Scientists claim radiation from handsets are to blame for mysterious 'colony collapse' of bees
It seems like the plot of a particularly far-fetched horror film. But
some scientists suggest that our love of the mobile phone could cause
massive food shortages, as the world's harvests fail.
They are putting forward the theory that radiation given off by mobile
phones and other hi-tech gadgets is a possible answer to one of the
more bizarre mysteries ever to happen in the natural world - the abrupt
disappearance of the bees that pollinate crops. Late last week, some
bee-keepers claimed that the phenomenon - which started in the US, then
spread to continental Europe - was beginning to hit Britain as well.
The
theory is that radiation from mobile phones interferes with bees'
navigation systems, preventing the famously homeloving species from
finding their way back to their hives. Improbable as it may seem, there
is now evidence to back this up.
Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD)
occurs when a hive's inhabitants suddenly disappear, leaving only
queens, eggs and a few immature workers, like so many apian Mary
Celestes. The vanished bees are never found, but thought to die singly
far from home. The parasites, wildlife and other bees that normally
raid the honey and pollen left behind when a colony dies, refuse to go
anywhere near the abandoned hives.
The alarm was first sounded
last autumn, but has now hit half of all American states. The West
Coast is thought to have lost 60 per cent of its commercial bee
population, with 70 per cent missing on the East Coast.
CCD has
since spread to Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, Italy and
Greece. And last week John Chapple, one of London's biggest
bee-keepers, announced that 23 of his 40 hives have been abruptly
abandoned.
Other apiarists have recorded losses in Scotland,
Wales and north-west England, but the Department of the Environment,
Food and Rural Affairs insisted: "There is absolutely no evidence of
CCD in the UK."
The implications of the spread are alarming. Most
of the world's crops depend on pollination by bees. Albert Einstein
once said that if the bees disappeared, "man would have only four years
of life left".
No one knows why it is happening. Theories
involving mites, pesticides, global warming and GM crops have been
proposed, but all have drawbacks.
German research has long shown that bees' behaviour changes near power lines.
Now
a limited study at Landau University has found that bees refuse to
return to their hives when mobile phones are placed nearby. Dr Jochen
Kuhn, who carried it out, said this could provide a "hint" to a
possible cause.
Dr George Carlo, who headed a massive study by
the US government and mobile phone industry of hazards from mobiles in
the Nineties, said: "I am convinced the possibility is real."
The case against handsets
Evidence
of dangers to people from mobile phones is increasing. But proof is
still lacking, largely because many of the biggest perils, such as
cancer, take decades to show up.
Most research on cancer has so
far proved inconclusive. But an official Finnish study found that
people who used the phones for more than 10 years were 40 per cent more
likely to get a brain tumour on the same side as they held the handset.
Equally
alarming, blue-chip Swedish research revealed that radiation from
mobile phones killed off brain cells, suggesting that today's teenagers
could go senile in the prime of their lives.
Studies in India and
the US have raised the possibility that men who use mobile phones
heavily have reduced sperm counts. And, more prosaically, doctors have
identified the condition of "text thumb", a form of RSI from constant
texting.
Professor Sir William Stewart, who has headed two
official inquiries, warned that children under eight should not use
mobiles and made a series of safety recommendations, largely ignored by
ministers. <http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/are-mobile-phones-wiping-out-our-bees-444768.html>
Microsoft unveils $40bn buy-back
Investors tend to cheer buybacks because it boosts existing share prices
|
Microsoft has unveiled plans to spend $40bn (£22bn) buying back its
shares from investors, the biggest single buy-back plan in history.
Analysts say the move is an attempt by the software giant to use its
spare cash to prop up its share price which has fallen by almost 30%
this year.
Hewlett-Packard and Nike have also announced major buy-back programmes.
The personal computer-maker will buy back $8bn of shares, while Nike's plan is worth $5bn.
'Attractive prices'
Microsoft said the buy-back plan showed its "confidence in the
long-term growth of the company and our commitment to returning capital
to our shareholders."
Industry watchers have said Microsoft will be hoping the plan will
revive its share price which has declined this year, partly due to its
failed $47.5bn (£26.3) bid to buy the internet portal Yahoo.
"I'm impressed," said Michael Holland of the deals. He oversees
$4bn (£2.2bn) as chairman and founder of Holland & Co in New York.
