Tuesday, June 30, 2009

How Old Do You Feel? It Depends on Your Age

The older people become, the younger they feel and the more likely they are to see “old age” as a time occurring later in life, according to a national survey on aging released on Monday. “There’s a saying that you’re never too old to feel young, and boy, have older Americans today taken that one to heart,” said Paul Taylor, executive vice president with the Pew Research Center and the survey’s principal author. He said this is the broadest survey the nonpartisan research center has ever done to gauge Americans’ views on aging. Currently, about 40 million Americans, or one in eight, are 65 and older. By 2050, one in five American will be in that age group. The center surveyed about 3,000 adults 18 and older via land and cellular telephone lines in February and March of this year. The survey found not just a gap between actual age and the age people say they feel, but also that the gap between reality and perception increases with age. Most adults over age 50 feel at least 10 years younger than their actual age, the survey found. One-third of those between 65 and 74 said they felt 10 to 19 years younger, and one-sixth of people 75 and older said they felt 20 years younger. On average, survey respondents said old age begins at 68. But few people over 65 agreed; they said old age begins at 75. Respondents under 30 said 60 marks the beginning of old age ...NYT

Cybercrime spreads on Facebook

Cybercrime is rapidly spreading on Facebook as fraudsters prey on users who think the world's top social networking site is a safe haven on the Internet. Lisa Severens, a clinical trials manager from Worcester, Massachusetts, learned the hard way. A virus took control of her laptop and started sending pornographic photos to colleagues. "I was mortified about having to deal with it at work," said Severens, whose employer had to replace her computer because the malicious software could not be removed. Cybercrime, which costs U.S. companies and individuals billions of dollars a year, is spreading fast on Facebook because such scams target and exploit those naive to the dark side of social networking, security experts say. While News Corp's (NWSA.O) MySpace was the most-popular hangout for cyber criminals two years ago, experts say hackers are now entrenched on Facebook, whose membership has soared from 120 million in December to more than 200 million today. "Facebook is the social network du jour. Attackers go where the people go. Always," said Mary Landesman, a senior researcher at Web security company ScanSafe ...Reuters

Global food supply far from secure-farming expert

Africa's farmers need help to access loans, fertiliser and export markets to avoid future food supply crises caused by climate change and commodities speculation, a top agricultural expert said on Tuesday. Wheat, rice and maize prices have fallen sharply from their 2008 highs, when protests broke out across the developing world over unaffordable staple foods and countries imposed export bans to ensure their people had enough to eat. Akinwumi Adesina of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, an aid group headed by former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, said commodity markets dampened by recession were serving to mask "the next storm". "The global food supply remains far from secure," Adesina told the U.N. Conference and Trade and Development (UNCTAD). "We have not yet tamed the forces of speculation, climate change will yet trample our farm fields, crop diversity remains under increasing threat," he said in a speech. "Global grain reserves may be replenished for the time being, but global food security remains a goal, not a reality." One of the biggest problems, according to the agricultural economist from Nigeria, is the persistently paltry harvests from Africa's farms, most of which are tended to be "without access to basic farm inputs, finance or markets" ...Reuters

Why the BRICS like Africa

There is little doubt that the BRICs — Brazil, Russia, India and China — have become big players in Africa. According to Standard Bank of South Africa, BRIC trade with the continent has snowballed from just $16 billion in 2000 to $157 billion last year. That is a 33 percent compounded annual growth rate. What is behind this? At one level, the BRICs, as they grow, are clearly recognising commercial and strategic opportunities in Africa. But Standard Bank reckons other, more individual, drivers are also at play. In a new report, the bank looks at what each of the individual BRIC countries is trying to do. To whit: – Brazil’s immediate intererest in Africa is securing access to natural resources, particularly oil. But is also motivated by a desire to create a new “Southern Axis” with itself at the forefront. – Russia is also interested in Africa’s natural resources. But it faces a problem because of the sullied reputation of the Soviet Union during the Cold War. So Moscow has also embarked on a rebranding programme within the continent by ramping up its aid programmes. – India is attracted to Africa in part because of long historic ties. Commercial engagement, however, is also motivated by a need to guarantee the natural resources it needs for its own growth. Furthermore Africa is seen politically as a key ally in the pursuit of a competitive advantage over its Asian competitor China. – For China, Africa provides a long-term partner in its ongoing bid to gain global economic ascendancy, providing it with the resources, markets, geopolitical support, and, eventually, food and social security in the form of a growing and engaging diaspora ...Reuters

Google, YouTube Give Citizen Journalists New Tools

Google has a firm grip on the news industry. With Google News, its monstrous news aggregator, and examples such as the recent explosion of citizen journalism covering the conflict in Iran, Google is giving traditional print journalism a run for its money. Now it hopes to partner with some big names in news to create a community of journalists called The YouTube Reporters' Center, a project that may result in the industry contributing to its own demise. YouTube Reporters' Center hosts video content that includes a piece on how to interview well by CBS' Katie Couric; a piece on how to document a global humanitarian crisis by The New York Times' Nick Kristof; and even a piece with tips on investigative journalism by legendary Watergate reporter Bob Woodward. Purpose of this endeavor is to assist citizen journalists with effective means of stepping up his/her game when it comes to grabbing information as it unfolds and presenting it like a professional... PCW

Cool Search Engines That Are Not Google

How do you find a new search engine if all you know is Google? Typing “search engine” into the usual box might lead you to Microsoft’s newly launched Bing, the combined search at Dogpile, or the former king of search, Altavista. But for those willing to dig around, searching for search engines can reveal a treasure trove: The net is rich with specialized search services, all trying to find a way to get their slice of the billions of dollars Google makes every year answering queries. For this article, we surveyed some 50 specialty search services and picked out our favorites. What follows is not a systematic ranking or review, but a general guide to a very vibrant world that few have bothered to explore in depth. The variety of search startups is mind-boggling, and hints at the challenges Google may face staying on the bleeding edge of search innovation in the coming years. (There’s even something for micro-philanthropists: Good Search donates a penny to the charity of your choice for each search you run.) None of the sites we sampled are likely to replace Google as your go-to search engine for general queries, or dent Google’s growing sway as the world’s information broker any time soon. But even a cursory tour will make you start to think differently about what’s possible in search, and show up some of Google’s shortcomings. Take mobile. Google works fine on the iPhone, but for quick searches on the go, ChaCha can’t be beat. Simply text your question to 242242 and you’ll get an answer sent back to you. In the age of Twitter, there’s fierce competition to be the quickest indexer on the net — a feature even Google co-founder Sergey Brin admits his company can improve upon. IceRocket, OneRiot and Scoopler are typical of the trend... Wired