Knowledge Update

​Sydney, July 13 (IANS) Researchers have identified a complex network in the brain that has revealed why artificial sweeteners may not be the best way to slim down.

Artificial sweeteners are substitutes for sugar that provides a sweet taste like that of sugar while containing significantly less food energy.

According to the researchers, the brain system responds to artificially sweetened food by telling the animal it hasn't eaten enough energy, thus increasing the appetite and prompting them to actually eat more.

It senses and integrates the sweetness and energy content of food, said the study conducted on mice and fruit flies.

"After chronic exposure to a diet that contained the artificial sweetener sucralose, we saw that animals began eating a lot more," said lead researcher Greg Neely, Associate Professor at the University of Sydney in Australia.

"Artificial sweeteners can actually change how animals perceive the sweetness of their food, with a discrepancy between sweetness and energy levels prompting an increase in caloric consumption," Neely added.

The findings showed that inside the brain's reward centres, sweet sensation is integrated with energy content. When sweetness versus energy is out of balance for a period of time, the brain recalibrates and increases total calories consumed.

For the study, fruit flies were exposed to a diet laced with artificial sweetener for prolonged periods (more than five days). The flies were then found to consume 30 per cent more calories when they were then given naturally sweetened food.

The team also replicated the study using mice. The mice that consumed a sucralose-sweetened diet for seven days displayed a significant increase in food consumption, and the neuronal pathway involved was the same as in the fruit flies.

"The chronic consumption of the artificial sweetener actually increases the sweet intensity of real nutritive sugar which then increases the animal's overall motivation to eat more food," Neely stated in the work published in the journal Cell Metabolism.

Further, the artificial sweeteners were also found to promote hyperactivity, insomnia as well as decrease the sleep quality - behaviours consistent with a mild starvation or fasting state.

"The pathway discovered is part of a conserved starvation response that actually makes nutritious food taste better when you are starving," Neely noted.​

Tokyo, July 13 (IANS) Shares of Japanese messaging-app operator Line have been soaring ahead of its initial public offering in New York and Tokyo and are now 25 times more oversubscribed, the media reported on Wednesday.

​New Delhi, July 13 (IANS) The newly-launched augmented reality (AR) game Pokemon Go poses a great data security threat to users as the app gets "full access" to their Google account, allowing the gaming company to read all emails, a new report said on Wednesday.

According to security software company Trend Micro, for some users of iPhones, signing into the game with the most convenient option -- using your Google account -- allows the gaming company to read your emails. 

"Other risks this game exposes are physical risks to actual life and limb," the report said.

While enjoying the game, the user is exposed to many threats and introduces whole new categories of life risks.

Firstly, Pokemon Go's real-world gameplay has been linked to armed robberies as criminals have used the game to locate and lure intended targets. 

Secondly, there are reports of trespassing as enthusiastic players try to "find" and "capture" creatures on others' property. In the US, gamers trespassing on others' property face a real threat of physical harm from property owners who may use force to protect their property. 

"And of course, there's the risk of injury or death from not paying attention to your surroundings as you play the game," the report added.

Thirdly, the users can meet an accident while they are indulged in gaming. 

The game requires users' full attention immediately to the exclusion of all else. 

Although, there is a warning each time you start the game to be sure to pay attention but that warning is quickly overlooked.

In the US, where the game is very popular, police departments and safety agencies have warned players of Pokemon Go to stay safe and alert as hysteria over the popular mobile game swells.

Since launch, the game has topped 7.5 million downloads and pulled in an average of $1.6 million a day in revenue, according to estimates from research firm SensorTower.

"Agencies have urged players to stay aware of their surroundings and be careful," USA Today reported.

This is how the game works.

It uses the GPS capabilities of your device in conjunction with Google Maps to "place" creatures in real world locations, which you then try to find them using your device as a guide. 

Once you are in proximity to the "placed" creature, you then use your device's camera to "view" the creature and try to "capture" it. 

"This works with you using your device as a viewer to 'see' the creature near you by looking at an image from the camera with the creature superimposed on it. You then 'capture' the creature for points by throwing Poké Balls at it on the device's screen," Trend Micro stated.