"When companies have come in to buy their own stock subsequent
to a financial crisis, they've bought at attractive prices and it's
been a good use of liquidity," Mr Holland told Bloomberg News.
Microsoft stock rose 4% at the start of trading
|
At the end of June this year, the company was sitting on a cash
mountain of $23.7bn and has never been in debt in its 33-year history.
The BBC's technology reporter Maggie Shiels said there was
little doubt Microsoft had to do something because it simply had too
much cash lying on its books following the company's failed attempt to
buy either all or part of Yahoo.
Dealogic said the new buy-back, which will run until 2013, is the
single biggest share buy-back in history. It follows a previous 2004
plan which started as a $30bn project and was later boosted by another
$10bn. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7630508.stm>
Morgan Stanley in 20% stake sale
Morgan Stanley shares surged after
Japanese banking giant Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group said it would buy
a stake in the bruised Wall Street bank.
The Japanese group said the stake will account for 10% to 20% of Morgan Stanley's common shares.
A price has not yet been decided. Further details will be revealed after the group has completed due diligence.
Morgan Stanley has been humbled by the credit crisis tearing through the world's financial system.
A tie-up with Mitsubishi UFJ - the world's second
largest bank holding company with $1.1 trillion (£595bn) in deposits -
would allow New York-based Morgan Stanley to shore up its capital base.
"As one of the largest commercial banks in the world,
Mitsubishi UFJ would be a valuable partner as we transition to a bank
holding company and build our bank services and deposit base," said
John J. Mack, Morgan Stanley's chairman and chief executive.
Morgan Stanley shares shot up as much as 16% on the news and
were trading up almost $3, or 10.7%, at $30.13 in early New York trade.
But they are still much lower than their 2007 peak of $74 last June, shortly before the credit crisis unfolded. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7629516.stm>
US bail-out plan provokes doubts
Markets have seen huge volatility recently
|
Doubts over the speed at which the US financial bail-out plan can be
introduced have emerged from both Democrats and Republicans.
Contentious issues include limiting compensation for bosses of rescued
firms and wider help for Americans who could lose their homes.
Lawmakers from both sides say they need more time for debate, but a leading Democrat said progress was being made.
The White House says Congress must back the plan to prevent more economic harm.
President George W Bush said the world was watching to see if "we can act quickly to shore up our markets".
Details of the $700bn (£382bn) package are still being worked out.
Meetings took place over the weekend between Federal Reserve
head Ben Bernanke, US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and members of
Congress to try to seek consensus on the plan.
However uncertainty over how the programme will work caused the Dow
Jones share index to fall by more than 370 points, or 3.27%, wiping out
the gains made during Friday's rally.<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7629823.stm>
Shares slide amid bail-out fears
Monday's falls wiped out Friday's gains in the US
|
Shares in Asia opened lower amid uncertainty about the impact of the massive US financial bail-out plan.
The falls followed a sharp slide in the US, where the
administration has been discussing the $700bn (£382bn) rescue plan with
lawmakers.
The White House says Congress must back the proposed bail-out to prevent wider economic harm.
But doubts over the speed at which it can be introduced have emerged from both Democrats and Republicans.
Many politicians appear alarmed by the scale and implications of the global financial crisis.
While most are anxious to find bi-partisan ways of getting
behind the bail-out, others are critical of what they see as a waste of
taxpayers' money, correspondents say. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7630578.stm>
Economy dominates as UN meets
|
By Bridget Kendall
Diplomatic correspondent, BBC News, New York
|
Ban Ki-moon told delegates world leaders needed to work together
|
By 0730 outside the United Nations headquarters in New York, police
were huddled on the pavement, getting a final briefing from commanding
officers.
Every year there seems to be more and more of them. Along with the
armed patrol boats churning up and down the East River, the security
cordon gets tighter.
For journalists trying to make their way into the building, laden with laptops and cameras, it is an uphill struggle.
This year was US President George W Bush's valedictory speech to
the body he has had such a rocky relationship with over his eight years
in office.
The last of the main speakers to hurry in, he arrived well
after the first speeches had started - too much financial business on
his mind, perhaps.
Even so he cheerily waved at the cameras.
On the podium he did, as expected, offer reassurances on the current financial crisis.
