U.K. Government's Bitcoin Report: The Good And The Bad

Posted on by

Over the last week, news has emerged that makes it clear that the divide that exists within the Bitcoin community is about to come into focus. The U.K. government issued their responseto a call for information regarding digital currencies. After reading comments from Bitcoin-related businesses and other interested parties in the U.K., they came up with a number of observations and recommendations.

Somewhat predictably, the report calls for some regulation of businesses surrounding Bitcoin and other digital currencies, particularly in the areas of Anti Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC). Just as predictably, the word regulation has some of the virtual currency community apoplectic.

The document seems to suggest a relatively light touch by the government in the struggle to control the illicit use of Bitcoin (see Silk Road and, more recently, Evolution), while still preserving the essential nature of a decentralized peer-to-peer currency. The committee recognizes what they refer to as significant future promise of a distributed ledger system such as the blockchain and seem reluctant (most of the time) to strangle it at birth.

The report seems to take a positive view in other ways, including a section on Options for intervention to support the digital currencies sector. So far, so good, but contained within that section is the suggestion that the U.K. government should look to integrate digital currency technology, up to and including the possibility of the Bank of England issuing a form of digital Sterling.

Regular readers (if there are such beings) will know that I am generally in favor of some regulation of the businesses surrounding virtual currencies, but it is suggestions like this that give fuel to the all government is evil brigade. Incorporating distributed ledger technology at the Central Bank level and issuing a virtual version of an existing fiat currency is not regulation, it is an attempt to co-opt and neutralize what is presumably seen as a threat. The community should be looking to oppose this and any similar proposal vigorously.

What is most interesting to me, though, is that the vast majority of respondents (around 75% according to the report) declared themselves in favor of some level of regulation of the industry. It could be just that my fellow countrymen are by nature either reasonable or brainwashed depending on your position, but that number seems indicative of a fundamental shift in the Bitcoin community. As the popularity of virtual currencies has grown, so the extreme ideologies that once dominated discussion have waned in influence. There are still those for whom even AML regulations are an unwarranted denial of freedom, but they are being drowned out by those who understand that sometimes governments really can act in the interests of their people.

There are, within this report, several areas that suggest that this committee was actually trying to help, and yes, I am aware of Ronald Regans admonition that the most frightening words in the English language are I am from the government, and I am here to help. Rather than imposing regulations for consumer protection, for example, a voluntary framework and code of conduct is recommended. There is even recognition that while Bitcoin has been used for criminal enterprises, that usage is not disproportionate and an understanding that digital currencies, when used legitimately, offer an innovative, alternative payment option, which competes with existing payment models and has particularly clear short-term advantages for micro-payments, overseas remittances and cross-border trade. This is what happens when you trust data and evidence rather than headlines.

All in all, the report reads as a fair and balanced document. With the exception of the idea of the Bank of England attempting to hijack alternative currency technology most of the proposals seem to be reasonable attempts to address the inherent problems of virtual currencies without attacking the currencies at the core. Those that bristle at anything that brings digital currencies closer to the mainstream, among both opponents and proponents of Bitcoin alike, wont like it, but the proposals look like a reasonable starting for authorities everywhere who are wrestling with the rise of virtual currencies.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc.

Go here to see the original:

U.K. Government's Bitcoin Report: The Good And The Bad

WTTC: Tourism contributed P1.4T to economy

Posted on by

MANILA, PhilippinesThe Philippine travel and tourism sector contributed a total of P1.4 trillion to the local economy in 2014, reflecting not only the economic activities of related industries, but also the wider effects from investment, the supply chain and induced income impacts, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC).

Based on the WTTCs Travel and Tourism Economic Impact 2015 report released Tuesday, the total contribution of the sector is expected to further increase by 5 percent this year and projected to steadily rise by 5.7 percent yearly to P2.58 trillion by 2025.

Based on the total contribution to the countrys gross domestic product (GDP), the Philippines ranked 69th of the 184 countries assessed by WTTC.

In terms of direct contribution to the local economy, the Philippine travel and tourism sector accounted for 4.2 percent of the countrys GDP, equivalent to about P533 billion.

This primarily reflects the economic activity generated by industries such as hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger transportation services [excluding commuter services]. But it also includes the activities of the restaurant and leisure industries, WTTC explained.

The sectors direct contribution is similarly expected to grow by 4.9 percent to P559.4 billion in 2015, and to continue its rally of about 5.6 percent yearly to P964 billion by 2025.

Data from WTTC showed that the travel and tourism sector was estimated to have attracted as much as P92.4 billion in investments last year. Capital spending for this sector may further rise by 3.3 percent this year, and by 4.8 percent a year over the next 10 years to P151.9 billion by 2025.

