Where does that Earl Grey tea come from? | Eat Drink Better

I was sitting at my desk last week staring at my tea cup, which is ALWAYS full of some form of earl grey tea during the daylight hours. My love of this tea goes back far enough that I?m not really sure when I became hopelessly hooked, but it was probably my summer in England in the early 80s. THAT is a whole other story, but I know it was before I met and dated my wild Englishman for several years in the later 80s, because to my shock and horror he drank plain ole Lipton?s (although he did school me on the proper way to prepare a pot of tea ? yes, there was a cozy involved).

Tea is one of those commodities that should be subject to?Fair Trade?standards and in my humble opinion should be?organic?and?non-GMO?as well ? for the enjoyment and health of the tea drinker as well as those who work on the farms, which are often in faraway places where the potential for unsafe and unfair practices has been common.

Listen to the Green Divas 5-minute?Sleeping Naked is Green segment on Fair Trade Tea

It was in my afternoon early grey haze that I pondered the journey this tea made to my pantry and while I knew the brand I was drinking was all of the above (fair trade, organic, non-GMO), I wondered about how some of the other popular earl grey brands would compare . . . ooooo! An idea?

GD Mizar, Gina and I decided to each do some research on one popular brand and see what we could come up with. Because there are literally THOUSANDS of types of tea, from white to green to black to red and too many herbal and flavor combinations to try to categorize, we decided to just focus on one type of tea. As I was writing this, one additional company, which is worthy of a mention got my attention with a timely press release, so there will be 4 brands featured.

The main questions we asked were:

1. Where was the tea grown?

2. How was the tea grown? Using chemical fertilizers and pesticides or organically or other?

3. Who actually grew and harvested the tea, and how were they treated?

4. How much does it cost?

but first . . .

Who is this Earl Grey anyway?

The 2nd Earl Grey was prime minister of England back in the 1830s, when tea drinking was already a national obsession. There are several stories about the origins of Earl Grey tea in England. One debunked legend that one of the Earl?s men saved a young Chinese boy from drowning and the grateful father presented the Earl with tea that was flavored with the oil of bergamot, which is an aromatic citrus fruit ? a small orange tree?(Citrus bergamia). Of course, as it turns out the Earl never went to China, so there goes that fun story. It is likely that a Chinese diplomat presented the then prime minister with a gift of this specially flavored tea, and apparently he liked it.?Jacksons of Piccadilly?claims to have been given the original recipe by the Earl himself back in 1830, and continue to produce it as it was originally formulated.

There are many variations, like one of my favorites, lady grey, which is generally earl grey tea with lavender and Seville oranges. But, if you are like me, you become accustomed to your favorite blend.

A little more about black tea in general

Most of us know that tea originated in China as a medicinal drink way back around 1500 ? 1050 BC. Tea played and continues to play many roles in Asian cultures from a formal tea ceremony that originated in China, but was developed by Buddhist monks in Japan into a mindful art. India, which is now well-known for growing some of the most popular brands of tea in the west, was introduced to tea by the British, who were fed up with the Chinese monopoly of this addictive commodity, in the 1800s.

Tea was introduced to western culture via Portugal via priests and traders who had dealings with the Chinese in the 16th century. The English, who elevated tea drinking to a cultural obsession, didn?t catch on till the 17th century. In my research, I found a page devoted to the?history of tea in Englandthat is pretty informative for anyone who is interested. Then you have the defiant Americans, who were as attached to their tea as the Brits (remember, they were still English at that point), who got all uppity because of the oppressive British tax on tea and dumped a mess of tea from English ships into Boston harbor in 1773 ? making tea (or the addiction to it) a catalyst in a historic revolution.

The many colors of tea

Black, green and white tea is made from the camillia sinensis plant. Their ultimate color is determined by how they are processed.

I?ll take mine?black?? the leaves are crushed and fermented. Black tea is fully oxidized.?Black tea contains theaflavins and thearubigens, which help to reduce bad cholesterol and lower the risk of stroke and heart attack. And, of course it has 2 to 3 times more caffeine (unless it is a decaffeinated variety).

Go green?? the leaves are withered and steamed. Green tea is un-oxidized, which is why it retains its color.?Green tea has loads of a powerful antioxidant, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), which is lost in the fermentation process of black tea.

White tea??? well it isn?t actually white, but because it is made from the buds and the leaves and is oxidated in a certain way, it has a silvery appearance. It?s all good. And while it has all the health benefits of its black and green siblings, it has the most antioxidants.

Health benefits of black tea

There are literally thousands of claims and studies about all varieties of tea and it?s benefits to our health ? well, we have to rationalize this socially acceptable addiction, right? From increasing cardiovascular function to decreasing chances of many cancers to its effectiveness in treating intestinal stress because of??its high level of?tannins, tea also is credited with some surprising things.

Did you know . . .?

• black tea prevents tooth decay because of the fluoride it contains
• black tea is loaded with antioxidants, such as flavonoids, and is known to prevent the oxidation of LDL cholesterol, preventing damage in both the bloodstream and at artery walls, and lowering the risk of heart disease
• a compound in black tea called TF-2 causes some cancer cells to go into apoptosis (cancer cell suicide ? yes!) while normal cells stay healthy
• all tea has?phytochemicals. studies show that tea drinkers have stronger bones than non-tea drinkers, and these phytochemicals are the likely cause
• the list goes on and on and on . . .

