Features

By Kang Jin/kyu

Agence France-Presse

SEOUL — South Korea launches the world’s first fully-fledged 5G mobile networks on Friday, a transformational leap that already has superpowers sparring for control of an innovation that could potentially change the day-to-day lives of billions of people.

The superfast communications heralded by fifth-generation wireless technology will ultimately underpin everything from toasters to telephones; from electric cars to power grids.

But while the south has won the race to be first to provide the user experience, that is only one part of a wider battle that has pit the United States against China and ensnared giants including Huawei.

Hyper-wired South Korea has long had a reputation for technical prowess, and Seoul has made the 5G rollout a priority as it seeks to stimulate stuttering economic growth.

The system will bring smartphones near-instantaneous connectivity — 20 times faster than the existing 4G — allowing users to download entire movies in less than a second.

In the same way that 3G enabled widespread mobile web access and 4G made new applications work ranging from social media to Uber, 5G will herald a new level of connectivity, empowered by speed.

It is crucial for the future development of devices ranging from self-driving vehicles that send data traffic to one another in real time, industrial robots, drones and other elements of the Internet of Things.

That makes it a vital part of the infrastructure of tomorrow, and the 5G standard is expected to bring about $565 billion in global economic benefits by 2034, according to the London-based Global System for Mobile Communications, an industry alliance.

‘One million devices’

But the implications have pitted Washington against Beijing in an increasingly bitter standoff.

The US has pressed its allies and major economies to avoid 5G solutions from Chinese-owned telecom giant Huawei, citing security risks that technological backdoors could give Beijing access to 5G-connected utilities and other components.

But Chinese firms dominate 5G technology.

Huawei, the global leader, has registered 1,529 5G patents, according to data analysis firm IPlytics.

Combined with manufacturers ZTE and Oppo, plus the China Academy of Telecommunications Technology, Chinese entities own a total of 3,400 patents, it says — more than a third of the total. 

South Korea comes next, with its companies holding 2,051 patents.

In contrast, US firms have 1,368 altogether, IPlytics said — 29 fewer than Finland’s Nokia alone.

All three of South Korea’s mobile networks — KT, SK Telecom and LG UPlus go live with their 5G services.

“5G’s hyper speed can connect 1 million devices within a 1 square kilometre zone simultaneously,” KT said in a report. 

On the same day, Samsung Electronics will release the Galaxy S10 5G, the world’s first available smartphone using the tech, with rival LG following with the V50s two weeks later.

Cost barrier

More than 3 million South Koreans will switch to 5G by the end of this year, predicted KT Vice President Lee Pil-jae.

Until now, no mobile networks have offered nationwide 5G access. In the US, hotspots in a few selected cities have offered 5G speeds but over wifi only, while Qatari firm Ooredoo says it offers 5G services in and around Doha, but does not have devices available to use them.

US network carrier Verizon will launch fifth-generation services for mobile users in Chicago and Minneapolis next week, with more than 30 cities due to follow this year. 

Japan is also expected to roll out a limited deployment in 2019 before full services start in time for next year’s Tokyo Olympics. 

But cost is likely to be a barrier for user uptake initially, analysts say: the cheapest version of the new Galaxy handset will be 1.39 million won ($1,200).

“While there are many cheap 4G smartphones under $300, Samsung’s 5G phones are well over $1,000, which could be a major minus point for cost-savvy consumers,” a KT representative told AFP. 

None of South Korea’s three network operators would say how much they have invested in 5G — but Seoul’s economy minister Hong Nam-ki put it at at least $2.6 billion this year alone.

“If 5G is fully implemented,” he said, “it will greatly improve people’s lives”. 

For people with celiac disease, even tiny amounts of gluten in foods can cause trouble, and restaurants may be the hardest places to avoid the hidden protein, a US study suggests. 

More than half of gluten-free pizza and pasta dishes tested in restaurants were positive for the presence of gluten, and overall, about one third of supposedly gluten-free foods had some gluten, researchers report in the American Journal of Gastroenterology. 

“The long-suspected problem of gluten contamination in restaurant foods that has been reported by patients likely has some truth behind it,” said senior study author Dr Benjamin Lebwohl, director of clinical research at the Celiac Disease Centre at New York Presbyterian Hospital and Columbia University Medical Centre in New York City. 

“We don’t know how common it is. But our findings suggest that pizza and pasta and foods served during dinner time are more likely to have this problem.” 

