Fist-bumping reduces the transmission of bacteria by about four times, compared with shaking hands.

W. Thomas McClellan, a plastic and hand surgeon in Morgantown, West Virginia, was talking with two colleagues about MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), a difficult-to-treat, antibiotic-resistant bacterial infection prevalent in hospitals.
"When you go into a room with a patient with MRSA, you put on a gown and wash your hands," he said. "Meanwhile, the patient's family is there without any of that on, and you go shake their hands, which probably have MRSA on [them]." So McClellan had an inspiration, prompted by how he greets his young kids: "Hey, how about a fist bump?" We asked him to elaborate on the merits of fist-bumping.
Aside from use in hospitals, do you think fist-bumping should be adopted in daily life?
I do. And I'll tell you why. One, MRSA is really rampant in the community. When you go to Whole Foods or something like that, you wipe your cart handle down with an antibacterial cloth. We have alcohol sanitizers in hospitals. Well, that stuff is ineffective against some bacteria. When you think about the kinds of pathogens you are exposed to in the community, it makes a lot of sense to limit your exposure.
What part does hand-washing or hand-sanitizing play in fist-bumping?
You can't fist bump and never wash your hands. The one thing about fist-bumping is that it's not the usable surface of your hand. If you shake someone's hand, you then eat with that part of the hand. Fist-bumping protects that usable surface. You need to wash your hands; you need to limit exposure; and you need to use alcohol sanitizers.
The holiday season is approaching, which means there will be a lot of physical contact—hugging, kissing on the cheeks. Is fist-bumping the safest kind of greeting?
I'm not saying that everyone should be going around fist-bumping, but people should have an awareness of what they're doing. If you're shaking hands and about to sit down for a meal, you should wash your hands. If you have an open wound on your hand, you should definitely be washing your hands more frequently.
Are you planning any related research in the future?
This study did not address viruses. Viruses are much more easily transmitted. I think viruses are much more communicable than bacteria, particularly with the rise of H1N1, bird flu, and other viral pathogens.
Do you fist bump more now?
Yes, I fist bump everybody now! I still shake hands in meetings. But in the hospital, I don't. It's caught on at the hospital because it's catchy and people understand it. The number of hospital infections has decreased since we presented our study. I can't directly attribute it to our research, but it could be just be an increase in awareness.

Courtesy: NGC

GSLV-D5 / GSAT-14 Mission - Launch Called-Off

The Launch of the GSLV-D5 scheduled for 1650 hrs today (August 19, 2013) is called off, as a leak is observed in the UH25 fuel system of the liquid second stage during the pre-launch pressurisation phase on the vehicle just two hours before the scheduled lift-off.

The propellants are being drained from the Cryogenic Stage, Liquid Second Stage and the four liquid Strap-ons of GSLV-D5. The vehicle will be moved back to the Vehicle Assembly Building for further actions.

The revised launch date will be announced after a detailed assessment.

Gmail New inbox

		Hi j
		Meet the new inbox Inbox tabs put you back in control with simple organization so that you can see what's new at a glance and decide which emails you want to read when. Watch the video   Organized into categories You choose from five optional tabs: Primary, Social, Promotions, Updates and Forums. These categories make it easy to read messages of the same type all at once.   Easy to customize Select the tabs you want from all five to none. And, if you see a message you want in a different tab, all you have to do is drag and drop it into the tab you choose. More tips   Get the new inbox on your mobile device The new inbox is available in Gmail's official mobile apps on Android 4.0+ devices as well as iPhone and iPad. Your mobile inbox and notifications now show primary email. It's easy to access and keep track of email in other categories.   To learn more about the new inbox, check out the help center or watch the video.   Happy emailing, The Gmail Team
		© 2013 Google Inc. 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043 You have received this mandatory email service announcement to update you about important changes to your Gmail product or account.

Jelly Bean 4.1 (6.2.A.0.200) for Xperia S

After a long waiting and fighting with Sony, Sony has rolled out Jelly Bean 4.1 (6.2.A.0.200) for Xperia S mobile. With stunning new UI, applications, system with new features, themes, etc.

