say researchers in a new report. (via WSJ)
A prototype gadget that sends secret keys to encrypt information passed from a mobile device to a payment terminal, could help to answer public concerns around the security of contactless and wireless transactions. Now researchers have devised a system for transmitting quantum keys that ensures data security. (via WSJ)
Mars used to be wetter and warmer back in the past, and maybe a good candidate for life the way we know it. The scientific explanation is that it lost its atmosphere because of solar wind. In 2013, NASA launched a robotic probe, called MAVEN or Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, in an attempt to address this mystery of the red planet. The spacecraft arrived in the planet’s […]
April Fools’ Day is the only “fake news” day that’s almost welcome. Almost. And one of the longstanding masters of the tech prank, Google, is at it again with a fresh batch of trickery. This year, the jokes are more obviously fake this time around in what appears to be an effort to avoid anyone actually thinking these products actually exist. Nevertheless, some of these products […]
Scientists have been working diligently to create engineered tissue implants to repair or replace damaged or diseased tissue and organs; but their success hinges on the ability to build a sturdy connection linking the implant’s blood vessels and the patient’s existing vasculature. Now researchers have created segments of engineered blood vessels to address this critical issue. (via WSJ)