Lebwohl often heard anecdotally from patients that they suspected they had consumed gluten at restaurants, even though the foods they ate were labelled gluten-free. 

When he learned that the manufacturer of the portable Nima Gluten Sensor had a stash of data submitted by restaurant patrons who used the device to test foods they suspected, Lebwohl asked if he could use the information in a study. 

The company supplied what they had: 5,624 food tests performed by 804 users during an 18-month period. When the researchers analysed the data, they found that 32 per cent of tests revealed gluten contamination in dishes that were supposed to be gluten-free. 

Gluten-free pasta samples were positive for the protein in 50.8 per cent of tests, while gluten-free pizza turned out to contain gluten in 53.2 per cent of tests. Gluten was detected in 27.2 per cent of breakfasts, 29 per cent of lunches and 34 per cent of dinners. 

Lebwohl admits there are a lot of limitations to the dataset. “The people tested what they wanted to test,” he said. “And the users chose which results to upload to the company. They may have uploaded the results that surprised them the most. So, our findings don’t mean that 32 per cent of foods are unsafe.” 

Moreover, Lebwohl said, the Nima is very sensitive. To be labelled gluten free in the US, a product must contain less than 20 parts per million (ppm). But the device can detect levels as low as 5 to 10 ppm, which “most people would not consider to be clinically significant. So, it’s possible for a food to have less than 20 ppm and still indicate that gluten is present”. 

The Nima gluten detector, which sells for about $229 and uses disposable $6 test strip capsules, displays a wheat symbol when it detects gluten and a smiley face when it does not, the authors note. It can upload results to the company via a smartphone app. 

Lebwohl suspects that gluten-free foods are being inadvertently contaminated. “If a gluten-free pizza is put in an oven with a gluten-containing pizza, aerosolized particles could come in contact with the gluten-free pizza,” he said. “And it’s possible that cooking gluten-free pasta in a pot of water that had just been used for pasta that contained gluten might result in contamination.” 

The solution, Lebwhol said, may be better education for food preparers. 

About 1 per cent of Americans have celiac disease, Lebwohl said. The amount of gluten needed to cause intestinal damage in these patients is tiny, he added. “It would be barely visible, like tiny crumbs of bread,” he explained. 

While the limitations of the data mean it’s not possible to determine what percentage of restaurant foods labelled gluten-free actually contain the protein, “it’s interesting to know that so many foods marked as gluten-free aren’t”, said Therezia Alchoufete, a clinical dietician in the University of Pittsburgh Medical Centre’s Digestive Disorders Centre.

 “This is definitely a consideration for anyone with celiac disease trying to eat outside of the home. At home they know they are preparing foods without any gluten-containing items.” The issue goes beyond gluten, Alchoufete said. “This could apply to anyone who has a sensitivity to a certain ingredient.” 

Experimental contact lenses that not only improve vision, but also ward off itchiness due to allergies, got a boost with the completion of two late-stage studies, according to a new report. 

The antihistamine-containing lenses, developed and tested by Johnson & Johnson, significantly quieted eye allergy symptoms, researchers reported in Cornea. 

“These are pretty encouraging results,” said coauthor Brian Pall, director of clinical science for Johnson & Johnson Vision Care. “Over 20 per cent of people suffer from eye allergies. It has a pretty big impact on their quality of life.” 

The two randomised trials — both funded by Johnson & Johnson — tested the effectiveness and safety of lenses that slowly release the antihistamine ketotifen. Together the trials included 244 volunteers whose ages ranged from 12 to 61. 

Participants either wore two antihistamine-treated lenses, two regular lenses without the antihistamine, or one of each — but they did not know what they were wearing. 

After volunteers put the lenses in, they were exposed to allergens that would normally make their eyes itch. They were asked to rate on a scale of zero to four how itchy their eyes were at 15 minutes after the lenses were inserted and 12 hours after insertion. Scores were lower on average, by more than one point on a scale of zero to four, when volunteers had medicated lenses in. 

Between the two studies there were 24 adverse events, most of which were mild, the researchers reported. There were two more-severe adverse events that occurred in both eyes of one volunteer, which the researchers described as “excess tearing”.

Some of the volunteers who wore lenses with antihistamine reported no itching, while others reported itching that was bothersome, but tolerable, Pall said. 