He had taken "bold steps", he said, and the new Wall Street bail-out
he was still negotiating with Congress would, he claimed, be enacted
within the urgent time-frame needed.
But what Mr Bush really wanted to dwell on were those favourite
themes which perhaps he still hopes will define his legacy - battles
for freedom and against terrorism.
"Some may be tempted to assume the threat has receded," he said.
"This would be comforting but it would be wrong.
"The terrorists believe time is on their side, so they made waiting out civilised nations part of their strategy."
A hint, perhaps, of a presidential worry that whoever his
successor is, he may not give combating international terrorism the
same priority. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7632769.stm>
Patent system 'stifling science'
|
By James Morgan
Science reporter, BBC News
|
Patent headaches have delayed the release of "golden" rice (right)
|
Life-saving scientific research is being stifled by a "broken" patent system, according to a new report.
"Blocking patents" are delaying advances in cancer medicine and
food crops, says the Canada-based Innovation Partnership, a non-profit
consultancy.
The full benefits of synthetic biology and nanotechnology will
not be realised without urgent reforms to encourage sharing of
information, they say.
Their findings will be reported next week to UK policymakers and NGOs.
The report is compiled by the Innovation
Partnership's International Expert Group on Biotechnology, Innovation
and Intellectual Property.
It cites examples of medical advances which have been delayed
from reaching people in need - in both the developed and developing
world.
These include HIV/Aids drugs, cancer screening tests, and rice engineered to contain vitamin A.
 |
In pharmacy, we no longer see much discovery - we see firms playing safe and holding onto their turf
|
The authors offer guidelines for a transition from "Old IP" to "New
IP", in which companies, researchers and governments recognise that
sharing information is mutually beneficial.
"If we are to turn the atoms of publicly funded discovery into
molecules of innovation... we have to make sure research avenues stay
open," said the report's lead author, Professor Richard Gold.
"That doesn't mean there will be no patents. It simply means that patents don't become a barrier to early stage research.
"We do not want to end up in the same situation with nanotechnology that we are in with genetics." <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7632318.stm>
DepEd wasted millions from its 2007 budget, study shows
09/24/2008 | 11:43 AM
MANILA, Philippines - The
Department of Education (DepEd) wasted millions of pesos from its 2007
budget, the Congressional Planning and Budget Department (CPBD) said on
Wednesday.
Citing the 2007 audit report of the Commission on Audit (COA), the CPBD
- in its agency budget notes for September 2008 - said millions in
DepEd's budget for last year were wasted either through
non-utilization, misallocation or purchase of inferior equipment.
"Information and multi-media equipment packages amounting to no less
than P667.95 million were neither utilized nor maximized for classroom
instructions in 13 regions because they were either defective or
distributed to schools which were not strictly selected in accordance
with the approved criteria, resulting in the wasteful storage or
utilization of the units," the CPBD report stated.
Acute classroom shortages in 2,929 schools were also left unaddressed
because school building projects worth at least P597.796 million were
spent instead on 1,329 school sites that had the least need for
buildings and classrooms, the report stated.
Likewise, 84,254 sets of tables and chairs and 150,748 armchairs
costing P197 million were allocated to 2,777 elementary and 899
secondary schools that already had adequate seat provisions from
2004-2007 instead of giving them to 2,764 elementary and secondary
schools with acute seat shortages.
The CPDB further said the COA report disclosed that while the number of
undistributed textbooks decreased from 2006 to 2007, a total of
1,275,056 copies of unused textbooks or manuals costing at least P57.3
million remained stored in school stockrooms or libraries in 2007.
The COA report also showed that "unnecessary expenses and waste of time
and effort by school personnel and parent-student beneficiaries"
occurred due to school implementers' non-compliance with DepEd
guidelines on the implementation of the Food for School program and
violations of the existing rice supply contact of the National Food
Authority, said the CPBD.
The CPBD likewise noted that while participation in secondary schools
increased from 57 percent to 58 percent from 2001 to 2006, elementary
school participation declined from 90 percent to 83 percent.
The overall achievement rate for school year 2006 to 2007 also remained
low for both levels, with 60 percent for elementary and 47 percent for
high school, said the CPBD.