Here?s what we found out about
4 different brands of earl grey tea

legend:

non-GMO

?Fair Trade

?Organic

Numi Organic Tea ??Aged Earl Grey

No one was assigned this one, but I got a press release at the last minute and I have always liked Numi teas, so I asked if they had an early grey we could feature and they did. I haven?t tried this one yet, but hope to soon!

Where is it grown?
Numi works with the?Sewpur Tea Estate, a cooperative consisting of more than 330 workers in Assam, India.

How is it grown?
Certified Organic and Verified NON-GMO

Who grows it?
Sewpur Tea Estate?has been working with Numi for two years. Fair Trade funds have been used to build a new school and provide scholarships; distribute fuel-efficient cooking stoves (chullas) and mosquito nets; build new roads; and develop women?s empowerment programs.How much does it cost?
$6.99 ? 18 tea bags

This is my current go-to tea that started this fun project. Love the taste, love the price, and I love paisley designs. Here?s a silly pic I took of the inner bag, which is plastic, but I can?t help admire the design:
anyway, about the tea . . .

Where is it grown?

South India

How is it grown?

Organic. Only natural, approved fertilizers are used

How much does it cost?

$5.99 ? 24 tea bags

GD Mizar focused on this one . . .

Where is it grown?

Assam and Kenya

How is it grown?
Using conventional chemical pesticides and fertilizers (although the packaging says natural)Who grows it?
Don?t know

How much does it cost?*
$4.99 ? 25 tea bags

?

Twining?s of London ??Earl Grey?

GD Gina did the research on this one . . .

Where is it grown?
Kenya, Sri Lanka, China, some is even grown in?Poland.?Everything is processed, packaged and produced in the UK

How is it grown?
The majority of their tea is conventional and grown with the use of pesticides, but they do have an organic blend

Who grows it?
They weren?t clear on exactly how the conventional tea growers were?treated, but they stressed their new fair-trade certified varieties?meeting the?EPP (Environmentally Preferable Purchasing)?standards.

How much does it cost?*
$3.00 ? 25 tea bags

*as I wrote this question down for these last two that are not organic or fair trade certified, I wish I had the time, energy and brain power to calculate the REAL cost of using chemical fertilizers and pesticides ? for the people working on the farms and the environment. Also, what is value of a worker, who is fairly treated and is afforded reasonable living conditions? There are costs for the abuse of people, whether it is economic, ethical, spiritual or cultural but I believe it all of those. I hope that the demand for safe, sustainable tea (and food) becomes great enough that no matter WHAT the cost, it is the standard rather than a specialty.

Meanwhile,

eat. drink tea. be merry!

image of earl grey tea via?shutterstock
image of woman in tea field via?shutterstock?

Source: http://eatdrinkbetter.com/2013/04/09/where-does-that-earl-grey-tea-come-from/

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Advancing secure communications: A better single-photon emitter for quantum cryptography

Public release date: 9-Apr-2013
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Contact: Nicole Casal Moore
ncmoore@umich.edu
734-647-7087
University of Michigan

ANN ARBORIn a development that could make the advanced form of secure communications known as quantum cryptography more practical, University of Michigan researchers have demonstrated a simpler, more efficient single-photon emitter that can be made using traditional semiconductor processing techniques.

Single-photon emitters release one particle of light, or photon, at a time, as opposed to devices like lasers that release a stream of them. Single-photon emitters are essential for quantum cryptography, which keeps secrets safe by taking advantage of the so-called observer effect: The very act of an eavesdropper listening in jumbles the message. This is because in the quantum realm, observing a system always changes it.

For quantum cryptography to work, it's necessary to encode the messagewhich could be a bank password or a piece of military intelligence, for examplejust one photon at a time. That way, the sender and the recipient will know whether anyone has tampered with the message.

While the U-M researchers didn't make the first single-photon emitter, they say their new device improves upon the current technology and is much easier to make.

"This thing is very, very simple. It is all based on silicon," said Pallab Bhattacharya, the Charles M. Vest Distinguished University Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and the James R. Mellor Professor of Engineering.

Bhattacharya, who leads this project, is a co-author of a paper on the work published in Nature Communications on April 9.

Bhattacharya's emitter is a single nanowire made of gallium nitride with a very small region of indium gallium nitride that behaves as a quantum dot. A quantum dot is a nanostructure that can generate a bit of information. In the binary code of conventional computers, a bit is a 0 or a 1. A quantum bit can be either or both at the same time.

The semiconducting materials the new emitter is made of are commonly used in LEDs and solar cells. The researchers grew the nanowires on a wafer of silicon. Because their technique is silicon-based, the infrastructure to manufacture the emitters on a larger scale already exists. Silicon is the basis of modern electronics.

"This is a big step in that it produces the pathway to realizing a practical electrically injected single-photon emitter," Bhattacharya said.

Key enablers of the new technology are size and compactness.

"By making the diameter of the nanowire very small and by altering the composition over a very small section of it, a quantum dot is realized," Bhattacharya said. "The quantum dot emits single-photons upon electrical excitation."

The U-M emitter is fueled by electricity, rather than lightanother aspect that makes it more practical. And each photon it emits possesses the same degree of linear polarization. Polarization refers to the orientation of the electric field of a beam of light. Most other single-photon emitters release light particles with a random polarization.

"So half might have one polarization and the other half might have the other," Bhattacharya said. "So in cryptic message, if you want to code them, you would only be able to use 50 percent of the photons. With our device, you could use almost all of them."