Pall is very enthusiastic about the new lenses. “We are super excited to have this opportunity to publish on this technology,” he said. 

Dr Christopher Starr welcomed the new findings. 

“This is really novel and interesting on a number of levels,” said Starr, an ophthalmologist and professor at NewYork-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medicine. “I do treat a lot of patients with seasonal allergies in New York City. Right now they’re bracing for the first peak that comes from April to May.” 

Currently Starr advises those patients to put antihistamine drops in their eyes 10 minutes before they put their lenses in. “Then they can wear them throughout the day,” he said. “And then they put a second drop in their eyes after they take the lenses out.” 

In fact, Starr said: “My own eyes itch and this is a product that on first glance — with this positive data — is something I would use myself.” 

It is also reassuring that the new product is a combination of two items that have proven track records for safety, Starr said. 

Pall says he does not know when the new lenses might show up on store shelves. 

“Obviously we are committed to getting all the pieces in place for regulatory submission,” he said. “In my experience it’s very hard to predict how things will go when you start to meet and discuss with regulatory bodies. But we are encouraged by this robust clinical data that would support a submission [for approval] in the future.”

Jaguar’s second foray into the lucrative and ever burgeoning premium SUV segment, the E-pace is a compact and sporty junior stablemate for the larger F-Pace, and is a more attainable brand entry point.

Intended to capture and reinterpret Jaguar’s sporting and upmarket automotive ethos into a trendy, practical and high riding SUV format for young families, the E-Pace — like the F-Pace before it — takes inspiration from the Jaguar F-Type sports car, which is held up as the car that most distils the British automaker’s brand identity.

Feisty looks

Sharing a similar profile and rear quarter design elements as the larger F-Pace SUV, and similarly slim, moody high-set rear lights, clearly inspired by the F-Type sports car, the E-Pace features similarly muscular rear haunches and descending roofline. But with its shorter, narrower dimensions and clearly shorter rear overhang resembles a more upright or compressed interpretation of its larger SUV sister. 

The F-Pace’s slim and heavily browed headlights owe more to Jaguar’s charismatic saloon car range, the E-Pace’s front treatment take more closely reflects that of the F-Type.

With similarly sweptback headlights and wide and snouty mesh grille as its sports car sibling, the E-Pace has a less dramatic demeanour than either F-Type or F-Pace. But with huge tailgate spoiler, optional 20-inch alloy wheels, dual integrated tailpipes and sportier R-Dynamic package with gloss black and satin chrome highlights and body coloured wheel-arch surrounds, the E-Pace’s character is more playfully feisty than outwardly aggressive. 

With R-Dynamic specification, as driven, the E-pace also gains sportier body-hugging contrast stitched front seats, stainless steel treadplates and pedals, and sportier steering-mounted gearbox paddle-shifters.

Punchy performer

Break other current Jaguars’ in-line engine rear-drive based line-up, the E-Pace is the brand’s first transverse engine platform vehicle since the Ford Mondeo-based X-Type saloon and estate circa 2001-2009. With front-wheel-drive only offered for the most junior D150 version, all other E-Pace variants however feature standard all-wheel-drive for more confident road-holding and to better put down power to the road.

Similarly, all but the entry level diesels receive a standard slick-shifting 9-speed automatic gearbox with a broad range of closely spaced ratios to maximise performance, versatility, refinement and efficiency.

Powered exclusively by five petrol and diesel variants of Jaguar land Rover’s recent inhouse developed turbocharged 2-litre 4-cylinder engine, the second to range topping petrol P250 AWD version driven develops a punchy 245BHP at 5,500rpm and thick 269lb/ft wedge of torque throughout a broad and accessible 1,200-4,500 rpm mid-range.

A somewhat low revving engine with faint turbo lag from idling, the E-Pace P250, however, feels muscularly abundant, ever responsive and eager when spooled, with brisk 7.1-second 0-100km/h acceleration and 230km/h top speed contrasting with restrained 8.3/100km combined fuel consumption.

Agile and alert

Further departing from other current Jaguars, the E-Pace eschews aluminium construction in favour of more traditional steel, to reduce costs for customers. Though also easier to repair in the long run, the steel-built E-Pace weighs in at a not insignificant 1,832kg for a 4.4-metre long vehicle. Nevertheless, the E-Pace P250 drives with a zesty and flexibly urgent manner, especially when one chooses its aggressive Dynamic drive mode, where throttle, gearbox shifts and steering responses are sharpened up. Other modes include Normal, Eco, Rain, Ice and Snow and individually tailored modes.