The Pokemon Go is available on Google Playstore and Apple's App Store in the US, Japan and Australia, Philippines, New Zealand and is coming soon in India, Singapore, Germany, Taiwan, Indonesia and Britain.

However, a mirror file is available on the internet and people in India are already downloading the game from insecured sources. 

The Pokemon Go Plus device which is a wrist watch will be available in August, informed apkqueen.com, the website which is providing link to download the game.​

​Johannesburg, July 13 (IANS) Countering a common perception, a new study suggests that climate change, after all, may not have been directly linked to cultural and technological innovations of Middle Stone Age humans in southern Africa.

The Middle Stone Age marked a period of dramatic change among early humans in southern Africa, and climate change has been postulated as a primary driver for the appearance of technological and cultural innovations such as bone tools, ochre production, and personal ornamentation.

The new study published in the journal PLOS ONE showed that while climate shifts may have influenced human subsistence strategies, it may not have been the driving factor behind innovation.

"While acknowledging that climate and environmental shifts may have influenced human subsistence strategies, the research suggests climate change may not have been the driving factor behind cultural and technological innovations in these localities,” said one of the lead researchers Chris Henshilwood, Professor at University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The authors of this study carried out analyses of animal remains, shellfish taxa and the stable carbon and oxygen isotope measurements in ostrich eggshell, from two archaeological sites, Blombos Cave and Klipdrift Shelter to acquire data regarding possible palaeoenvironmental conditions in southern Africa at the Middle Stone Age.

For instance, ostrich eggshell carbon and oxygen stable isotope levels may reflect vegetation and water consumption, which in turn vary with rainfall seasonality and amount in this region.

The researchers found that climatic and environmental variation, reflected in ostrich eggshell stable isotope measurements, faunal records, and shellfish indicators, may not have occurred in phase with Middle Stone Age human technological and cultural innovation at these two sites.

"Our results suggest that although climate and environmental changes occurred, they were not coincident with cultural innovations, including personal ornamentation, or the appearance of complex tool-types,” Patrick Roberts from University of Oxford .

"This suggests that we have to consider that other factors drove human innovation at this stage in our species' evolution," Roberts noted.​

​New York, July 13 (IANS) Big news organisations who first embraced social media use at workplace are now seeing more risks than benefits in employees' use of Facebook and Twitter, reveals an interesting study.

Realising the risks of social media, major news organisations have created guidelines for employees on how to use these outlets, separate from the companies' existing codes of conduct.

Jayeon Lee, assistant professor of journalism at Pennsylvania-based Lehigh University, found that news organisations are more concerned about the current social media environment than excited about it at least when it comes to their employees.

“I was wondering what approaches news organisations take when it comes to their own employees' social media uses," Lee said.

“In particular, knowing both positive and negative implications of journalists' social media uses, I wanted to see if their guidelines were dominantly positive, negative, or neutral in their framing of the implications,” she added.

Overall, Lee found that the guidelines focus primarily on the risks and challenges presented by the use of social media rather than the opportunities and advantages for media.

"As some media critics point out, overreaching rules can stifle creativity and morale and even discourage overall social media use itself," she explained in a paper set to be published in the journal The Communication Review.

The study looked at eight US news organisations - The New York Times, The Associated Press, Bloomberg, Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, CNN, and NPR - and three British news outlets - BBC, The Times and The Daily Telegraph.

According to the findings, news organisations are most concerned about: accuracy, breaking objectivity, inappropriate online behaviours and harming their principles and credibility.

Accuracy - sourcing or redistributing false information from social media without sufficient fact verification - was the most frequently raised topic and accounted for 17.8 percent of the total sentences studied.

“The results show that the prevention-focused approach is more common than I would have predicted," Lee said.

"Although I expected that the guidelines would include various warnings related to risky social media activities, I was surprised to find little comment about how to use social media wisely or effectively to derive full benefit from it,” she commented.

Lee recognised that news organizations are actively utilizing various social media to reach a wider audience and build brand loyalty.