Android version: Google Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean)

Latest available software: 6.2.A.0.200

Release date: 2013-05-29

New features with some screens 

Firmware Details

Home Lock screen:

Unlock Home Screen with blinds view. We found this view in Sony Mobile Developer World few months ago. It adds  special look to JB.

Other New applications and features.

Album: New look with "Pictures" Images that are shot in cameras and downloaded pictures  and "My Albums" linked to online albums.

Power Management:

      Most Android users are concerned about their battery power management, This JB release has their own power management to minimize battery use during stand by time. It Optimize battery life by auto power off data usage and other applications during standby mode. Xperia users No need to go for third party power management app in google play.

Account: 

      Lists all accounts signed in different applications in settings page, There is no need to open different apps to remove or add an account.

WALKMAN:  Sony has its unique name in market for their products (sound and video), They also implements some of its new features in WALKMAN too. its much more attract music lovers.

       Clear Audio+ - Unique sound settings with clear audio.

       Clear Stereo - Reduce cross talk between the right and left channels.

       Clear Phase - Automatically adjust the sound quality.

       Dynamic Normaliser - Minimize volume diff between songs and videos.

       Others - Repeat mode ,Shuffle, Playlist view.

Movies:

       Categorized to Movies, TV Shows, Devices and Sony Unlimited.

Camera: In Video and photo there is no words to say about Sony products. They also Implemented lots of new features. It will attract movie and photo shooters.

       Different Picture effects like Partial Color, Filter, Nostalgic, Harris Shutter, Fisheye, Miniature, Kaleidoscope Sketch, Vivid.

        Different Scene selection Soft snap, Landscape, Night Portrait, Beach snow, Party, etc.,

        Front camera recording.

Hangouts: Stay connected always any where any time with video and voice. 

        Google talk is updated to hangouts, to sync with Google+ with various additional features such as making calls directly to phone via hangout.

Sound Recorder: Audio recorder to record external sound with audio level meter to measure pitch level.

Xperia Link: To connect to other Sony devices directly with out any manual configuration settings.

Voice search: New improved google voice reorganization with search.

Google Book self: Access you google books online.

And much more features.

Partial Lunar Eclipse- April-26-2013 Seen in chennai

The full moon will get a tiny bite taken out of today as it undergoes one of the shallowest and shortest partial eclipses of this century.

A lunar eclipse occurs when the sun, Earth, and moon align. During total lunar eclipses, the entire moon is engulfed in Earth's darkest shadow. But during partial eclipses, the moon never completely goes dark or turns red—only a portion of its disk appears to go dim.

Northern Hemisphere observers can watch Lunar Eclipse Friday

The full moon will get a tiny bite taken out of it tomorrow as it undergoes one of the shallowest and shortest partial eclipses of this century.

While North America will be left out of the sky show, much of the Eastern Hemisphere can see Earth's shadow brush across the outer half of the moon's surface over the course of the four-hour event. 

All the stages of the eclipse will be visible across the Indian Ocean, central Asia, western Australia, Africa, and Europe.

Because only a tiny fraction of the moon's disk will dip into the darkest shadow cone, the entire partial eclipse phase will be a challenge to observe, lasting less than a half hour for viewers, Hammergren said.

"This eclipse is distinguished, or undistinguished, by being the second shortest partial eclipse of the moon in the 21st century, lasting only about 27 minutes," he said.

When is best to watch?

The most readily visible part of the eclipse will begin at 3:54 p.m. ET (00:30 AM IST Aprox), just as the moon is straight overhead for observers in the Indian Ocean.

The deepest and most interesting part of the eclipse—during which Earth's shadow will fall on less than 2 percent of the tiny sliver of the moon's disk—occurs at 4:07 p.m. ET (00:40 AM IST Aprox.) and leaves the umbra at 4:21 p.m.

The last time such a small partial lunar eclipse occurred was in 1958, and another one like it won't occur until 2034.

But don't fret: Later this year, two more partial lunar eclipses will be visible on May 25 and October 18.

