Obama, Jonathan pressured over nomination of W/Bank President.

Pressure is mounting on both President Goodluck Jonathan and the United States President, Barack Obama, on the appointment of the next president of the World Bank, a position for which the name of Nigeria's Finance Minister, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, is being mentioned, but the final nod is expected to be by consensus of the bank's board.
Empowered Newswire reported that since Wednesday afternoon at the White House, US reporters had been pressing President Obama's Press Secretary, Jay Carney, on the issue of who the president might propose for the office since traditionally, an American had always occupied the position. 

Sugary Drinks Bad for your Heart.

Sugary Drink

Medical science has for long tied sugary drinks to several health conditions such as heart disease, hypertension, diabetes and stroke. Experts warn that men who drink one sugar-sweetened drink per day had a 20 per cent higher risk of heart disease than men who drink none, reports Sade Oguntola.

There is growing evidence that sugary beverages should be occasional treats rather than a regular part of our diets because they are bad for health. Sugary drinks have been associated with weight gain, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay. What is more, sugared beverages are harmful for the heart. This can lead to heart disease.

In a new study, researchers found that that those drinking about 6.5 sugared beverages a week were 20 per cent more likely to have a heart attack during the study’s nearly two decades than those who never consumed them. The results came from 22 years of follow up of the eating habits and heart disease rates among 42,883 men, aged between 40 and 75, who were enrolled in the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. 

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The New iPad is Out!!!!!!!!!

Apple CEO Tim Cook at the lunch of the new iPad

In 2010 Apple released its first iPad. It was far from the industry’s first tablet computer, but it was the one that defined the category. Its successor, 2011′s  iPad 2, was so thin and light that it reset people’s expectations about tablet form factors once again, and probably contributed to the premature death of the chunkier HP TouchPad.
Now the new iPad is out, and among the interesting questions it raises is, What does this mean for the rest of the industry?
It’s going to be a while before we can fully assess its impact. But we can consider what’s new and what the chances are that it’ll change the game yet again.

Words of Wisdom

Priorities don't say straight. We must always be straightening them out.

What we say reveals who we are inside (Luke 6:45)

Every person is equally valuable to God.

Thank God for every opportunity He's given you; He could have given them to someone else.

You are more than your feelings. Your worth and value are in knowing Christ and having Him as your savior.

Worry enters our lives through thoughts, but the Bible tells us to cast all of our cares on God because He cares for us. (1 Peter 5:7)

Thoughts for the Day

Bible Reading

Proverbs 12:12-15: (NIV)

12. The wicked desire the plunder of evil men, but the root of the righteous flourishes.

13. An evil man is trapped by his sinful talk, but a righteous man escapes trouble.

14. From the fruit of his lips a man is filled with good things as surely as the work of his hands rewards him.

15. The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice.

In these verses in the book of Proverbs we are shown how the righteous are delivered from trouble while the wicked are snared by their transgressions. Verse 12 tells us that wicked men desire the evil man's booty (the things that they caught in their evil net). The righteous are different, they will yield righteous fruit, because they are rooted and grounded in the love of God.

Exercise: a boost for kid’s academic ability

Exercise: the solution for people

Italian researchers tracked 138 children aged eight through 11 who took mental acuity tests under a series of conditions that sometimes involved physical activity and sometimes did not. “Schoolteachers frequently claim that students lose attention and concentration with prolonged periods of academic instruction,” first study author, Maria Chiara Gallotta, at the University of Rome, said in a news release. “The key elements of learning, particularly important during development, are attention and concentration. Our study examined the relationship between exertion and the attention and concentration levels of schoolchildren.”

The findings appear in the March issue of Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.

Over a three-week period, the children sat for three exam sessions of 50 minutes each. Before the first test they had all engaged in some form of physical exertion. Before the second test they had only engaged in academic exercises. And the third time they had participated in both physical and academic activity. All the tests were structured to gauge concentration skills as well as the speed with which the kids responded and the quality of their answers.

NIMET predicts good agricultural yields this year.