Driven on largely smooth and straight UAE roads rather than twistier European or Jordanian roads the P250 drove with a good ride and handling compromise. With its well set-up MacPherson strut front and integral multi-link rear suspension providing good body control given its weight and relatively high centre of gravity, the E-pace also seemed to well absorb road imperfections despite its low profile 245/45R20 tyres. 

Narrower tyre options with higher sidewalls would add more comfort, reduce unsprung weight and perhaps improved road feel from its quick, direct and well-weighted steering.

Compact comfort

Stable, settled and reassuring at speed, the E-Pace feels alert and ready to pounce into corners encountered during test drive with a tidy, almost hatchback-like agility for its segment. Eager into corner like a front-driver, the compact E-Pace nevertheless digs into corners to bolt out sure-footedly as its four-wheel-drive system allocates power between front and rear as necessary.

Fitted with numerous driver assistance features including blindspot and lane-keeping warnings, one did, however, find it a more fluent drive with lane-keeping assistance disabled to avoid unwanted steering resistance when manoeuvring briskly. 

Refined and well insulated inside, the E-Pace’s cabin features user-friendly and uncomplicated layouts with sleek contemporary design. Supportive, well-spaced and comfortable in front, the E-Pace’s well-adjustable and commanding driving position provides good front and near side visibility, but a thick rakishly slanted A-pillar slightly restricts front-side passenger side visibility.

Equipped with numerous infotainment, safety and convenience features, including a 4G wifi hotspot, the E-Pace’s reversing camera proved particularly useful. Designed for younger families, the E-Pace’s rear seats and access is perfectly suited for children but can tight fitting for large, tall adults. Meanwhile generous 577-litre boot volume expands to 1,234-litres.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Engine: 2-litre, turbocharged, transverse 4-cylinders

Bore x stroke: 83 x 92.3mm

Compression ratio: 10.5:1 (+/-0.5:1)

Valve-train: 16-valve, DOHC, continuously variable valve timing, direct injection

Gearbox: 9-speed automatic, four-wheel-drive

Ratios: 1st 4.713; 2nd 2.842; 3rd 1.909; 4th 1.382; 5th 1.0; 6th 0.808; 7th 0.699; 8th 0.58; 9th 0.48

Reverse/final drive: 3.83/4.544

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 245 (249) [183] @5,500rpm

Specific power: 122.6BHP/litre

Power -to-weight ratio: 133.7BHP/tonne

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 269 (365) @1,200-4,500rpm

Specific torque: 182.6Nm/litre

Torque-to-weight ratio: 199.2Nm/tonne

0-100km/h: 7.1-seconds

Top speed: 230km/h

Fuel economy, combined: 8.3-litres/100km

CO2 emissions, combined: 189g/km

Fuel capacity: 68.5-litres

Length: 4,395mm

Width: 1,984mm

Height: 1,649mm

Wheelbase: 2,681mm

Overhang, F/R: 882/832mm

Track, F/R: 1,625/1,624mm

Ground clearance: 204mm

Approach/break-over/departure angles: 22.8°/21.1°/29.4°

Ascent/descent gradient: 45°

Side slope gradient: 35°

Aerodynamic drag co-efficiency: 0.33

Boot capacity, min/max: 577-/1,234-litres

Kerb weight: 1,832kg

Suspension, F/R: Double wishbones/ integral multi-link

Steering: Electric-assisted rack & pinion

Turning circle: 11.46-metres

Lock-to-lock: 2.31-turns

Brakes, F/R: Ventilated discs, 349mm/discs, 300mm

Tyres: 245/45R20 (optional)

The most common triggers of atrial fibrillation — an irregular heart rhythm that’s a leading cause of stroke — are avoidable behaviours like drinking alcohol or coffee, a recent study suggests.

People don’t always realise when they’re experiencing atrial fibrillation, or AFib, but some feel unpleasant chest palpitations or a racing, irregular heartbeat.

Some patients have AFib 24 hours a day. In others, the irregular heartbeat is “paroxysmal”, that is, it comes and goes. For the current study, reported in the journal Heart Rhythm, researchers surveyed 1,295 patients with symptomatic paroxysmal AFib and found the most common behaviours that triggered episodes of the arrhythmia were alcohol consumption, caffeine consumption and exercise.

