Nearly All US Teens Short On Sleep, Exercise Slashdotby EditorDavid on medicine at January 1, 1970, 1:00 am (cached at February 9, 2019, 11:04 pm)

UPI reports: Too little sleep. Not enough exercise. Far too much "screen time." That is the unhealthy lifestyle of nearly all U.S. high school students, new research finds. The study, of almost 60,000 teenagers nationwide, found that only 5 percent were meeting experts' recommendations on three critical health habits: sleep; exercise; and time spent gazing at digital media and television... "Five percent is a really low proportion," said study leader Gregory Knell, a research fellow at University of Texas School of Public Health, in Dallas. "We were a bit surprised by that...." "If kids are viewing a screen at night -- staring at that blue light -- that may affect their ability to sleep," Knell said. "And if you're not getting enough sleep at night, you're going to be more tired during the day," he added, "and you're not going to be as physically active." Experts recommend a minimum of 8 hours of sleep at night for teenagers, plus at least one hour every day of "moderate to vigorous" exercise. One professor of adolescent medicine points out that some high school homework now even requires using a computer -- even though too much screen time can affect teenagers' abiity to sleep.

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'Shame for humanity': Turkey urges China to close Uighur camps AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 11:00 pm)

Turkey calls China's treatment of its Muslim ethnic Uighur minority 'a great cause of shame for humanity'.
Aasia Bibi can't leave Pakistan despite acquittal AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 10:30 pm)

Christian woman cleared of blasphemy charges remains confined in Pakistan even though the government says she can leave.
New "Metallic Wood" Is As Strong As Titanium But Much Lighter Slashdotby EditorDavid on science at January 1, 1970, 1:00 am (cached at February 9, 2019, 10:04 pm)

Titanium "has long been touted as the metal of the future," writes Dwell, "due to its strength, rust resistance, and amazing lightness." But can careful atom-stacking lead to something better? An anonymous reader writes: Researchers have discovered a way to create a new "metallic wood" material that is as strong as titanium, but five times lighter, reports Dwell. "So far, the researchers have built a sheet of nickel with nanoscale pores that is almost 70 percent empty space... It was created by building tiny plastic spheres, suspending them in water, allowing the water to evaporate, and then electroplating the spheres with nickel. Researchers then dissolved the plastic spheres, producing an incredibly strong, porous metal that floats on water." Researchers are also considering the possibility of filling its empty space with an energy-storing material. "For example, a prosthetic leg made from this material and infused with anode and cathode materials, could also be a battery."

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Ebola death toll in DR Congo passes 500: health ministry AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 10:00 pm)

While MSF said there has been a surge in cases since January 15, a vaccination programme has also prevented more deaths.
Eight People Suffer Burns After Attempting Viral 'Boiling Water Challenge' Slashdotby EditorDavid on idle at January 1, 1970, 1:00 am (cached at February 9, 2019, 9:04 pm)

A burn surgeon at Loyola University Medical has treated eight different people for second and third-degree burns after they attempted to replicate the viral "boiling water challenge," according to one local news station. These people (like many others as seen across social media) heated water and threw it into the sub-zero air, expecting it to transform into a powder-like state and blow away in the wind. But that apparently didn't work out for everyone; sometimes the water stayed liquid and hit people. The youngest patient seen at Loyola is 3 years old. Sanford said that individual (like some of the other patients) was just standing next to someone else throwing the water.... Sanford said there are likely several others out there with first degree burns that didn't seek medical attention. CNN Wire Services also reports at least three more "boiling water challenge" burn victims in Minneapolis and Iowa.

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Venezuela moves to replace US executives on Citgo board AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 8:30 pm)

Citgo is facing unprecedented challenges to its finances and management after the US government imposed sanctions.
Will Saudi Arabia be held to account for Khashoggi's murder? AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 8:30 pm)

US President Donald Trump has ignored a congressional deadline to respond to the journalist's killing.
'Why Data, Not Privacy, Is the Real Danger' Slashdotby EditorDavid on privacy at January 1, 1970, 1:00 am (cached at February 9, 2019, 8:04 pm)

"While it's creepy to imagine companies are listening in to your conversations, it's perhaps more creepy that they can predict what you're talking about without actually listening," writes an NBC News technology correspondent, arguing that data, not privacy, is the real danger. Your data -- the abstract portrait of who you are, and, more importantly, of who you are compared to other people -- is your real vulnerability when it comes to the companies that make money offering ostensibly free services to millions of people. Not because your data will compromise your personal identity. But because it will compromise your personal autonomy. "Privacy as we normally think of it doesn't matter," said Aza Raskin, co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology [and a former Mozilla team leader]. "What these companies are doing is building little models, little avatars, little voodoo dolls of you. Your doll sits in the cloud, and they'll throw 100,000 videos at it to see what's effective to get you to stick around, or what ad with what messaging is uniquely good at getting you to do something...." With 2.3 billion users, "Facebook has one of these models for one out of every four humans on earth. Every country, culture, behavior type, socio-economic background," said Raskin. With those models, and endless simulations, the company can predict your interests and intentions before you even know them.... Without having to attach your name or address to your data profile, a company can nonetheless compare you to other people who have exhibited similar online behavior... A professor at Columbia law school decries the concentrated power of social media as "a single point of failure for democracy." But the article also warns about the dangers of health-related data collected from smartwatches. "How will people accidentally cursed with the wrong data profile get affordable insurance?"

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Brexit leaves Brits living in EU facing an uncertain future AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 8:00 pm)

British citizens living in the EU may have to register themselves at places like Office for Foreigners.
Democrat Senator Elizabeth Warren launches 2020 presidential bid AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 8:00 pm)

The 69-year-old from the US state of Massachusetts has already become a main target of President Donald Trump.
YouTube Struggles To Fight Mobs Weaponizing Their 'Dislike' Button Slashdotby EditorDavid on youtube at January 1, 1970, 1:00 am (cached at February 9, 2019, 7:04 pm)

"YouTube is no stranger to viewers weaponizing the dislike button, as seen by the company's recent Rewind video, but the product development team is working on a way to tackle the issue," writes the Verge. Suren Enfiajyan shares their report on a new video by Tom Leung, YouTube's director of project management. "Dislike mobs" are the YouTube equivalent to review bombings on Steam -- a group of people who are upset with a certain creator or game decide to execute an organized attack and downvote or negatively review a game or video into oblivion. It's an issue on YouTube as well, and one that creators have spoken out against many times in the past.... Now, the company is planning to experiment with new ways to make it more difficult for organized attacks to be executed. Leung states that these are just "lightly being discussed" right now, and if none of the options are the correct approach, they may hold off until a better idea comes along. Ironically, Leung's video itself drew 2,654 "dislike" votes -- nearly double its 1,377 upvotes.

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What was France's role in the 1979 Iranian revolution? AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 7:00 pm)

Experts say Paris sees Iran as the only stable power in the Middle East strategically, but the relationship with Tehran is complex.
UK horse racing cancelled after outbreak of equine flu AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (AJE)(cached at February 9, 2019, 7:00 pm)

Six races were due to take place on Friday but the blanket ban to contain the virus made it impossible to go ahead.
[no title] Scripting News(cached at February 9, 2019, 6:33 pm)

My blogging is changing back to the way it used to be. I have nothing in the game and nothing to lose. I owe the inspiration to AOC. If she can speak the truth no matter what the trolls might say, then I can too. In my drama, Google and their ass-kissers are the Repubs.