Showing posts with label success. Show all posts
Showing posts with label success. Show all posts

Wednesday, 16 April 2014

VIDEO: Will Jelly repeat Twitter's success? must visit

 Do we need a new social network? Twitter co-founder Biz Stone thinks so and has launched a new app called Jelly which he hopes will encourage people to help each other out.

But with Reddit, Yahoo Answers and Quora offering similar services, LJ Rich takes a closer look at Jelly to see if it can break the question and answer mould.


Watch more clips on the Click website. If you are in the UK you can watch the whole programme on BBC iPlayer.


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Sunday, 6 April 2014

Leaders hail Afghan poll 'success'/must visit

Afghan and Western leaders have described Afghanistan's presidential election and the turnout as a success.


The votes of more than seven million Afghans estimated to have taken part - out of an electorate of 12 million - are now being counted.


The election commission has received 162 allegations of fraud after the poll marked by sporadic violence and reports of ballot-paper shortages.


It marks the strife-torn nation's first transfer of power via the ballot box.

image of David LoynContinue reading the main story  David Loyn BBC News, Kabul

All three of the leading candidates have now appeared on TV since the polls closed, talking up their chances. Former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani, his voice hoarse from the campaign, complained that some people were denied a vote as ballot papers had run out. Abdullah Abdullah had a more fundamental charge, namely that there had been fraud perpetrated against him by police and other people employed by the state. The interior minister denied the charge. The third candidate, Zalmai Rassoul, said "any president elected by fraud will not be legitimate".


Some counts have already been completed but will need to be rechecked before any official announcement, which will not be for some days. Answering claims of fraud could take longer.


One of the leading independent election observers, Nader Nadery, said that the Afghan election process "is not finished with this poll - it has just begun".

Eight candidates are seeking to succeed President Hamid Karzai. A second round run-off between the top two contenders may be needed to decide the winner, correspondents say.


Three million more people voted in this presidential election than in the previous one, in 2009.


A massive operation was launched to thwart the Taliban, who had vowed to disrupt the election, and heavy rainfall may have depressed turnout in some areas.


Mr Karzai, barred by the constitution from seeking a third term, said after the polls closed: "Despite the cold and rainy weather and possible terrorist attack, our sisters and brothers nationwide took in this election and their participation is a step forward and it is a success for Afghanistan."


US President Barack Obama, in a statement issued by the White House, said: "We commend the Afghan people, security forces, and elections officials on the turnout for today's vote - which is in keeping with the spirited and positive debate among candidates and their supporters in the run-up to the election.


"These elections are critical to securing Afghanistan's democratic future, as well as continued international support."


man votes


Voters were choosing from among eight candidates ink-stained finger


For some voters, a finger stained with identifying ink has become a badge of pride - and defiance


UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said in a statement: "It is a great achievement for the Afghan people that so many voters, men and women, young and old, have turned out in such large numbers, despite threats of violence, to have their say in the country's future."


Nato military alliance chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the elections were "a historic moment for Afghanistan".


Nato has co-ordinated much of the work of foreign forces in Afghanistan - most of them US and British troops - in a mission that will end this year.


"I congratulate the millions of Afghan men and women from across the country who have cast their votes in presidential and provincial council elections with such an impressive turnout and enthusiasm," Mr Rasmussen said in a statement.


Queue of voters


Long queues built up at some polling stations Election workers counting votes in Herat (5 April)


A second round run-off is expected in May because no candidate is expected to poll more than 50%


Although there are eight candidates for president, only three are considered frontrunners - former foreign ministers Abdullah Abdullah and Zalmai Rassoul, and former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai.


Analysts say Dr Abdullah has fought a polished campaign, Mr Ghani has strong support among the new urban youth vote, and Dr Rassoul is believed to favoured by Mr Karzai.


However, no candidate is expected to secure more than the 50% of the vote needed to be the outright winner, which means there is likely to be a second round run-off on 28 May.


Afghanistan's Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) chairman Ahmad Yousuf Nouristani said its latest estimates were that more than seven million people had voted by 17:00 local time, when the polls had officially closed and counting began.


Two-thirds of those who voted were men and one third women, the commission believes. Some polling stations stayed open for another four hours to allow everyone queuing to vote.


"This election was a message to the enemies of Afghanistan," Mr Nouristani said. "With this determination of the honourable people of Afghanistan, the enemies were defeated."


IEC secretary Ziaul Haq Amarkhel, asked to comment on widespread reports of polling stations running out of ballot papers, said this information was "false".


But BBC correspondents received reports of polling centres running out of ballots hours before the polls closed in many areas, including Kabul, northern Takhar province, north-eastern Badakhshan province, eastern Paktia province, and Nimroz province in the south-west - where one man, Abdul Ahad, said he and 15 family members had been to every polling centre in their district in an attempt to vote, but all of them had run out of ballot papers.

Abdul Malik Niazi says he is proud to have voted


Dr Abdullah, who pulled out of the 2009 vote before the second round amid allegations of voting irregularities, hailed Saturday's poll as a success. However, he complained that large numbers of voters had been deprived of their right to take part because of a lack of ballot boxes.


The biggest military operation since the fall of the Taliban in 2001 was rolled out for the vote, says the BBC's David Loyn in the Afghan capital. All 400,000 of Afghanistan's police and soldiers were said to be on duty for the election.