This device operates at cold temperatures, but the researchers are working on one that operates closer to room temperature.

The paper is titled "Electrically-driven polarized single-photon emission from an InGaN quantum dot in a GaN nanowire." The first author is Saniya Deshpande, a graduate student in electrical engineering and computer science. The work is supported by the National Science Foundation. The device was fabricated at the U-M Lurie Nanofabrication Facility.

###

Pallab Bhattacharya: https://www.eecs.umich.edu/eecs/etc/fac/facsearchform.cgi?pkb+

---

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 9-Apr-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Nicole Casal Moore
ncmoore@umich.edu
734-647-7087
University of Michigan

ANN ARBORIn a development that could make the advanced form of secure communications known as quantum cryptography more practical, University of Michigan researchers have demonstrated a simpler, more efficient single-photon emitter that can be made using traditional semiconductor processing techniques.

Single-photon emitters release one particle of light, or photon, at a time, as opposed to devices like lasers that release a stream of them. Single-photon emitters are essential for quantum cryptography, which keeps secrets safe by taking advantage of the so-called observer effect: The very act of an eavesdropper listening in jumbles the message. This is because in the quantum realm, observing a system always changes it.

For quantum cryptography to work, it's necessary to encode the messagewhich could be a bank password or a piece of military intelligence, for examplejust one photon at a time. That way, the sender and the recipient will know whether anyone has tampered with the message.

While the U-M researchers didn't make the first single-photon emitter, they say their new device improves upon the current technology and is much easier to make.

"This thing is very, very simple. It is all based on silicon," said Pallab Bhattacharya, the Charles M. Vest Distinguished University Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and the James R. Mellor Professor of Engineering.

Bhattacharya, who leads this project, is a co-author of a paper on the work published in Nature Communications on April 9.

Bhattacharya's emitter is a single nanowire made of gallium nitride with a very small region of indium gallium nitride that behaves as a quantum dot. A quantum dot is a nanostructure that can generate a bit of information. In the binary code of conventional computers, a bit is a 0 or a 1. A quantum bit can be either or both at the same time.

The semiconducting materials the new emitter is made of are commonly used in LEDs and solar cells. The researchers grew the nanowires on a wafer of silicon. Because their technique is silicon-based, the infrastructure to manufacture the emitters on a larger scale already exists. Silicon is the basis of modern electronics.

"This is a big step in that it produces the pathway to realizing a practical electrically injected single-photon emitter," Bhattacharya said.

Key enablers of the new technology are size and compactness.

"By making the diameter of the nanowire very small and by altering the composition over a very small section of it, a quantum dot is realized," Bhattacharya said. "The quantum dot emits single-photons upon electrical excitation."

The U-M emitter is fueled by electricity, rather than lightanother aspect that makes it more practical. And each photon it emits possesses the same degree of linear polarization. Polarization refers to the orientation of the electric field of a beam of light. Most other single-photon emitters release light particles with a random polarization.

"So half might have one polarization and the other half might have the other," Bhattacharya said. "So in cryptic message, if you want to code them, you would only be able to use 50 percent of the photons. With our device, you could use almost all of them."

This device operates at cold temperatures, but the researchers are working on one that operates closer to room temperature.

The paper is titled "Electrically-driven polarized single-photon emission from an InGaN quantum dot in a GaN nanowire." The first author is Saniya Deshpande, a graduate student in electrical engineering and computer science. The work is supported by the National Science Foundation. The device was fabricated at the U-M Lurie Nanofabrication Facility.

###

Pallab Bhattacharya: https://www.eecs.umich.edu/eecs/etc/fac/facsearchform.cgi?pkb+

---

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/uom-asc040913.php

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New study shows meditating before lecture leads to better grades

Public release date: 9-Apr-2013
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Contact: Tara Laskowski
tlaskows@gmu.edu
703-993-8815
George Mason University

Practicing a little Zen before class can lead to better grades, according to a new experimental study by George Mason University professor Robert Youmans and University of Illinois doctoral student Jared Ramsburg.

The pair of researchers conducted three classroom experiments at a California university to see if meditation might help students focus better and retain information. A random selection of students followed basic meditation instructions before a lecture, and the students who meditated before the lecture scored better on a quiz that followed than students who did not meditate. In one experiment, the meditation even predicted which students passed and which students failed the quiz.

The study was published last month in the journal Mindfulness.

Interestingly, the researchers also showed that the effect of the meditation was stronger in classes where more freshmen students were enrolled, showing that meditation might have a bigger effect on freshmen students. The researchers speculate that freshmen courses likely contain the types of students who stand to benefit the most from meditation training.

"One difficulty for researchers who study meditation is that the supposed benefits of meditation do not always replicate across different studies or populations, and so we have been trying to figure out why. This data from this study suggest that meditation may help students who might have trouble paying attention or focusing. Sadly, freshmen classes probably contain more of these types of students than senior courses because student populations who have difficulty self-regulating are also more likely to leave the university," says Youmans, an assistant professor of psychology.

Youmans believes that self-reflection might therefore have an important place in freshmen seminars or institutions with high attrition rates. Their study showed a significant improvement with only six minutes of written meditation exercises and the researchers believe with more extensive training and coaching that the results could improve.

"Personally, I have found meditation to be helpful for mental clarity, focus and self-discipline," says Ramsburg, lead author of the study and a practicing Buddhist. "I think that if mindfulness can improve mental clarity, focus and self-discipline, then it might be useful in a variety of settings and for a variety of goals."