Courtesy: NGC

Sony's 4K Has Arrived, Pre order starts

Just a few mere months ago at CES 2013, Sony debuted its line of 4K TVs designed to bring the cinematic experience right into your living room. Well, get your living rooms ready because 4K is on the way!

Our 55″ and 65″ 4K Ultra HD TVs will be available for pre-order beginning April 21 for $4,999 and $6,999, get the scoop here.

The thing about 4K is that you need to see it in person to truly experience and understand what it is all about. A photo on the Internet or a short video clip on YouTube just doesn't do it justice. Some of you might have seen the 84'' (diag) 4K TV in select Sony Stores last fall. But if you've been dying to see what the 65″ and 55'' Class 4K Ultra HD TVs look like in real life, you're in luck.

Starting today, six Sony Store locations (see below) will be the first to feature the TVs and will be offering in-store demos of true 4K and enhanced (upscaled) video.

• Century City, Los Angeles CA
• South Coast Plaza, Costa Mesa CA
• Houston Galleria, TX
• The Forum Shops, Las Vegas NV
• 550 Madison Ave, New York NY
• Stanford Shopping Center, Palo Alto CA

If you do get a chance to get a 4K demo, please share your experience! Tweet us @SonyElectronicsor @SonyStore using the hashtag #Sony4K and tell us what you thought.

Pre-orders for the 4K Ultra HD TVs begin April 21, 2013 at Sony Stores and select retailers nationwide. For more info, check out the official press release.

Courtesy: Sony Blog

Sony Ultrabook. How its build? Incredible Engineering

Here is a video by signal, How sony ultrabook is build in 5 mins. Really awesome.

Google lists what's new, in Jelly Bean II

Google listed out a summary of what's new in Android 4.2, Jelly Bean

This includes few new items Accessibility, Android Bean(NFC, Bluetooth,etc.,), Audio Accessories, Camera, Clock, Face Unlock, Internationalization, Lock Screen, People, Widgets, Google Now, Currents.
Android 4.2, Jelly Bean improves on the speed and simplicity of Android 4.1 and includes all new features – Photo Sphere and a completely redesigned camera app, new Gesture Typing keyboard, Google Now with all new cards, and much more.

• Everything in Jelly Bean feels fast, fluid, and smooth. Moving between home screens and switching between apps is effortless, like turning the pages of a book.
• Jelly Bean improves performance throughout the system, including faster orientation changes, quicker switching between recent apps, and smoother and more consistent rendering across the system through vsync and triple buffering.
• Jelly Bean has more reactive and uniform touch responses, and makes your Android device even more responsive by boosting your device’s CPU instantly when you touch the screen, and turns it down when you don’t need it to improve battery life.

  It include few new items like People, Google Now, Currents, etc., to stay update with current trends and google.

Thanks,

Watch Asteroid Buzz Earth - 2012 DA14

This Friday asteroid 2012 DA14 will go down in the record books as the closest approach of an object of its size since astronomers began keeping records a few decades ago.
Zipping past our planet closer than most orbiting communication and weather satellites, this office building sized chunk of rock should be visible to some lucky skywatchers in the Eastern Hemisphere.
When the asteroid is at its closest at 19:24 UTC (2:24 p.m. EST/11:24 a.m. PST) it will be flying over the eastern Indian Ocean, off Sumatra (approx. latitude: -6 deg . South / longitude: 97.5 deg.  East), according to NASA.
Unfortunately for folks in the Western Hemisphere this means it will be daylight and so predictions are that the best chances of catching a view will be from places like Africa and Asia after local nightfall on the 15^th.
According to Universe Today, the best views will be from western Indonesia and Australia  when the asteroid will be crossing the overhead sky in the hours before dawn, while folks in Australia and eastern Asia may see it gliding across the heavens much like a fast-moving satellite in the low eastern sky the morning of the 16^th.
Although it technically should be bright enough to be easily seen with binoculars (magnitude 7.4), a small telescope is really your best hope. Looking a lot like a faint satellite, what will make hunting down DA14 so tricky, is the fact that it's moving crazy fast across local skies- covering the moon disk's width in less than a minute.
Check out this detailed sky chart to hunt down the speedy space rock.
For those of us in the wrong hemisphere, time zone or don't have the right equipment – then check out great live-streaming web-casts of the encounter online.
NASA will have coverage using a telescope at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET on Friday. 
There will also be a video feed by Slooh Space Camera  from their telescopes on the Canary islands, off the west coast of Africa and in Arizona starting at 9 pm EST.
Courtesy: NGC