The survey asked about 11 possible triggers: alcohol, caffeine, lack of sleep, exercise, not exercising, consuming cold beverages, consuming cold foods, high sodium diet, consuming large meals, dehydration, and lying on one’s left side.

About three-fourths of the patients said at least one of those behaviours triggered AFib some or all of the time.

Alcohol consumption was cited by 35 per cent, followed by coffee drinking (28 per cent), exercise (23 per cent) and lack of sleep (21 per cent).

The researchers say it’s possible the behaviours don’t actually trigger the episodes but instead make the symptoms worse.

The study wasn’t designed to tell whether cutting back on these triggers would reduce the frequency of AFib episodes.

Still, coauthor Dr Gregory Marcus from University of California, San Francisco told Reuters Health, “Many, if not most of these triggers are modifiable, and we feel theoretically the patient does have some power to potentially influence the probability of an episode occurring.”

Dr Deepak Bhat, a cardiologist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital Heart and Vascular Centre in Boston who was not associated with the study, agreed. He told Reuters Health by phone, “Importantly, the information in this paper is actionable. People with episodes of atrial fibrillation that appear to be triggered by alcohol or caffeine, for example, can avoid these.”

Associations between alcohol and AFib are well known, but the link with coffee is controversial, Bhat said. “Some experts dispute that association... though I have seen it in many patients,” he added.

Bhat noted that while exercise is a healthy habit, strenuous exercise after long periods of not exercising has been known to trigger heart arrhythmias.

Marcus said the idea for the research came from a summit that brought together patients and researchers to identify topics patients thought were not well covered by the scientific community. Patients with atrial fibrillation unanimously agreed that they wanted to know more about triggers.

 “While there has been quite a bit of research investigating the root cause of the first diagnosis of [AFib], there has not been sufficient investigation into understanding why an episode happens when it happens,” Marcus said. 

In AFib, the heart’s two small upper chambers beat irregularly and too fast, “quivering like a bowl of gelatin”, according to the American Heart Association. As a result, the heart can’t pump properly and the body doesn’t get enough oxygen-carrying blood. AFib can lead to serious medical problems including stroke and heart failure. Treatments include medication to regulate the heart rate or heart rhythm, blood thinners to help prevent clots from forming, and in some cases, electric shocks to reset the beat of the heart. 

By Mariam Hakim

Relationships and Couples Therapist

Men who allow their wives to influence them have happier marriages and are less likely to divorce, according to psychological researcher Dr John Gottman, who’s done extensive work over four decades on divorce prediction and marital stability.

What is accepting your partner’s influence?

• Accepting, understanding, and taking your partner’s perspective, feelings and needs into consideration before making any decision in the relationship

• Listening to your partner and forging compromises so that both of you feel satisfied in the relationship

• Working towards a win-win outcome instead of one partner losing and the other partner winning

Is this crucial skill only important for men to have? 

Of course often the opposite is true — where women tend not to let their husbands influence them and this is equally detrimental to the success of their relationship. 

But researchers note that women tend to accept their husband’s influence instinctively while men don’t, particularly if they were brought up in a patriarchal society (like here in Jordan). 

This is not to belittle or insult men by suggesting that they have a personality or cognitive shortcoming, but to make them aware of some tendencies that may be beneficial in other areas of their life but detrimental to the success of their relationships.

How can men work on this? 

Developing emotional intelligence: an emotionally intelligent husband is interested in his partner’s emotions because he respects her and cares about her feelings while not fearing a loss of power in the relationship. 

Her opinion and feelings are as important and valid as his. When men tune into their wives and show an interest in their inner world (feelings, perspectives, ideas, beliefs), which communicates interest and respect to her, they will experience increased happiness, passion and overall satisfaction in the relationship and in their sex life.

Cultivating the skill of paying attention to your partner: work on the following essential relationship components: 

•Building love maps: regularly sitting down with your spouse and finding out what’s going on in her inner and outer world

• Expressing fondness and admiration: cultivating a habit of paying attention to the positive things that your spouse does and communicating your fondness and admiration to her by giving her a compliment or simply showing appreciation for who she is as a person

• Accepting bids of connection: many times during the day, your wife will try to get your attention by either making a comment or directly asking a question; try to respond positively instead of ignoring her or snapping back. This will cultivate a sense of emotional closeness and intimacy in your relationship which is an essential part of any successful marriage

Remember, all of the above applies to how women should treat their husbands as well!