Youmans also suggests that, in theory, other forms of active self-reflection such as prayer, taking long walks or even just taking the time to mindfully plan out your day in the morning could have some of the same positive effects as meditation. "Basically, becoming just a little bit more mindful about yourself and your place in the world might have a very important, practical benefit in this case, doing better in college."

###

About George Mason University

George Mason University is an innovative, entrepreneurial institution with global distinction in a range of academic fields. Located in Northern Virginia near Washington, D.C., Mason provides students access to diverse cultural experiences and the most sought-after internships and employers in the country. Mason offers strong undergraduate and graduate degree programs in engineering and information technology, organizational psychology, health care and visual and performing arts. With Mason professors conducting groundbreaking research in areas such as climate change, public policy and the biosciences, George Mason University is a leading example of the modern, public university. George Mason University-Where Innovation Is Tradition.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 9-Apr-2013
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Tara Laskowski
tlaskows@gmu.edu
703-993-8815
George Mason University

Practicing a little Zen before class can lead to better grades, according to a new experimental study by George Mason University professor Robert Youmans and University of Illinois doctoral student Jared Ramsburg.

The pair of researchers conducted three classroom experiments at a California university to see if meditation might help students focus better and retain information. A random selection of students followed basic meditation instructions before a lecture, and the students who meditated before the lecture scored better on a quiz that followed than students who did not meditate. In one experiment, the meditation even predicted which students passed and which students failed the quiz.

The study was published last month in the journal Mindfulness.

Interestingly, the researchers also showed that the effect of the meditation was stronger in classes where more freshmen students were enrolled, showing that meditation might have a bigger effect on freshmen students. The researchers speculate that freshmen courses likely contain the types of students who stand to benefit the most from meditation training.

"One difficulty for researchers who study meditation is that the supposed benefits of meditation do not always replicate across different studies or populations, and so we have been trying to figure out why. This data from this study suggest that meditation may help students who might have trouble paying attention or focusing. Sadly, freshmen classes probably contain more of these types of students than senior courses because student populations who have difficulty self-regulating are also more likely to leave the university," says Youmans, an assistant professor of psychology.

Youmans believes that self-reflection might therefore have an important place in freshmen seminars or institutions with high attrition rates. Their study showed a significant improvement with only six minutes of written meditation exercises and the researchers believe with more extensive training and coaching that the results could improve.

"Personally, I have found meditation to be helpful for mental clarity, focus and self-discipline," says Ramsburg, lead author of the study and a practicing Buddhist. "I think that if mindfulness can improve mental clarity, focus and self-discipline, then it might be useful in a variety of settings and for a variety of goals."

Youmans also suggests that, in theory, other forms of active self-reflection such as prayer, taking long walks or even just taking the time to mindfully plan out your day in the morning could have some of the same positive effects as meditation. "Basically, becoming just a little bit more mindful about yourself and your place in the world might have a very important, practical benefit in this case, doing better in college."

###

About George Mason University

George Mason University is an innovative, entrepreneurial institution with global distinction in a range of academic fields. Located in Northern Virginia near Washington, D.C., Mason provides students access to diverse cultural experiences and the most sought-after internships and employers in the country. Mason offers strong undergraduate and graduate degree programs in engineering and information technology, organizational psychology, health care and visual and performing arts. With Mason professors conducting groundbreaking research in areas such as climate change, public policy and the biosciences, George Mason University is a leading example of the modern, public university. George Mason University-Where Innovation Is Tradition.

---

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-04/gmu-nss040913.php

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13 dead after house-to-house shooting spree in Serbian village

A man in a small village outside Belgrade, Serbia went door to door, gunning down 13 people including his own son, six women and one baby. The man tried to kill himself and his wife but they survived and are gravely wounded.

By Alastair Jamieson, Staff writer, NBC News

A 60-year-old man fatally shot 13 people, including a baby, in a house-to-house rampage in a quiet village in Serbia Tuesday, before trying to kill himself and his wife.

The gunman, identified by police as Ljubisa Bogdanovic - a former soldier and veteran of the early-1990s regional conflict? was in a critical condition in hospital along with his wife, Javorak,?police told reporters.

Serbian police official Milorad Veljovic said the victims included 6 women, 6 men and a two-year-old boy, according to Serbian news site Press Online?and other reports.

The shooter came from a ?quiet family? and had no criminal record, Veljovic said. ?We'll see what the motive is for this gruesome murder, we're all just stunned,? he told reporters.

Marko Djurica / Reuters

A policeman stands guard in the village of Velika Ivanca, Serbia, on Tuesday.

Bogdanovic had lost his job last year, Veljovic said according to Reuters, and had a firearms permit for his CZ88 pistol, according to Press Online and Novosti.

"We have never seen a tragedy like this in Serbia, and for that reason a motive must be ascertained - what prompted this man to kill so many people in their sleep," Veljovic added, according to news site B92.

'Good neighbor'
Residents of the village of Velika Ivanca, 30 miles southeast of the capital Belgrade, said Bogdanovic first killed his son, before leaving the house and shooting his neighbors, some of whom were still asleep.?

"He knocked on the doors, and as they were opened he just fired a shot," villager Radovan Radosavljevic told The Associated Press. "He was a good neighbor and anyone would open their doors to him. I don't know what happened."