Agricultural Produce

 The Nigerian Metrological Agency has predicted a good agricultural harvest in the country this year going by the likely pattern of rainfall. In its report titled; “Seasonal Rainfall Prediction and Socio-economic Implications for Nigeria,” which was released in Abuja on Thursday, NIMET said normal rainy pattern was expected in the current year.
The report said, “The predicted normal growing season in 2012 is expected to result in good agricultural yields, with little chance of agricultural drought across the country. “In order to take maximum advantage of the good rainfall predicted this year as well as reduce the impact of quell birds’ invasion in these areas, farmers are advised to source and undertake early planting of improved high-yielding seeds, cuttings and seedlings for all crops commonly grown in the country.”

NIMET: Flights disrupts by poor weather condition.

 The Nigerian Metrological Agency has raised the alarm over poor weather conditions, which it notes may disrupt airline operations as a result of reduced visibility.
In a statement made available to our correspondent in Abuja on Wednesday, the metrological agency said dust particles in the northern part of the country were heading southwards and could adversely affect different means of transportation.
The statement read in part, “Dust particles are currently being transported into the extreme northern part of the country since March 19, 2012. It is heading southwards to the coastal parts of the country. This will reduce horizontal visibility and flight disruption is anticipated in the next 24 hours.

W/Bank Presidency: Zuma, Ouattara, others pressure Jonathan for Okonjo-Iweala, release

Ngozi Okonjo Iweala

The chances of Nigeria’s Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to be appointed President of the World Bank brightened, midweek, as President Jacob Zuma of South Africa has joined the league of those pushing for her Presidency of the global organisation.
Mr Zuma and Ivorien counterpart, Mr. Alassane Ouattara, it was gathered, met President Goodluck Jonathan to pressure him to release the Minister to the bank in the interest of developing nations of the World and Africa in particular.  That means that South African Trevor Manuel who should have been Dr. Okonjo-Iweala’s closest contender from the continent has given way. Besides, some Executive Directors of the bank have also visited Aso Rock with a view to urging the president to give his approval for Okonjo-Iweala to take the exalted office at the bank, which has been dominated by the United States since its creation after the World War II, alongside the International Monetary Fund, in 1945.

“Breast Cancer Research Lifts Baby Hope”

Experts say they have found, for the first time, that it is safe for women with the most common form of breast cancer to become pregnant.

Those diagnosed with oestrogen receptor positive breast cancer - which accounts for 80 per cent of cases - can become pregnant without worrying it will increase their chances of the disease returning, research suggests. Previously, doctors have feared that pregnancy can boost levels of oestrogen in the body and cause the cancer to come back.
The new findings, presented at the European Breast Cancer Conference in Vienna, suggest it is safe for women to fall pregnant even within the first two years after diagnosis. The study also found that patients who become pregnant appear to survive longer than those who do not, although further research is needed in this area.

Study Challenges HIV Theories.

Evolve Substance to Develop

Cures for AIDS may have failed because we don't fully understand how HIV evolves, a researcher says.

 
University of Adelaide researcher Jack da Silva has used computer simulations to discover that even in early infection when the virus population is low, HIV rapidly evolves to evade immune defenses and treatments.
His findings, published in GENETICS journal, challenge the belief that evolution of the virus under these circumstances is very slow.
Dr da Silva, from the School of Molecular & Biomedical Science, says he believes the search for a cure for AIDS has failed so far because we do not fully understand how HIV evolves.
His studies show a virus could evolve very rapidly even if the initial population size is one.
"At low population levels, viruses have reduced genetic variation and therefore it should be harder for them to evolve rapidly," he says in a statement.
"However, it appears that the evolution of HIV goes against conventional wisdom.
"We now need further insight into the precise genetic mechanisms that enable the virus to so readily adapt to all the challenges we throw at it."

Thoughts for the Day

God's Word

Proverbs 12:8-9 (NIV)

8. A man is praised according to his wisdom, but men with warped minds are despised.

9. Better to be a nobody and yet have a servant than pretend to be somebody and have no food.

The book of Proverbs makes continually makes comparisons between the righteous wise, and the foolish wicked. Verse 8 states that the wise man will be commended according to his wisdom, while those who practice perverse and wicked deeds will be despised. Society at large, will acknowledge and praise the good deeds of men, as well as condemn their evil deeds. Jesus Himself, was a man known as one who went about doing good deeds. As God's children, we should also be known for our good deeds.

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