The Promise and Perils of Mining Asteroids

Image Courtesy :DSI

Encouraged by new space technologies, a growing fleet of commercial rockets and the vast potential to generate riches, a group of entrepreneurs announced Tuesday that they planned to mine the thousands of near-Earth asteroids in the coming decades.
The new company, Deep Space Industries (DSI), is not the first in the field, nor is it the most well-financed. But with their ambition to become the first asteroid prospectors, and ultimately miners and manufacturers, they are aggressively going after what Mark Sonter, a member of DSI's board of directors, called "the main resource opportunity of the 21st century."
Prospecting using miniaturized "cubesat" probes the size of a laptop will begin by 2015, company executives announced. They plan to return collections of asteroid samples to Earth not long after.
"Using low cost technologies, and combining the legacy of [the United States'] space program with the innovation of today's young high tech geniuses, we will do things that would have been impossible just a few years ago," said Rick Tumlinson, company chairman and a longtime visionary and organizer in the world of commercial space [not sure what commercial space means].
"We sit in a sea of resources so infinite they're impossible to describe," Tumlinson said.
Added Value
There are some 9,000 asteroids described as "near-Earth," and they contain several classes of resources that entrepreneurs are now eyeing as economically valuable.
Elements such as gold and platinum can be found on some asteroids. But water, silicon, nickel, and iron are the elements expected to become central to a space "economy" should it ever develop.
Water can be "mined" for its hydrogen (a fuel) and oxygen (needed for humans in space), while silicon can be used for solar power systems, and the ubiquitous nickel and iron for potential space manufacturing. 
Sonter, an Australian mining consultant and asteroid specialist, said that 700 to 800 near-Earth asteroids are easier to reach and land on than the moon.
DSI's prospecting spacecraft will be called "FireFlies," a reference to the popular science fiction television series of the same name. The FireFlies will hitchhike on rockets carrying up communication satellites or scientific instruments, but they will be designed so that they also have their own propulsion systems. The larger mining spacecraft to follow have been named "DragonFlies."
Courtesy: NGC

with regards,
Jayaprakash.K

Happy Birthday: The Internet is 30 years old now

The Internet which has transformed the lives of billions of people across the world, turned 30 on Tuesday. The computer network officially began its technological revolution when it fully substituted previous networking systems on 1 January, 1983.

Known as "flag day", it was the first time the US Department of Defence (DoD)-commissioned Arpanet network fully switched to use of the Internet protocol suite (IPS) communications system.

Using data "packet-switching", the new method of linking computers paved the way for the arrival of the World Wide Web.

"I don't think that anybody making that switch on the day would have realised the importance of what they were doing," the Daily Telegraph quoted Chris Edwards, an electronics correspondent for Engineering and Technology magazine, as saying.

"But without it the internet and the World Wide Web as we know them could not have happened."

Commenting on the historic event's impact on the world, Edwards said: "The internet means there is nowhere and no one in the world you can't reach easily and cheaply."

Based on designs by Welsh scientist Donald Davies, the Arpanet network began as a military project in the late 1960s.

It was developed at prestigious American universities and research laboratories, such as the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the Stanford Research Institute.

Starting in 1973, work on the powerful and flexible IPS and Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) technology which would change mass communications got under way.

The new systems were designed to replace the more vulnerable Network Control Program (NCP) used previously, making sure the network was not exposed to a single point of failure.

This meant a single attack could not bring it down, making it safer and more reliable, the report said.

By January 1 1983, the substitution of the older system for the new Internet protocol had been completed and the Internet was born.

British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee was then able to use it to host the system of interlinkd hypertext documents he invented in 1989, known as the World Wide Web.

Courtesy: Fisrtpost