The killings occurred between 5 a.m. and 5:30 a.m local time (11 p.m. to 11.30 p.m. ET Monday), the AP said.

Nada Macura, an official at the Belgrade hospital in Belgrade where the two were being treated, told the AP that Bogdanovic had no history of mental illness. However,?Kostadinovic's wife Stanica said the man's father had hanged himself when he was a young boy and his uncle had a history of mental illness.?

The AP added:

Although such apparently random shootings are rare in Serbia, weapons are readily available mostly from the regional conflicts that tore through the Balkans in the 1990s and there is a tradition of possessing firearms.

The last similar shooting spree happened in Serbia in 2007 when a 39-year-old man gunned down nine people and injured two in a village in the east of the country.

Bogdanovic served as Serbian army soldier in the war in Croatia that began in 1991 and lasted until 1995, Reuters reported.

?

This story was originally published on Tue Apr 9, 2013 3:21 AM EDT

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/653387/s/2a7f83d9/l/0Lworldnews0Bnbcnews0N0C0Inews0C20A130C0A40C0A90C176660A220E130Edead0Eafter0Ehouse0Eto0Ehouse0Eshooting0Espree0Ein0Eserbian0Evillage0Dlite/story01.htm

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China's Xi offers to reduce friction over hotspots

China's President Xi Jinping, right, listens during a meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, unseen, in Boao town, Hainan province, China, Sunday, April 7, 2013. (AP Photo/Tyrone Siu, Pool)

China's President Xi Jinping, right, listens during a meeting with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, unseen, in Boao town, Hainan province, China, Sunday, April 7, 2013. (AP Photo/Tyrone Siu, Pool)

Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, shakes hands with Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard during their meeting in Boao town, Hainan province, Sunday, April 7, 2013. (AP Photo/Tyrone Siu, Pool)

China's President Xi Jinping speaks at the opening ceremony of the annual Boao Forum in Boao, in southern China's Hainan province, Sunday, April 7, 2013. (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan, Pool)

BOAO, China (AP) ? With pressure growing on Beijing to get North Korea to step back from its war-like footing, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that no one country should be allowed to upset world peace and added China would work to reduce tensions over regional hotspots.

In a speech to a regional business forum with political leaders from Australia to Zambia present, Xi did not offer any concrete plans for how to deal with China's neighbor, North Korea, which has elevated regional tensions through war-like rhetoric and missile deployments in recent weeks. Nor did Xi offer concessions to other neighbors locked in fraught disputes with Beijing over outlying islands: Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam.

It isn't clear whether Xi was taking a swipe at North Korea or at the United States, a frequent target of Chinese criticism, when he criticized unilateral acts that threaten stability.

"The international community should advocate the vision of comprehensive security and cooperative security, so as to turn the global village into a big stage for common development rather than an arena where gladiators fight each other. And no one should be allowed to throw the region, or even the whole world, into chaos for selfish gains," Xi said Sunday at the Boao Forum for Asia, a China-sponsored talk shop for the global elite.

Ambiguity aside, Xi's speech stands in contrast to more strident remarks he has made in recent months and marks an effort to strike an active, cooperative posture to calm regional tensions. This year's Boao meeting ? an annual event billed as Asia's version of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland ? is being watched for signs of whether Xi, installed in power five months ago, is ready to stake out new directions in a foreign policy that has been bullying toward some neighbors and passive on many international security issues.

The new Xi government is being especially challenged over North Korea. Pyongyang's ratcheting up of tensions in recent months ? from tests of a long-range missile and a nuclear device to threats of nuclear strikes ? have concerned South Korea and the United States, important economic partners for China which have looked to Beijing to rein in its longtime, if estranged communist ally.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard of Australia, whose economy has been booming due to Chinese demand, appealed to Beijing to use its leverage to get Pyongyang to climb down.

"All countries in the region share a deep interest in strategic stability. But the consequences of conflict are even more severe for us all. This is nowhere more clear than on the Korean Peninsula. There, any aggression is a threat to the interest of every country in the region. For this reason, I do welcome the growing cooperation of all regional governments to prevent conflict on the Korean Peninsula and to counter North Korean aggression," Gillard told the forum.

Outside of North Korea, expectations of any change in Chinese policy have been focused on Japan. Months of friction over East China Sea islands led to frosty political ties, tense cat-and-mouse games between their maritime forces and flagging trade between the world's second and third largest economies.

Xi didn't address any dispute by name but he promised a constructive approach to regional tensions.

"China will continue to properly handle differences and frictions with the relevant countries," Xi said in his speech. "On international and regional hotspot issues, China will continue to play a constructive role, adhere to peace and facilitating talks and make unremitting efforts to properly handle relevant issues through dialogue and negotiations."

Still, Xi did not present any compromise. He insisted that China would safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity, language that makes it harder for Beijing to back away from territorial claims.

Xi also reminded countries that China represents a good business opportunity for neighbors and the world, saying over the next five years China's imports will reach $10 trillion while its companies plan to invest $500 billion overseas. "The more China develops, the more opportunities for development it brings the world and Asia," Xi said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-04-07-China-Tensions/id-eebc8f4f13bd40e18b00a0f4904110db

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Taylor Swift and cancer survivor Kevin McGuire finally

Image Credit: Mike Windle/Getty Images

One year after she pledged to bring teenage leukemia survivor Kevin McGuire to the ACM Awards, Taylor Swift has finally had a chance to make good on her promise. (Kevin couldn?t attend the 2012 ceremony due to a chemo-induced fever, though Swift did give him a heartfelt shout-out in her Entertainer of the Year acceptance speech.) McGuire and his family attended the show in Las Vegas yesterday, after enjoying a private pre-telecast meeting with Swift. No word on whether the singer and her ?date? planned their complementary outfits, though.