In terms of direct employment, the sector also directly supported 1.26 million jobs, or about 3.3 percent of total employment last year. This, according to WTTC, included employment by hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger transportation services, as well as the activities of the restaurant and leisure industries directly supported by tourists.

This direct employment contribution is seen to further increase by 2.6 percent in 2015, and by 2.6 percent yearly to 1.7 million jobs by 2025.

In terms of total contribution to employment, the figures are much higher as the tally included both the direct and indirect jobs supported by the travel and tourism sector.

Read more:

WTTC: Tourism contributed P1.4T to economy

Photos: TripAdvisor's 2015 Top 10 Travel Spots Around the World

Posted on by

Marrakech, Morocco

The "Red City" of Marrakesh features markets, beautiful gardens, palaces and mosques. Embark on an excursion during a stay at Riad Kheirredine for an affordable $179 a night, or visit Jardin Majorelle a 12-acre botanical garden located one mile from the hotel. For dinner, enjoy authentic Moroccan cuisine at Latitude31

TripAdvisor

Enjoy a stay at the Shinta Mani Resort in Cambodia, located in the French Quartier. The hotel features a swimming pool and topical gardens, and a summer rate of $176 a night. The resort sits just 15 minutes from the Angkor Wat, an ancient temple complex that offers a historical lesson on Cambodia. Restaurant to try: Palate Angkor Restaurant and Bar

TripAdvisor

Visit Istanbul for eye-popping architecture, mosques, bazaars, Turkish baths and endless sightseeing. A stay at the World Heritage Hotel Istanbul will run you just $135 a night. Just steps away is the main attraction of Basilica Cistern , one of the largest cisterns that lies beneath the old city of Istanbul. Restaurant to try: Mikla Restaurant

TripAdvisor

The Vietnamese capital of Hanoi stands well-preserved with monuments and colonial architecture. The eco-friendly Essence Palace Hotel offers a summer rate of $58 with attractions and shopping nearby. While sightseeing, be sure to visit Thanh Chuong Viet Palace, where you'll see antiques statues, home, pond bridges and more. Restaurant to try: Banh Mi 25

TripAdvisor

Located in the capital city of Prague, the Hotel Residence Agnes has rates of $195 a night and features room service, complimentary Wi-Fi, and a breakfast buffet. Visit the popular Prague Castle (Prazsky hrad) located on a hill overlooking the Vltava River. Inside sits the office of the president and contains three courtyards, shops, gardens and restaurants. Restaurant to try: Mistral Cafe

See the rest here:

Photos: TripAdvisor's 2015 Top 10 Travel Spots Around the World

The truth about being a travel writer

Posted on by

By Ben GroundwaterMarch 25, 2015, 11:03 a.m.

'Oh my God thats the best job in the world.' Or is it?

So what's the truth? Is this the best job in the world? Or is it incredibly overrated? Photo: iStock

So what's the truth? Is this the best job in the world? Or is it incredibly overrated? Photo: iStock

So what's the truth? Is this the best job in the world? Or is it incredibly overrated? Photo: iStock

So what's the truth? Is this the best job in the world? Or is it incredibly overrated? Photo: iStock

"Oh my God that's the best job in the world."

This is something you hear fairly regularly when you're a travel writer. I'm not saying this to show off, it's just the way it is the perception is that I have the best job in the world.

(Or at least one of them. Being a rock star would have to be pretty awesome; they get thousands and thousands of people screaming for them every night. If I want any sort of social interaction at my workplace I have to Skype my parents.)

On the face of it, travel writing does sound pretty amazing. You get paid to travel! You get to see the world, indulging two passions at once. You get to inspire people to follow their dreams. You get to see things and meet people that constantly amaze you, and you get to call it a job.

Visit link:

The truth about being a travel writer

Nintendos save game: Why Mario on your phone is a huge deal

Posted on by

Nintendo Co., Ltd. announced last week that it will start making video games for the super computer in your pocket (the smartphone). The companys stock shot up on the news, and it put every other player in the mobile game space on notice. And yet, I dont know if everyone understands how big a deal this will turn out to be.

What this move tells me is that Nintendo may be the most consequential video game company on Earth. If you think thats nonsense, bear with me a moment as I unpack what I mean.

If you have played video games in the last 30 years you probably reacted to the news of Mario on your iPhone with some excitement. Even if youre not a fan of Nintendo games, you probably know someone who is. But unless you also follow the business of video games you might not know the company is in third place in the current phase of the console war, and has struggled for years to sell its hardware at the same rate as its rivals at Xbox and Playstation.

The console video game business is at its core a race to become the hardware standard. The last major success Nintendo had was the Wii (launched in 2006), which swam against the tide of more power, more pixels and more shooters that were reshaping the gaming world. It attracted millions of new customers, but over time the low-powered Wii and its strange gesture control system couldnt attract enough software to capitalize on their early sales momentum.