The report said the failure to meet the 2005 Medium Term Philippine
Development Program Plan (MTPDP) targets for key indicators for basic
education such as participation, cohort survival, and dropout rates for
both elementary and secondary levels indicate that there is low
probability to meeting the 2010 MTPDP targets.
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has allocated P167.94
billion for the DepEd for 2009, a 13 percent increase from 2008's
P149.25 billion.
During the budget briefing last Sept. 11, DepEd Secretary Jesli Lapus
said the 2009 allocation is still inadequate as the increase in the
DepEd should be at par with the increase in the P1.41-trillion national
budget for 2009, which increased by P15.32 percent from 2008.
Under the P167.94 billion budget allotted by the Budget department, the
DepEd is planning to allot P136.82 billion for personal services, a 19
percent increase from 2008's P114.77 billion.
However, the funds for maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE)
is likely to go down by 7 percent, from 2008's P21.73 billion to the
proposed P20.27 for 2009.
Only P10.85 billion will be allotted for capital outlay, which includes
school building constructions, a 15 percent decrease from P12.75
billion in 2008.
- Johanna Camille Sisante, GMANews.TV <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/122500/DepEd-wasted-millions-from-its-2007-budget-study-shows>
Bernanke demands bail-out action
Mr Bernanke has urged the bail-out to go through
|
The chairman of the US Federal Reserve
has urged politicians to "act quickly" to support the proposed $700bn
(£378bn) bail-out of the financial markets.
The US economic outlook was "quite adverse" if measures were not taken, Ben Bernanke said.
Mr Bernanke said Congress must "address the grave threats to financial stability that we currently face".
On Tuesday politicians expressed strong scepticism about the bail-out following a five-hour Senate hearing on the plan.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson had told already
the banking panel that delaying the $700bn (£382bn) bail-out would put
the entire US economy at risk.
But both Democratic and Republican congressmen said they wanted
assurances that the plan would benefit ordinary American home-owners as
well as Wall Street. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7634017.stm>
Key finance firms 'probed by FBI'
The US government has stepped in to rescue some struggling institutions
|
The FBI has begun an investigation into four major US financial
institutions caught up in the current financial crisis, US media say.
Investigators are reportedly examining possible fraud by mortgage
giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the failed bank Lehman Brothers and
insurer AIG.
Top managers at those firms are also being investigated, the reports say.
In the past year, as the US housing market slumped, the FBI began a broad inquiry across the financial sector.
It was prompted by concerns over the way high-risk, "sub-prime" mortgages were being sold.
The FBI has been looking at lenders who sold home loans to
buyers on low or unpredictable incomes and also the investment banks
that packaged these loans and sold them on. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7632790.stm>
Withdrawals hit Bank of East Asia
Customers of BEA formed long queues after rumours sparked panic
|
The Bank of East Asia has denied rumours that it is in financial
trouble, after thousands of customers queued to withdraw their savings.
After weeks of global market turmoil, lines of people quickly formed outside the bank's branches in Hong Kong.
In a statement, the bank said the rumours were malicious and untruthful, and they had informed the police.
The speculation was believed to have been spread by mobile phone, and drove the bank's share price down by 11%.
The rumours started earlier this week and customers descended on
branches on Wednesday, despite bank staff handing out leaflets to the
crowds denying that the bank was in financial difficulty. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7633468.stm>
E Timor's wealth: blessing or curse?
|
By Lucy Williamson
BBC News
|
The goverment is sitting on lots of money, while people are still poor
|
One day, perhaps, the place where Isabel sits will be a five-star
hotel, its private villas looking on the beach, its grand entrance
frowning down on the western corner of Dili's beach road.
But for now, six years after independence from Indonesia, there is just Isabel.
Her flimsy bamboo stall shades her from the sun's glare, her
tiny piles of tomatoes and garlic are waiting naked in the afternoon
heat for a sale.
Six years of independence, and East Timor's capital city is holding its breath.
Two governments, multinational forces numbering thousands,
billions of dollars of international money - and yet people like Isabel
are still saying life was better under the Indonesians.
"People could afford to buy things then." she said. "Now we
just sit here at the stall all day, and perhaps we'll earn a dollar or
two." <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7629881.stm>
EDF completes UK nuclear line-up
|
Analysis
By Jorn Madslien
Business reporter, BBC News
|
Less than two months after British Energy shareholders walked
away from an earlier deal, EDF has bagged the UK nuclear power
generator in a £12.4bn deal.