McGuire first got Swift?s attention last winter, when his older sister Tori launched a Facebook campaign asking Taylor to take her brother to prom. The page went viral almost instantly, prompting a response from Swift herself after just a few days. Kevin, naturally, was thrilled. ?She?s classy, sweet, and kind,? he told Philadelphia?s CBS affiliate ? what?s more, his sister says that her upbeat music helped him fight his cancer.

And now that Kevin?s finally had his long-awaited date, he can use it as a launchpad to move forward with his life: ?Going through what we?ve been through? it?s symbolic, in a way. It started my chapter with my cancer. Now it?s behind me; I can close the book on it,? he told CBS.

So to recap: Taylor Swift brings joy to an entire family, essentially cures cancer. Your move, Kate Upton!

Read more:
ACM Awards: Best and worst of the broadcast
ACM Awards: What They Wore
Miranda Lambert: Carrie Underwood deserved to win at the ACM Awards

Source: http://music-mix.ew.com/2013/04/08/taylor-swift-leukemia-survivor-kevin-mcguire-acm-date/

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Google Play Android redesign and Babel chat branding surface on Google+

Google I/O may still be a solid month away, but folks on Mountain View's social network are already stumbling across leaks and notifications hinting at what might be in store. Google Play's 4.0 redesign, for instance, briefly appeared on a YouTube employee's profile before being deleted, matching the holo-themed leak we saw last month. The update shows a landing page we didn't see in the previous walkthrough, and includes a message introducing the redesign that promises to make it "easier to browse and discover new favorites." Google's rumored Babel chat rebranding is making the rounds too, apparently surfacing in Gmail when certain messages are moved to trash. Neither are surefire announcements for I/O, but the timing is about right. Skip on past the break for a screen grab of the Babel notification.

Filed under: Mobile, Google

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Source: Droid Life, Google+

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US Lawmakers Seek Details on Beyonce, Jay-Z Cuba Trip (Voice Of America)

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How Family Education Can Influence Addiction Recovery ...

How Family Education Can Influence Addiction Recovery

How Family Education Can Influence Addiction Recovery

Watching your child succumb to addiction is heartbreaking. Whether your loved one is addicted to drugs or alcohol, the end result is the same: Your loved one is held hostage by a substance that threatens his or her relationships, finances, health and future. Understandably, many parents feel helpless as they watch the tragedy unfold; however, the truth is that parents are extremely helpful. In the battle against addiction, parents stand in a powerful position to fight for their children if they arm themselves with the facts about the dangers of drug abuse and options for recovery.

Family Bonds: The Addiction Antidote
The connection between family relationships and substance abuse has been well documented. According to a study published by the Drug and Alcohol Review, parents play a key part in both preventing and intervening with substance abuse. Specific findings include the following:

?The closeness of a parent-child bond discourages drug use both directly and through impact on choice of non-using friends
?Quality family cohesion suppresses initial levels of use of alcohol, cigarettes and marijuana
?Consistent child-management practices (e.g. rewards and punishments) increase family attachment and decrease delinquent behaviors among children
?Parental supervision can delay or prevent the onset of drug use

For many parents, a child?s addiction is a wake-up call that reveals family problems they had previously not recognized. National Institute on Drug Abuse?research findings about the value of family education are particularly hopeful for this group. In a study of several types of family based?prevention approaches, including in-home family support, behavioral parenting training, family skills training, family education and family therapy, the authors found that family centered approaches had an effect two to nine times greater than approaches that were solely child focused.

A similar study conducted by Great Britain?s National Criminal Justice Reference Service found that effective prevention work equipped families in the following three ways:

?Boosting skills needed to develop family cohesion, clear communication patterns, high-quality supervision and conflict resolution
?Substance related skills to inform parents about modeling correct behaviors and attitudes
?Confidence building skills to enable parents to communicate effectively about drugs

One protective factor that has been shown to positively impact a child?s use patterns is help-seeking behavior. Families that seek assistance from recovery centers teach their children valuable lessons about the importance of reaching out in times of crisis.

Resources: Connecting Families to Recovery Communities
One empowering step parents can take is to utilize available resources. Connecting with outside groups and organizations not only expands opportunities for your child to get help but also widens your parental base of support. Several options to consider include the following:

?The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration provides locations of residential, outpatient and hospital inpatient treatment programs for drug addiction and alcoholism throughout the country. This information is also accessible by calling 1-800-662-HELP.
?The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-TALK) offers help with a host of issues, including drug and alcohol abuse, and can connect individuals with a nearby professional.
?The National Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health America are alliances of nonprofit, self-help support organizations for patients and families dealing with a variety of mental disorders.
?Faces & Voices of Recovery is an advocacy organization for individuals in long-term recovery that strategically plans ways to reach out to the medical, public health, criminal justice, and other communities to promote and celebrate recovery from addiction to alcohol and other drugs
?The Partnership at Drugfree.org?is an organization that provides information and resources on teen drug use and addiction for parents in order to help them prevent and intervene in their children?s drug use or find treatment for a child who needs it. They offer a toll-free helpline for parents (1-855-378-4373).
?The American Society of Addiction Medicine is a society of physicians aimed at increasing access to addiction treatment. Their website has a nationwide directory of addiction medicine professionals.
?The National Institute on Drug Abuse?s DrugPubs Research Dissemination Center provides booklets, pamphlets, fact sheets and other informational resources on drugs, drug abuse and treatment.