“However, it seems they are keen on keeping their own employees from actively engaging in social media,” she added.​

​Washington, July 13 (IANS) A drug approved by the US Food and Drug Administration to treat leukemia has the potential to improve motor and cognitive functions of patients suffering from Parkinson's disease and dementia, a small study has found.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder that causes a range of motor and non-motor symptoms. 

During the course of the disease, dopamine (DA)-producing neurons are lost and bundles of proteins known as Lewy Bodies (LBs) form in the brain.

The researchers found that the leukemia drug nilotinib may restore brain dopamine and reduce toxic proteins associated with Lewy Bodies formation in Parkinson's disease and dementia patients.

The findings were reported in the Journal of Parkinson's Disease.

The researchers conducted a small phase one study that included only 12 patients, primarily intended to evaluate whether patients could tolerate the drug. 

The results showed unanticipated improvements in clinical outcomes and motor function.

"This is the first study to treat subjects with advanced PD with a tyrosine kinase inhibitor," 

"This study suggests that low doses of nilotinib appear to be relatively safe in a small cohort of participants with advanced PD or dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB), and although the data are supportive of additional trials, caution must be used in any future studies,” explained lead investigator Charbel Moussa from Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) in Washington, D.C. 

"The data give a clear signal to move forward with more definitive trials to determine an appropriate therapeutic dose and evaluate nilotinib effects in larger, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trials," Moussa noted.​

ISSUES AND CHALLENGES OF MNCs MANAGEMENT

​Japanese car manufacturer Honda Motor together with Daido Steel has developed the first ever engine for hybrid cars without using dysprosium and terbium -- two scarce rare earth elements -- to help reduce manufacturing costs, an official said on Wednesday.

The two companies have made sure that the neodymium magnet -- presenting the highest magnetic force of nature which is essential for electric cars and hybrids -- of this engine does not require the use of these two minerals, which were used to withstand high temperatures, EFE news reported.

Both dysprosium and terbium, like neodymium are classified as rare earth elements, although the latter is almost as common as nickel or cobalt. In contrast, dysprosium and terbium were far more scarce and most of it comes from China, which sometimes restricts exports, putting price stability and supply at risk. Honda has modified the engine design to incorporate this new magnet and has proven that the "torque, output and heat resistance performance (is) equivalent to those of a motor that uses the conventional type of magnet," Honda said.​

Tokyo, July 13 (IANS)

London, July 13 (IANS) Looking for ways to shed those extra kilos around your waistline? Worry not, according to a study, drinking water along with a meal can fill the stomach and signal the brain to stop eating.

The findings showed that the brain listens to the stomach during eating.

Drinking more water can alter messages from the stomach which can be interpreted as fullness by the brain.

Further, intake of water along with a meal can increase stomach distension, curb appetite in the short term as well as increase the regional brain activity.

This means anyone who is looking to lose weight or cut down on eating would benefit from a large drink with their meals.

For the study, the team collected data from 19 participants during two separate sessions with different consumption procedures.

In the experiment, participants drank a milk-shake on an empty stomach, which was followed by a small (50 mL) or large glass of water (350 mL).

The large glass of water doubled the content in the stomach compared to the small glass. Those who drank the large glass also felt less hungry and felt fuller.

The real time data of the brain, the stomach, and people's feelings of satiety was measured simultaneously during the meal.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) images were used to see how the different amounts of water affected stretching of the stomach -- the large glass of water doubled the stomach content compared to the small glass.

"Combining these types of measurements is difficult, because MRI scanners are usually set-up to perform only one type of scan," said lead author Guido Camps from Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

"We've been able to very quickly switch the scanner from one functionality to another to do this type of research," Camps added.

This new research approach can be used to investigate the interplay between satiety feelings, volume of the stomach and activity in the brain, the researchers suggested.

The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior, held in Portugal.

New York, July 13 (IANS) A US-based researcher has devised a new "sand" that can inexpensively provide improved cooling for power-hungry electronic devices.

Baratunde Cola, associate professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology, devised silicon dioxide nanoparticles coated with a high dielectric constant polymer that could be