Lifeboat Foundation

Farts may stink to high heaven, but a new study suggests that the gas responsible for that foul odor may actually extend a person’s time on earth.

Scientists in the UK claim that hydrogen sulfide, the stinky compound that smells like rotten eggs which contributes to the flatulence stench, could have amazing health benefits.

Hydrogen sulfide can be toxic, but tiny amounts have been shown to help protect the mitochondria, which are known as the “powerhouses” of cells.

Continue reading “Fart gas may help prevent dementia, heart disease: study” »

Contrary to certain sensationalist articles declaring that video games are harmful, there is, in fact, growing evidence that playing video games may have a positive effect on cognitive health, particularly in older people [1].

Today, we will be taking a look at the scientific evidence to see if brain training or hitting your favorite video game titles could help keep you healthy as you age.

Japanese researchers have developed a way of not only levitating, but also moving objects three dimensionally using sound waves. The device uses four arrays of speakers to make soundwaves that intersect at a focal point that can be moved up, down, left, and right using external controls. And to human ears the device is completely quiet, as it uses ultrasound.

Occupational exposure to ultrasound in excess of 120 dB may lead to hearing loss. Exposure in excess of 155 dB may produce heating effects that are harmful to the human body, and it has been calculated that exposures above 180 dB may lead to death.^[45] The UK’s independent Advisory Group on Non-ionising Radiation (AGNIR) produced a report in 2010, which was published by the UK Health Protection Agency (HPA). This report recommended an exposure limit for the general public to airborne ultrasound sound pressure levels (SPL) of 70 dB (at 20 kHz), and 100 dB (at 25 kHz and above).

Continue reading “Using Sound To Levitate And Move Things In Three Dimensions” »

“We shape our tools”, the old maxim goes, “and thereafter our tools shape us.” But what if both man and tools could shape and guide each other — as equals?

That’s the dream of the Senior Director of Advanced Technology at InvenSense, a TDK Group Company, Dr. Peter G. Hartwell, who believes we are heading into a profound new age of man-machine collaboration, led by breakthroughs in sensor technology. “Some problems simply can’t be solved using human senses or machine capabilities alone; we need a fusion of the two,” says Hartwell.

The problems which Hartwell targets are at the very core of a life well lived: customized health care, more energy-efficient infrastructure, productive workplaces, safer cities, and improved environmental monitoring.

Continue reading “Sensors Lead A New Age Of Man-Machine Collaboration” »

More than half of your body is not human, say scientists.

Human cells make up only 43% of the body’s total cell count. The rest are microscopic colonists.

Understanding this hidden half of ourselves — our microbiome — is rapidly transforming understanding of diseases from allergy to Parkinson’s.

As might be expected, the CDC is spooked by these bacteria. If they spread, as infections are want to do, the agency is tasked with stopping them, and that’s no easy task.

On April 3, CDC Principal Deputy Director Anne Schuchat announced the agency’s latest containment strategy, which recommends an aggressive response to the appearance of even a single case of drug-resistant infection. The germs usually appear in hospital settings, so the CDC says health care workers should be prepared to contain the drug-resistant microbes before they can travel beyond a hospital’s doors.

Continue reading “The CDC is terrified of these germs, so it’s trying to contain them” »

Welcome to Oxford longevity related conference, free of charge.

Munjal Shah, CEO & Co-founder of Health IQ, discusses lowering premiums for better behavior.

Innovation series by Steven Loeb March 23, 2018 Short URL: http://vator.tv/n/4b46

Continue reading “How merit-based insurance can change clinics” »

Australia’s major cities are growing more rapidly than ever before, gaining three million residents in a decade. Concerns about the risks to their long-term liveability and health are growing too. Is the consistent placing of Australian cities at the top of most liveable city rankings a reason for complacency?

The fastest-growing city, Melbourne, is experiencing unprecedented growth and yet has topped The Economist Intelligence Unit global liveability ranking for seven years running. However, much like Australia’s remarkable record of 26 years of continuous economic growth, many of the policy and institutional reforms that delivered this liveability legacy occurred decades ago.

Australia is now undergoing its third great wave of population growth, putting pressure on infrastructure, services and the environment. During the past two waves of growth, in the late-19th and mid-20th centuries, cities implemented visionary responses. It’s largely because of these past phases of planning and investment that our cities have until now been able to sustain their liveability and a reasonably healthy natural environment.

Continue reading “Our legacy of liveable cities won’t last without a visionary response to growth” »