Connecting to a recovery community can make facing a child?s drug or alcohol problem feel less overwhelming. Breaking isolation by reaching out is a powerful tool to help every person whose life has been touched by addiction.

Siblings: An Important Part of the Equation
Although the family member involved in active addiction often receives the most parental focus, it is important to remember that substance abuse affects everyone, not just the person who uses. In fact, modeling of drug use by siblings is a better predictor of a younger child?s drug use than parental use.

Taking the time to educate siblings who may be observing a brother or sister?s crisis may help them see addiction as a warning sign for their own lives. Important topics to address with sisters and brothers include the following:

?Basic concepts of substance abuse
?Effects of substance abuse
?What to expect as their sibling recovers
?How the family can help by avoiding enabling behaviors
?How family members can heal by joining support groups such as Al-Anon

National D.A.R.E. Day is Friday, April 5th, 2013

Source: http://xanaxaddictionhelp.com/how-family-education-can-influence-addiction-recovery/

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Source: http://pghpf.org/2013/04/07/addiction-recovery/

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The Weekly Roundup for 04.01.2013

You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/50KUdBgbgL8/

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Obama budget takes heat from all quarters

Republicans reject any new taxes. Liberals say they'll fight any changes to Social Security and other entitlement programs. Does the Obama administration have any room to maneuver?

By Brad Knickerbocker,?Staff writer / April 7, 2013

President Barack Obama, and White House Senior Advisor Dan Pfeiffer react to a reporter's question as they leave the Treasury Department in January. Pfeiffer warned Republicans Sunday that a "my way or the highway" approach would spell the GOP's defeat in upcoming budget negotiations, and he told Democratic allies that they, too, will have to bend on Obama's delayed spending plan set to be released this week.

Charles Dharapak/AP

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Does President Obama?s budget have a snowball?s chance in Hades?

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He?ll submit his administration?s budget for the fiscal year beginning in October on Wednesday, and based on leaked details it?s getting largely negative reviews.

House Speaker John Boehner has rejected it because it includes new revenues, meaning some new taxes on the wealthy. Obama?s liberal base promises to block any cuts in entitlements ? in particular, a revised inflation adjustment for Social Security known as "chained CPI."?

"There are nuggets of his budget that I think are optimistic." Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday ? the only praise, however lukewarm, heard from a Republican.

"The president is showing a little bit of leg here, this is somewhat encouraging," said Sen. Graham. "He has sort of made a step forward in the entitlement-reform process."

"He showed some leadership," Graham added. "That puts the burden on us."

Which is exactly what Obama?s liberal base fears, a fact all too clear to the White House, which sought to clarify its position Sunday.

"This chained CPI that?s being referred to here, it is something the president will only accept on two conditions," senior advisor Dan Pfeiffer?said on ABC?s ?This Week.? "One, it?s part of a balanced package that includes closing tax loopholes that benefit the wealthiest, and two, that it has protections for the most vulnerable, including the oldest seniors."

On Wednesday ? the day he officially unveils his budget for FY 2014 ? Obama will dine with a dozen Republican senators.

"The president's focus, in addition to the regular order process that members of Congress say they want, is to try to find a caucus of common sense, folks who are willing to compromise, that don't think compromise is a dirty word, and try to get something done," White House senior advisor Dan Pfeiffer said Sunday on "This Week.?

But Obama might want to schedule a meal with liberal lawmakers and pundits as well.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/3sGxt_6XldM/Obama-budget-takes-heat-from-all-quarters

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D?f?n?t?ly K?ngsl?y: LONG DISTANCE RELATIONSHIPS...CAN IT ...

[THIS POST WAS COMPOSED BY "ONYINYE CHIUKWU"]