Britain's nuclear future is expected to be dominated by French firms
|
Selling British Energy to EDF is about more than just a handover of physical assets.
The deal also completes the line-up of participants in a nuclear
race that will lead to the creation of two essentially new branches of
Britain's nuclear industry.
One is needed to clean up the mess left behind after half a century of nuclear weapons and energy production.
The other is getting ready to build an entirely new generation
of at least eight nuclear reactors, after the government gave the
go-ahead for the rebirth of the nuclear industry early this year.
"The role for nuclear new-build as an integral part of UK
energy policy is now firmly established," according to British Energy's
chief executive, Bill Coley. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7532542.stm>
Belarus poll: 'A wind of change'?
Belarus
holds parliamentary elections on Sunday, amid signs that the former
Soviet republic run by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko may
be opening up to the world.
The BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse looks at how ordinary people live in what has been called Europe's "last outpost of tyranny."
The only change Valentina can think of is gas and electricity in her house
|
A typical Belarusian autumn country scene: in the light rain,
Valentina Egorovna, who is 85 years old, was gathering what remained of
the potato harvest from her small plot of land behind her wooden home.
Valentina lives in Pagarelka, a small village about 100km (60
miles) from the capital, Minsk. She was being helped by her daughter,
who is in her 60s, her son-in-law - in his 40s, and his two daughters,
six and four respectively.
"How's life? Life's all right", Valentina said. She can even
save a little of her state pension - about $250 (£135) per month -
although she still has to work the land despite her age.
Most of the people in the village work in some form or another on the nearby state-run farm.
Asked how her life had changed over the past 25 years, Valentina
looked bemused. "How might life have changed for us working people, for
us pensioners?"
Ask a babushka this question in neighbouring Russia or Ukraine,
and you are virtually guaranteed a long lecture about how good life was
in Soviet times. But not here. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7630824.stm>
Bail-out 'vital to easing crisis'
President Bush said urgent action was needed to end turmoil
|
Americans must support a massive bail-out of financial markets to
ease a "serious financial crisis", US President George W Bush has said.
The entire economy was in danger, he said in a live TV speech, and failure to act now would cost more later.
He has invited presidential rivals John McCain and Barack Obama to the
White House on Thursday to discuss the $700bn (£378bn) rescue package.
The rivals have disagreed on delaying a TV debate over the economic turmoil.
Mr McCain says he is suspending his campaign to help with the crisis,
but Mr Obama says voters now need to hear from the candidates more than
ever.
The two men will attend a meeting with administration officials and
congressional representatives on Thursday morning in the US capital in
a bid to broker a mutually acceptable bail-out deal. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7634810.stm>
Hong Kong bank recovers from run
|
Customers queue outside the Bank of East Asia to withdraw their savings
|
The Bank of East Asia (BEA) in Hong Kong has recovered from a run on its deposits, after a cash injection from the government.
Hong Kong's central bank has added an estimated HK$3.9bn ($500m, £269m) to the territory's banking system.
The government has also repeated the bank's assurances that it is sound and that depositors have nothing to fear.
On Wednesday, rumours that the bank was vulnerable spurred thousands of people to withdraw their money.
On Thursday, the queues at bank branches were much
smaller and before midday local time, the stock market had recovered
most of what it had lost the day before. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7634895.stm>
UN forecasts boom in 'green jobs'
Solar panels will be a booming industry, says the report
|
The UN says millions of new jobs will be created worldwide over the
next few decades by the development of alternative energy technologies.
More than a million people already work in biofuels, but a UN report says that could rise by 12 million by 2030.
It says "green jobs" depend on a shift of subsidies from oil and natural gas to wind, solar, and geothermal power.
New jobs could also include the expansion of recycling and making environmentally friendly vehicles.
The report, 'Green Jobs: Towards Decent Work in a Sustainable,
Low-Carbon World', was commissioned and funded by the UN's Environment
Programme (Unep).
It says the manufacture, installation and maintenance of solar
panels should add 6.3 million jobs by 2030, while wind power should add
more than two million jobs. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7634792.stm>
Hollywood 'paid fortune to smoke'
Tobacco firms paid huge amounts for endorsements from the stars of Hollywood's "Golden Age".