But while the Wii disappointed down the stretch (it still sold 100 million units), its successor, the Wii U, has been a disaster. In this chart from games site Polygon, you can see that Nintendo has had some poor-selling hardware in the past, but never as poor as the Wii U.

The reasons Nintendo is having trouble selling the Wii U have been dissected ad nauseum by many industry analysts, but the end result is the same: Nintendo still cant attract third-party software developers to make games for its consoles. It creates a vicious cycle: No one buys the console, so no one makes games, so theres less reason to buy the console. Rinse, repeat.

As a full disclosure let me say I have been a fan of Nintendo since I got my first NES in the late eighties (the console known as the Famicom in Japan). Lately though, we have drifted apart. I dont own a Wii U and these days I spend a lot of time on rival devices.

I also spend a lot of time playing games on my phone. The most lucrative source of revenue in the mobile app software universe is gaming. Because people tend to play games on their phones in stolen moments between whatever else they are doing in their lives in the shopping lines, on the bus or subway or maybe on the toilet the games industry calls these casual games. The 10 most-downloaded apps in any app store on any week of the year typically include several games.

Some of these games have been enormously successful, earning millions of dollars a day in micro-transactions or in small upfront payments. Unlike the typical console game, which can sell for $50-$70, mobile games start off at a lower price point, and many have trouble earning their way to a sustainable revenue-per-user number. There are many, many more failed smartphone games than there are successful ones. So, you might ask yourself: What does a console maker like Nintendo know about making games for this market?

Nintendo has been making hand-held portable games for decades. The Gameboy and its many descendants have been a profit centre for Nintendo since they arrived in 1989, sometimes the only bright spot for the company. It has had touch-screen games on its portable DS machine since 2004. It knows how to make mobile games.

Originally posted here:

Nintendos save game: Why Mario on your phone is a huge deal

Trefecta DRT: The $25K high-tech, military-grade electric super bike

Posted on by

Much like the auto market saw the rise of the supercar, the electric bicycle market is seeing the rise of the super e-bike. The super e-bike is far removed from the average electric bicycle and is essentially a motorcycle hiding inside a lighter, simpler bicycle body. The new Trefecta DRT bike doesn't even hide it that well as its military-spec aluminum frame is as much motorcycle as bicycle. That's okay, because this folding super e-bike aims to "create the game, not change it."

When the designer of the world's most powerful electric supercar got involved in the electric bike game with the Greyp G-12, it was very clear that the electric bicycle was destined to be more than just a pedal-assist commuter shuttling urban-dwelling industrial designers and tech consultants to and from the office each day.

To be fair, the movement started years before that, but having a player like Mate Rimac, whose battery technology can also be seen in the world's most advanced hybrid supercar, in the game definitely helped strengthen the segment. With zero-pedal, full-throttle modes, and speeds exceeding 40 mph (64 km/h), these bikes are in a category all their own. On the road, they're not quite electric bicycles and not quite motorcycles, and on the trail, they're not quite mountain bikes, not quite dirt bikes.

So Trefecta Mobility, which describes itself as a "an international team of Dutch, German and Swiss engineers," doesn't really create the game or a new category of vehicle. It just plays the game for a more affluent audience with a really nice piece of high-tech, fast-but-rugged equipment.

The 20-in Trefecta DRT frame is crafted from 7075 aluminum, which takes the form of aluminum blocks instead of familiar tubing. The beefy design, which was developed with military specifications in mind, is meant to ensure that the fast, powerful bike holds up to any angry elements thrown at it. The frame also protects the internal cables and components. For the wheels, Trefecta capitalizes on the weight and strength advantages of carbon fiber, using a six-spoke, 26-in design.

In terms of its electric drive, the DRT packs a 4-kW motor, a 14-speed Rohlof Speedhub and a SmeshGear transmission. At low speeds, motor output is managed by a pedelec system aimed at maintaining an ideal blend of pedal assistance and battery usage. You won't necessarily want to be pedaling when gunning for the top speed of 43.5 mph (70 km/h), so there's also a right-handlebar throttle for cranking up motor power alone. The motor can send up to 184 lb-ft (250 Nm) of torque to the rear wheel.

The rider controls ride mode and other settings by way of the Trefecta-designed CAN-bus fly-by-wire computer mounted at the center of the handlebars. They can also use the computer to choose between automatic gear shifting and electronic gear selection and to control the settings of both the suspension fork and the rear shock. The computer also delivers the usual trip functions, showing speed, battery life, distance and other important data.

The computer system includes Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for connecting with the accompanying Trefecta iOS app, as well as using other iPhone navigation and fitness apps. A built-in waterproof dock in the upper frame provides a convenient, visible place for mounting one's iPhone.