Fears of fraud, which have marred previous polls in Afghanistan, resurfaced with reports from the southern province of Kandahar that police were preventing voters and observers from reaching polling stations.


The interior ministry said two police officers were arrested in Wardak province for stuffing ballot boxes.


Concerns were also raised before the poll about the possible presence of "ghost" polling stations as well as the fact that the number of election cards in circulation appeared to be vastly more than the number of registered voters.


Did you vote in this election? Did you feel confident about the security arrangements? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with 'Afghan election' in the subject field.


Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.


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Good teeth may help sporting success/must visit

Mo Farahreporter, BBC News  Mo Farah enjoying Olympic gold Dentists say elite athletes could stand a better chance of winning gold medals if they look after their teeth.


The Oral Health and Performance in Sport conference in London heard that athletes' oral health was often bad and could impair training and performance.

Continue reading the main story
I've become aware over the years that dental problems have been interfering with training. It stops [boxers] getting that little bit fitter and may have a consequence when they get into the ring and box”

End Quote Dr Mike Loosemore GB boxing team doctor At the pinnacle of elite sport, the difference between winning and losing is tiny, so even marginal improvements can make a crucial difference.


Doctors for Team GB's boxing squad are already trying to improve oral health.

Disruptive

A study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, showed a fifth of athletes said their oral health damaged their training and performance for the Games.


At the conference, dentists said tooth pain could disrupt sleep and training and that inflammation of the gums could affect the rest of the body, impairing performance.


It is not unusual for poor oral health to have wider effects. The NHS says it is linked to type 2 diabetes and heart problems.


A regular floss, a bottle of mouthwash and good brushing technique are not going to transform a weekend jogger into an Olympian.

London 2012 Marginal gains can make all the difference between defeat and victory for elite athletes

However, Prof Ian Needleman, director of the International Centre for Evidence-Based Oral Health at University College London, says there could be an impact in elite sport.


He told the BBC: "It's the accumulation of marginal gains, where the difference between elite athletes at the very top is small. Then oral health, amongst other aspects, could make a difference.


"The research we did at London 2012 found a large proportion of young athletes, fantastically well tuned physically, had really poor oral health.


"Quite a high proportion reported an impact on their training and performance so it's clearly an issue for them."

Regular checks

Doctors with GB Boxing are already trying to improve dental hygiene after noticing poor oral health had affected training.


Dr Mike Loosemore, who has worked with the GB boxing team for 17 years and is a consultant at the English Institute of Sport, told the BBC: "I've become aware over the years that dental problems have been interfering with training. It stops them getting that little bit fitter and may have a consequence when they get into the ring and box."


He says things are now improving after regular dental checks were introduced, even if they are not always popular with the boxers.


"They don't like going to the dentist. They'd much rather be training. However, it has made a difference to their teeth and they are spending less time away from their training, and that will make them a better boxer.


"They may not appreciate it now, but hopefully they'll appreciate when they've got a gold medal round their neck in Rio [at the 2016 Olympics]."


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Tuesday, 1 April 2014

Black children make the most obstacles to success in America, Asians the least/must visit

The average black child in America is relatively disadvantaged from birth, according to a study by the Annie E. Casey Foundation released Tuesday.

While at normal birth weight, more than 92 percent white, Latino, American Indian and Asian and Pacific island space babies are born, this figure for African Americans only in the high 80's range. The pattern of disadvantage for black children in elementary school and up to the school in the form of standardized test scores and high school graduate rates. Only 66 per cent of the Afro Americans graduate high school time, although more than 90 percent of Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders to do.

America is becoming more diverse, saw ethnic groups fare against a dozen milestones in stages of life from birth to adulthood, including the number of eighth-graders with math skills and the number of young adults who are in school or work the Casey Foundation report as five. The report with the title of the race results, notes that although no group meets perfectly any milestone, Asian-Americans do the best fare and Afro-Americans the worst.

"We found that the gaps kind of start from relatively small and get in the course of time greater than" Laura Speer, Casey Foundation Associate Director of policy reform and advocacy, told the Huffington Post about the phone. "Look at the early childhood measures: the gaps between the African-Americans, Latinos, white are relatively small." In the years of early childhood, even a small gap can however influence in the long run."

The report measures the success of each group against the milestones on a scale of 1,000. Asian-Americans and white scored best with 776 and 704th American Indians and African-Americans, on the other hand scored in the 300th gaps between groups services begin milestones, such as percentages of babies in early childhood was born on the normal birth weight and a first pre-K children, small, however the differences extend milestones, in the vicinity, as percentages of children living in low-poverty areas.

The report uses data from the last census, which shows differences between the Member States. Indians in Texas and California, such as seems there are significantly better than American Indians in Montana and North Dakota, according to the report. Afro-Americans the biggest obstacles in Michigan, Wisconsin and Mississippi face, according to the report.

The report comes after a recent government study found that students of color in the school, with tougher discipline and less access to the best teachers than their white colleagues routinely are discriminated against.

The Casey Foundation suggests more study concordant what caused to eliminate the racial differences and programs.

"All too often the resources of the public systems of that are for children and families spent, on programs that lack evidence and without input from the families and communities that they serve," the report says.

Spear said, several initiatives will help the Obama administration, including my brother's keeper, is increased by boys and men of color.

"The children of color in our country are absolutely crucial for the future success of the United States," spear said. "they will be the majority of our workforce and we must lose the talent that you have in the future behind." We need them to be successful."


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