29/04-03/05

29/05/2013

As summer comes to the Northern Hemisphere, most people who want to get fit are considering sports nutrition.

Fans can think of carbohydrates filled for strength, wear a high protein diet with plenty of meat, maybe increase your calories with a shake or avoid processed foods.

Then arises a question: can compete people who carry a special diet, such as vegetarians or vegans?

The evidence suggests elite athletes so.

"The most extreme"

Fiona Oakes, vegan since age six, just won the women's title in the marathon at the North Pole, where athletes compete in temperatures down to -30 degrees Celsius.

Oakes described "self-strength test" as "the most extreme" he has done.

Whether you're a marathon runner, cyclist or triathlete, the different disciplines can mean different needs in terms of diet, says sports nutritionist Jo Scott-Dalgleish.

"Working with endurance athletes and they need carbohydrates.'s Extremely important," he says.

"It's about having a balance of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Three are needed to support the use of energy. Carbohydrates provide energy; proteins and fats allow the muscles to recover after competition.

Also you need a good selection of micronutrients and vitamins, "he explains.

In the Arctic, Fiona Oakes had to look after the intake of foods and liquids. If I had eaten or drunk too much, I would have touched toilet stop in icy weather, which would have run the risk of injury by freezing.

30/04/2013

The surprising uses of chirping birds

Do you get sleepy after lunch? Is it hard to concentrate when there is too much noise? Are you afraid of getting an injection? Scientists have the solution: the birdsong.

Not only beautiful to hear the musical sounds they emit some birds, but is also being used in many surprising ways.

Can the song of a nightingale help a student to pass an exam, or a blackbird convince open a bank account? Sound experts think so.

They argue that positive results speak for themselves, but researchers say there is little concrete evidence to show that people respond positively to birdsong. Most of the evidence is anecdotal.

BBC tells five ways in which the singing of birds is being used in innovative ways.

When there is too much noise, a television, traffic or other people-can be hard to concentrate. But some experts say that certain sounds, including birdsong, can help people focus.

What makes it so special to birdsong is that people physically relaxes while the cognitively stimulated, says Julian Treasure, author of Sound Business (The Business of sounds) and director of consultancy The Sound Agency.

1/05/2013

Why most smart phones make a shutter sound when you close a camera to take a picture? Why when you read a book on a tablet seems that "turning the pages"?

The answer is that its design is esqueumórfico, a term that combines the Greek words skeuos-tool-and morph-form.

It means that in a new media tools are designed so as to include some of the features of the previous versions. They are no longer necessary, however, as when deploying a virtual role-forge a digital display intuitive link with the past, and (hopefully) are attractive.

Although it sounds inextricable, the esqueumorfismo is everywhere-from the details "retro" in clothing to electric kettles that retain the same way as the ones used on the stove.

Furthermore, it is an issue that is causing distress in the technological world, due to the decision of the chief executive of Apple, Tim Cook, to radically change the design principles iOS mobile operating system of the company, a leader in terms of digital appearances .

Vantages and advantages

The latest reincarnation of iOS-version 7 - probably will be presented in June and released in September this year. And his alleged appearance has sparked a frenzy of speculation because Cook's decision in October last year to put the hardware supreme designer Jonathan Ive-responsible for the iconic minimalist designs iMac, iPod and iPad-in charge not only of physical product, but also the appearance and texture of your software.

2/05/2013

The biggest cocaine traffickers in Europe are no longer the famous Sicilian "Cosa Nostra". Today his place is taken by the members of the 'Ndrangheta, a criminal organization in the southern region of Calabria, the "toe of Italy."

With exclusive access to underground shelters that use its members to hide, and the high technology used by the Italian authorities to combat drug trafficking organization, the author and historian specializing in issues of mafia, John Dickie, has in an exclusive article BBC for what this underground world.

The tunnels were located in the town of Plati, in Aspromonte massif that dominates the landscape of the thumb of the boot of Italy.

Plati is known to be the stronghold of the 'Ndrangheta, the Calabrian mafia, for over a century.

Their heads are among the most powerful cocaine traffickers in the world, and maintain strong links with "branches" of the 'Ndrangheta in Australia.

Lately, however, are not finding it so easy to get away with it.

Underground bunkers

 The underground network of the 'Ndrangheta is practically a parallel city.

Pursued by police renewed and decisive, the Ndranghetis have built an amazing network of secret hiding beneath the streets and houses.

3/05/2013

Tickets for the match had been exhausted, but no one would have suspected.

As we enter the Kim Il Sung Stadium, with capacity for 50,000 spectators and dominated by the figure of the eternal president and great leader was not too crowded.

No queues, no barriers, no hot dog stands.

But once inside the picture changed. Every seat was occupied and row after row men sat in silence, all with the same black suit and red tie, all with a tiny logo on the left side of his chest.

A badge was not any team, but the great leader.

Foreign visitors to North Korea may attend sporting events the same premises. But football in this country does not have the passion and glamor you see in the big leagues in Europe and South America.

Artificial pitch looked immaculate in the light of the spring morning, and the start of the match was at nine-thirty.

Maybe it was the early start, but not heard chants or banners or flags was in sight, just a subtle rustling in the dark seats.

Many of the fans were soldiers in green uniforms and broad-brimmed hats.

I do not know if they had orders to go to the game but some were quietly reading the newspaper and showed little interest in what was happening on the court.