Reprinted with permission from Family Flavours magazine

Tea drinkers who love a scalding-hot cup of the beverage may want to let it cool down a bit to avoid an increased risk of oesophagus cancer, a new study suggests. 

Among tea drinkers followed for about 10 years, those who drank a lot of tea and liked it very hot — above 60ºC — had nearly double the risk for oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma compared to those who drank cooler tea and less tea in general, researchers report in the International Journal of Cancer. 

“Drinking hot tea is a very common habit worldwide, and earlier studies have pointed to an association between drinking hot beverages and an increased risk of oesophageal cancer,” study leader Dr Farhad Islami of the American Cancer Society (ACS) in Atlanta, Georgia, said by e-mail. 

Oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma is the sixth most common cause of cancer death worldwide. In the US, according to the ACS, the lifetime risk of developing the disease is about 1 in 132 in men and about 1 in 455 in women. 

The World Health Organisation’s International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified drinking “very hot” beverages, above 65oC, as “probably carcinogenic” to humans. 

Starting in 2004, researchers collected data on 50,000 adults living in the Golestan Province in northeastern Iran, where high rates of oesophageal cancer have been reported and where residents drink an average of 1,100 millilitres of black tea daily. 

Early in the study, researchers poured cups of tea during interviews with participants to measure tea drinking temperatures and asked each person about their preferences for tea temperature, as well as how soon after pouring the tea they tended to drink it. 

By 2017, 317 participants had developed oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma. People who regularly drank tea at temperatures of 60ºC or higher were 41 per cent more likely than those who drank it cooler to develop oesophageal cancer. Those who preferred “very hot” tea had nearly two-and-a-half times the risk of those who liked it cold or lukewarm. And those who drank their tea within two minutes of pouring it had 51 per cent higher risk than those who waited six minutes or more. 

Overall, people who drank at least 700ml daily at temperatures above 60ºC had 91 per cent higher risk than those who drank less tea, at lower temperatures. 

“We are not asking people to stop drinking tea, but we recommend waiting a while until hot beverages cool down before drinking,” Islami said. 

Even after researchers accounted for factors that could affect the risk of oesophageal cancer, including use of tobacco, alcohol or opium, and sociodemographic factors, the heightened risk with scalding-hot tea remained. 

“This is probably the first well-designed and informative study that actually went to people to measure the temperature, while most previous studies were based on self-reports,” said Dr Dirk Lachenmeier, a food chemist and toxicologist at the Chemical and Veterinary Investigation Agency in Karlsruhe, Germany. “Would you know the temperature of your coffee this morning?”

Although more research is needed, the most likely reason for the increased cancer risk is a direct influence on throat tissues through consistent inflammation, said Lachenmeier, who was not involved in the research.

New studies are also investigating serving temperatures in restaurants and cooling behaviours, such as using milk, he noted.

“Food serving establishments might, for example, change temperatures to lower default settings,” he said in an email. “In coffee, very often brewing is done at too high temperatures, which is also bad for the taste of the beverage.”

People who have risk factors for heart disease like diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity may also be more likely to develop structural changes in the brain that can lead to dementia, a recent study suggests. 

Researchers examined data on 9,772 adults, ages 44 to 79, who all had at least one MRI brain scan and provided general health information and medical records for the analysis. 

The researchers looked for associations between brain structure and so-called vascular risk factors. They found that except for high cholesterol, all of the other vascular risk factors — smoking, high blood pressure, high pulse pressure, diabetes, and obesity — were linked to abnormal brain changes seen in dementia. 

And the more vascular risk factors a person had, the poorer was their brain health, as evidenced by greater brain shrinkage, less grey matter (tissue mainly on the surface of the brain) and less healthy white matter (tissue in deeper parts of the brain). 

“There are some things that contribute to cognitive and brain aging that we cannot change [like our genes], so you could look at this like a list of things that we can have some agency over — so-called ‘malleable’ risk factors,” said lead study author Simon Cox of the University of Edinburgh in the UK.

“There are so many other benefits to improving your cardiovascular health [improving diet, weight, exercise, blood sugar control] and stopping smoking, but in combination with other good evidence out there, maintaining brain health is probably another one,” Cox said by e-mail. 