Industry documents released following anti-smoking lawsuits
reveal the extent of the relationship between tobacco and movie
studios.
One firm paid more than $3m in today's money in one year to stars.
Researchers writing in the Tobacco Control journal said
"classic" films of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s still helped promote
smoking today.
Virtually all of the biggest names of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s
were involved in paid cigarette promotion, according to the University
of California at San Francisco researchers.
They obtained endorsement contracts signed at the times to help them calculate just how much money was involved.
According to the research, stars prepared to endorse tobacco
included Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Spencer Tracy, Joan Crawford, John
Wayne, Bette Davis and Betty Grable. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7632963.stm>
Middle East Quartet 'is failing'
|
By Kim Ghattas
BBC News, New York
|
The report said the Quartet had failed to halt settlement expansion
|
Aid agencies have accused the Middle East Quartet of failing in its mission and urged it to increase its efforts.
In a report, the agencies said the Quartet - which comprises Russia,
the US, the EU and the UN - had failed to make progress on a number of
fronts.
The report was issued ahead of a Quartet meeting in New York on Friday.
The Bush administration has been seeking a peace deal between Israelis
and Palestinians by year-end but this is looking increasingly unlikely. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7634894.stm>
Local pharmaceutical industry backs stronger BFAD
09/25/2008 | 02:51 PM
MANILA, Philippines —
The Philippine Chamber of Pharmaceutical Industry (PCPI) on Thursday
throw its support behind a move to strengthen the Bureau of Food and
Drugs (BFAD).
It also urged the agency to improve its procedures and implement a
supportive regulatory policy most especially for Filipino drug
companies, for competition to thrive and bring down the prices of
medicines.
"We are very hopeful that the passage of the Universally Accessible
Cheaper and Quality Medicines Act (of 2008), which contains a very
important provision of allowing BFAD to keep its revenues will pave the
way for augmentation of the agency's depleted manpower, upgrade its
facilities, equipment outlay, human resource development and expansion,
and other requirements to effectively implement this law," said Edward
Isaac, PCPI vice president said in a statement.
Isaac said PCPI supported the passage of RA 9502, or the Universally
Accessible Cheaper and Quality Medicines Act of 2008, as it espouses
level playing field and free competition.
The group said competition not only lowers the prices but extends
access of affordable medicine to the majority of the people who finds
it painful to buy medicines.
Isaac said BFAD can help achieve a faster and more efficient way of
getting the products of Filipinos both the manufacturers and importers
into the market.
"The BFAD may adopt a new mindset of not just a regulatory office but
likewise a promoter and catalyst for social and national change. I
believe these mindsets are not diametrically opposed and in fact
complementary to the vision of accessible medicines," he said.
Isaac made his appeal during the two-day Generics Summit organized by
the Department of Health, Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC)
and the PCPI.
Hewas one of the reactors in the presentation of the IMS data wherein
the market share of branded-generics and generics vs. the innovator
drugs has reached almost parity in terms of unit sales reaching to as
high as 47% in some therapeutic categories.
"More patients and even doctors are recognizing the quality and
efficacy of the generic drugs. One glaring example is Neobloc. A brand
of metoprolol, this beta blocker not only leads all beta blockers in
unit sales but in terms of peso value as well. Truly an inspiring
accomplishment from a Filipino company," said Isaac. <
http://www.gmanews.tv/story/122866/Local-pharmaceutical-industry-backs-stronger-BFAD>
French restaurants feel the pinch
Restaurateur Jean-Pierre Difolco says the average bill has plummeted
|
Economic gloom is hitting the French where it hurts most - their
tastebuds - as they rein in their eating habits to balance the monthly
budget.
New figures show that the bankruptcy rate among restaurants and
cafes has skyrocketed since the start of the year - because ordinary
people lack the means to dine out.
A long-standing trend from the sit-down towards the take-away
is now being exacerbated by financial penury, and many fear that an
essential part of the nation's art de la vie is under threat.
Alarm bells were rung this week following a report by market
research company Euler Hermes, which found that about 3,000
establishments went out of business in the six months from January.
Of these, some 1,790 were traditional restaurants - a 25%
increase on the year before - 530 were fast-food outlets (up 19%); and
610 were cafes and bars (up 56%). <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7634217.stm>
In pictures