Search Results for: Research

BY KEITH NUTHALL
WITH European Union ministers poised to choose their preferred site to host the international thermonuclear experimental reactor (ITER), an independent EU assessment of the two key EU contenders has officially concluded that both the French site Cadarache, and the Spain’s Vandellós “would be likely to win the international site selection”.…

BY MARK ROWE
A GLASS of beer a day keeps old age at bay, apparently. A Japanese scientist has developed a beer that he claims makes you look younger by improving the texture and smoothness of your skin. While there was a passing craze in the 1970s for women to wash their hair in beer to give it more “body”, this brew, translated as “facial treatment beer”, is drunk, rather than applied.…

BY ALAN OSBORN
THE EUROPEAN Commission is providing Euro 850,000 to fund a study into whether the use of mobile phones causes deafness. The GUARD project, which involves teams from seven countries including the UK, will report in December. No scientific evidence yet exists to suggest mobile phones affect hearing but this will be the first extensive study on humans.…

BY ALAN OSBORN
THE EASTERN and southern Europe countries slated to join the European Union (EU) on May 1, 2004, have worked small wonders in recent years to set up anti-money laundering regimes, not necessarily because they believe this is good in itself but partly at least because EU entry might not be possible otherwise.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A EUROPEAN Union study into indoor pollution has concluded that environmental tobacco smoke is hard to clear from enclosed spaces. Using its ‘Indoortron’ laboratory model, EU Joint Research Centre scientists have shown that increased ventilation systems in buildings “do not have a significant influence on the air concentration of tobacco components.”…

BY MONICA DOBIE
THE CANADIAN asbestos industry is redoubling its efforts to persuade the European Union to reverse its ban on chrysotile asbestos using the findings of a new study, which backs arguments that the mineral is safer for human use than some alternative materials.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
SCIENTISTS in the Netherlands say they have developed a way of overcoming problems of low brightness and slow movement of images (via pixels) in electronic paper (e-paper). Their breakthrough, says the European Commission’s research directorate “could ease the development of wireless, animated newspapers and books.”…

BY SWINEETHA DIAS WICKRAMANAYAKE
SRI Lanka’s Gem and Jewellery Research and Training institute has carried out a gem deposit survey in a 100 acre reservoir, revealing potential for mining blue and yellow sapphires and geuda rough stones in its silt. The discovery means that a plan to remove silt deposits from the Hasalaka tank, Kandy district, may have additional benefits for public authorities seeking to increase its capacity.…

BY KEITH NUTHALL
A WORLD Health Organisation (WHO) agency has concluded that chewing betel quid causes oral cancer, whether or not tobacco is included in ‘pan’ mixes especially popular with ethnic south Asians. The problem is of particular concern in the UK, which imports more betel than any country outside of Asia, (imports have doubled since the early 80’s).…

BY MARK ROWE
JAPANESE scientists have developed a beer that they claim acts as a facial treatment to keep you looking young at heart. The beer – which should be drunk rather than applied to the skin – has been produced by the Akita Research Institute of Food and Brewing.…