In terms of battery power, the Trefecta is powered by a 60-volt lithium-ion unit stored inside a lockable compartment in the upper front the frame. Trefecta estimates the battery can provide enough juice for up to 62 miles (100 km) of range without any pedaling. And since price will be of no object to DRT buyers, there's no reason they shouldn't buy extra batteries and take advantage of the quick-swapping system. The battery charges in about three hours when plugged in, and a regenerative braking system adds some charging on the move.

Other DRT components include a big upside-down fork with up to 180 mm (7 in) of travel, a dropper seat post with up to 125 mm (4.9 in) of travel, Ergon grips and saddle, Schwalbe mountain bike tires and Hope disc brakes. The rear shock offers up to 200 mm (7.8 in) of travel.

Read more:

Trefecta DRT: The $25K high-tech, military-grade electric super bike

Cleveland Clinic Researchers First to Demonstrate Significant Blocking of Opioid Tolerance With Mesenchymal Stem Cell …

Posted on by

Contact Information

Available for logged-in reporters only

Newswise March 24, 2015, NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation reduced opioid tolerance and opioid-induced hyperalgesia caused by daily morphine injections in rats, according to new research. The results could herald stem cell transplantation as an innovative, safe, efficacious and cost-effective therapy to treat pain and opioid tolerance, said researchers, who presented results in a Plenary Research Highlight session at the 31st Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine.

Not only was opioid tolerance prevented when the rats were transplanted with MSC before repeated morphine injections, but tolerance was reversed when the rats were treated after opioid tolerance had developed, results demonstrated.

MSCs have a remarkable anti-inflammatory effect and a powerful anti-tolerance effect, said the studys principal investigator, Jianguo Cheng, M.D., Ph.D., who led the research team from the Cleveland Clinic, in Ohio. Although clinical trials are still three to five years away, he said, eventually, The results may apply to millions of patients with a wide range of pain states, including cancer pain and other intractable chronic pain that requires long-term opioid therapy.

Furthermore, Cheng characterized the procedure as practical, in light of readily available sources of stem cells, reliable stem cell technology, the simplicity of transplantation procedures and the fact that clinical trials are already underway involving autoimmune and other diseases.

The Institute of Medicine report on pain in America documented millions who suffer with chronic pain (Relieving Pain in America: A Blueprint for Transforming Prevention, Care, Education, and Research. National Academies Press [US]; 2011). Opioid therapy is a cornerstone component of pain management for many people with severe, ongoing pain; however, side effects such as tolerance and the risks posed by abuse, addiction and drug overdose limit its utility. Tolerance, a physiologic process in which the patients body adjusts to a dose and no longer achieves pain relief, is a common limitation with opioid therapy. The higher doses that result can limit effectiveness and compromise safety.

Glial cells are of growing interest in pain research and have been implicated in the development of tolerance. Glial cell activity also produces pain through the release of products that excite the nervous system, playing an important role in the spinal cord during nerve injury. Furthermore, the opioids used to treat pain, also can induce glial activity, causing pain relief to drop and unwanted opioid effects, including tolerance, dependence, reward and decreased breathing, to grow. A focus of research, then, is to separate the desired effect of pain relief from the unwanted opioid effects (Watkins et al, Trends in Pharmacological Sciences 2009;30(11): 581-91).

Interest in transplant of stem cells is another maturing research avenue (Hsu et al, Cell Transplant 2007;16(2):133-50). MSCs can differentiate into a variety of cell types and have been investigated for potential repair of damaged neural cells and for calming inflammation in the immune system to promote recovery after traumatic brain injury (Zhang et al, J Neuroinflammation 2013;10(1):106).

Following this line of research, the study investigators wondered whether they could create an anti-tolerance therapy by transplanting MSCs into the intrathecal space surrounding the spinal cord. With approval by the Cleveland Clinic Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and funding through the Department of Defenses Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs, they compared the withdrawal thresholds of the hind paws in response to painful mechanical and thermal stimuli in two groups of rats that received daily morphine injections. The first group was treated with MSC transplantation and the control group with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS).

Follow this link:

Cleveland Clinic Researchers First to Demonstrate Significant Blocking of Opioid Tolerance With Mesenchymal Stem Cell ...

Deborah Santana presents "Women’s Spirituality in Higher Education " – Video

Posted on by


Deborah Santana presents "Women #39;s Spirituality in Higher Education "
Women #39;s Spirituality in Higher Education is a documentary by author, filmmaker, and peace activist Deborah Santana (2014 Women #39;s Spirituality M.A. graduate) in collaboration with the Women #39;s...

By: WSE CIIS

View post:

Deborah Santana presents "Women's Spirituality in Higher Education " - Video