I was speaking with a friend of mine who said he had not seen his girlfriend in over a year-he's here in Lagos and she isin Jos-and that they were gradually becoming strangers, they barely had anything to say to each other when they spoke on the phone, said he was gradually forgetting what she looked likeand was losing interest in the relationship. I perfectly understood where he was coming from, because personally don't do long distance relationships either. It's usually stressfuland very difficult to maintain and the tendency for it to fail is high, although to be fair, quite a number of them are successful. Now when I say long distance, I don't mean Surulere to Islando, I mean inter-state or country.
Funny enough though, I've met people who actually prefer LDR to having their partners around, they feel they can"breathe" better without having their partners constantly afoot, They are free to conduct their personal business without questions, and then there's the thrill of re-uniting after a long period apart. As Ii said earlier, me o, I don't like LDR at all, I've been in a couple of them and, yes, they failed. Here are my reasons I feel LDR is doomed to fail:
Firstly, I know people say " Distance makes the heart grow fonder", but me I say "Out of sight is out of mind ". this is because not seeing one constantly, you realize that you begin to grow apart, you don't talk as regularly as you used to, sometimes, you might not even have anything to say to each other. a colleagueof mine left to another place, and I missed him a lot, because we were prettyclose, with time though, I began to realize I rarely thought of him, not that we stopped being friends, but we kind oflost that closeness. The same thing applies in a relationship, when you see each other regularly, you share tidbits ofwhat happened during the day, you look forward to seeing them and hearing about their day, it's usually not the same with talking on the phone.
Secondly, trust issues begins to arise. I know we are supposed to trust our partners' unconditionally-abi is it love sef-but sometimes, you can't help but nottrust them. When you are in an LDR, u can't monitor their activities, you don't know what they are doing, if and when they are lying and if they are actually being faithful. Every time you call and they don't answer, your mind goes into overdrive mode and you begin to imagine all sorts of things. Furthermore, you don't learn about someone's character from talking on the phone and sending pictures via BB, these are things you learn from constant interaction. Have youever tried settling relationship disputes over the phone? Gosh! It's one of the most frustrating things ever, you are conscious of airtime, you both cant shoutat the same time, heck, you don't even know if they are being sincere or not .
Next, we meet people every day and gradually, innocent friendship begins to develop where it ordinarily should not. Atfirst you tell yourself it's no big deal, after all it's not like your being unfaithful or anything, but we all know how it is, it always starts innocently thengraduates to something else. Then look at the cost of keeping in touch, if you are not working, you realize that the costof constantly crediting your phone is telling on your pocket, and somehow, it always falls on one person to do all the calling. Eventually, you become tired and give up entirely.
One of my friend's major problem is thathe has not had sex in awhile and he thinks its unhealthy for a guy to go a long time without sex. Seriously??? ( Roger, stop walking by and tell me if it's true). So many guys hold on to that excuse, but hey, what do I know.
Finally, I love to cuddle, I am a very cuddly person and there's just so much that a teddy bear can do, so if you're not around to cuddle...well that's just a deal breaker!
Anyway, LDR can be made to work, so long as you don't stay apart for too long. make it a habit of visiting at least once in 4 months, so you don't lose that thing that hold you together...and you don't forget what your partner looks like.

(You can read the original post here=?. http://chukwuonyinye.blogspot.com/2012/07/long-distance-relationships.html )
Sent from my BlackBerry? wireless handheld from Glo Mobile.

Source: http://definitelykingsley.blogspot.com/2013/04/long-distance-relationshipscan-it-work.html

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Happy Marriage Tends to Mean Weight Gain | Psych Central News

By Rick Nauert PhD Senior News Editor
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on April 5, 2013

Marriage?has long been?associated with health benefits. However, times change and contemporary marriage appears to be linked with weight gain.

On the up side, Southern Methodist University researchers discovered the increase in body mass index over time is associated with relationship satisfaction.

By contrast, when couples are less satisfied in their marriage, or even contemplating separation, they?re significantly less likely to incur the weight penalty of their happier counterparts.

?It?s pretty well-established that marriage is associated with weight gain, and divorce is associated with weight loss,? said Dr. Andrea Meltzer, assistant professor of psychology. ?But the extent to which satisfaction plays a role hasn?t been examined until now.?

The outcome of the study, found in the journal Health Psychology, was uncertain from the start.

Prior research has found that satisfying relationships are actually helpful in promoting good health practices. But Meltzer notes that those studies focused more on behaviors ? such as taking medication on time or getting an annual physical ? than weight.

Literature on mating, meanwhile, has shown that weight-maintenance is motivated primarily by a desire to attract a partner.

From this perspective, it makes sense that keeping svelte could be a function of dissatisfaction, and a desire to get back on the market.

To test which of these models held true, Meltzer and her co-authors tracked 169 newlyweds (married within the previous six months) for four years, checking in biannually to assess such measures as height, weight, marital satisfaction, stress, steps toward divorce and so on.

Upon analyzing the results, they found that more satisfied couples gained more weight ? even controlling for confounding factors such as pregnancy.

?It was a relatively small amount of weight,? said Meltzer, who used changes in body mass index to assess this. ?But we only looked at a snapshot of the first four years; if you take one of those happy marriages that go on for 20, 30, 40 years, it could potentially become unhealthy.?

In fact, a 2007 study of nearly 8,000 people found that over a five-year period, married men gained six more pounds than their same-aged bachelor buddies, while wedded women gained nine more pounds than their single counterparts.

As for why a happy marriage is correlated with a heavier physique, researchers can only speculate.

?What I think is happening is that people are thinking about weight maintenance in terms of appearance as opposed to health,? said Meltzer.

?The individuals who were buffered from weight-gain were the ones who were considering going back into the mating market and having to find a new partner, which suggests it has something to do with looks.?

The sheer stress of a breakup is also known to make the pounds melt off. And in a recent study out of Rutgers University, it was found that women in low-quality relationships were more likely to crash diet.

Meltzer suggests that happy couples who consider weight in terms of health, as opposed to appearance, may be able to avoid the costs at the scale.

But she also cautions that happy couples whose pants-size has crept up over the years can?t discount the effects of, a poor diet and limited physical activity.

?There?s more than just relationship satisfaction accounting for increased weight over time,? she said.

Source: Southern Methodist University

Happy overweight married couple photo by shutterstock.

APA Reference
Nauert PhD, R. (2013). Happy Marriage Tends to Mean Weight Gain. Psych Central. Retrieved on April 5, 2013, from http://psychcentral.com/news/2013/04/05/happy-marriage-tends-to-mean-weight-gain/53453.html

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Source: http://psychcentral.com/news/2013/04/05/happy-marriage-tends-to-mean-weight-gain/53453.html

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