The strongest links between the vascular risk factors and brain structure were in areas of the brain known to be responsible for our more complex thinking skills, and which deteriorate during the development of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. 

Risk factors for heart disease appeared to impact brain health just as much in middle age as they did later in life, researchers report in the European Heart Journal. 

And the risk of structural changes in the brain associated with cognitive decline also increased with each additional vascular risk factor, even in adults who appeared otherwise healthy, the study found. 

Smoking, high blood pressure and diabetes were the three vascular risk factors that showed the most consistent associations across all types of brain tissue. High cholesterol levels were not associated with any differences in the MRI scans. 

The study wasn’t a controlled experiment designed to prove whether or how specific risk factors might directly cause dementia or cognitive decline. 

“The precise mechanisms underlying these findings are not entirely clear,” said Dr Jeffrey Burns, co-director of the University of Kansas Alzheimer’s Disease Centre. 

“The findings do underscore our increasing recognition that dementia is a complex syndrome and that vascular factors contribute to brain changes that we see and expect in people who are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease,” Burns, who wasn’t involved in the study, said by email. 

Still, there’s enough evidence of the connection for patients to do what they can to promote brain health as they age, said Dr Andrew Budson of the Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare and Boston University School of Medicine. 

“Because smoking, hypertension, and diabetes were the strongest risk factors, if you have a number of risk factors, these are the most important ones to work on,” Budson, who wasn’t involved in the study, said by e-mail. 

 “Quit smoking cigarettes today,” Budson advised. “Control high blood pressure and diabetes through medications, aerobic exercise, and weight loss. These measures can reduce the daily brain damage that will otherwise occur.” 

Children with autism may have an easier time reading facial expressions and navigating social interactions when they use Google Glass paired with a smartphone app, a small experiment suggests. 

The system, dubbed “Superpower Glass”, helps them decipher what is happening with people around them, researchers found. 

The experiment included 71 children, ages six to 12, who were receiving a standard treatment for autism known as applied behavioural analysis therapy. This type of therapy typically involves using structured exercises like flash cards depicting faces to help kids learn to recognise different emotions. 

Forty kids were randomly assigned to use the “Superpower Glass” system — glasses with a camera and speaker that sent information on what children saw and heard to a smartphone app designed to help them decode and respond to social interactions. 

While kids with autism can struggle to recognise and respond to emotions, the app gave them feedback in real time to help bolster these skills. 

After six weeks of using Superpower Glass in 20-minute sessions four times a week, kids who received this digital support scored better on tests of socialisation, communication and behaviour than the control group of 31 kids who received only standard care for autism. 

With Superpower Glass, “Children learn to seek out social interactions, learn that faces are interesting and that they can learn what they’re saying or what the faces are telling them,” said senior study author Dennis Wall of Stanford University in California. 

“This is powerful since it encourages social initiations — a form of fostering social motivation — by the child and they’re learning that they can get these things — the emotions of their social partners- themselves,” Wall said by e-mail. 

Superpower Glass is designed to tackle a common struggle for kids with autism — how to understand social cues and use past experiences to learn how to respond in various situations. 

The glasses act as a messenger and interpreter, with the app relying on artificial intelligence to offer feedback in real time that can help kids track faces and classify emotions. A green light flashes when kids look at a face, and then the app uses emojis to tell kids what emotion is in front of them, whether it is happy or angry or scared or surprised. 

“Facial expressions are complex, dynamic, and unique,” said Geraldine Dawson, director of the Duke Centre for Autism and Brain Development in Durham, North Carolina. 

“Emojis are much simpler, static stimuli,” Dawson, who wasn’t involved in the study, said by e-mail. “It makes sense that emojis would be easier for a person with autism to understand.” 

Kids’ interactions are also logged by the app so parents can look later and talk to kids.

Those who design software, websites and computers of all kinds, including mobile devices, still have not understood that what the vast majority of users and consumers really want, before anything else, is simplicity. Those who enjoy tweaking, improving, modifying and messing with IT in general, in a somewhat masochistic way, do not even represent five per cent of the population. The other 95 per cent want peace of mind and fast, trouble-free operation.

I admit that security concerns sometimes make it hard on manufacturers and programmers to keep things simple. Take Apple ID for instance. Those who use the company’s products are all too familiar with it for they need it to access various Apple-related services: iTunes, Apple Store, etc. However, if you happen to forget it and want, for instance, to reformat your iPad, the recovery process is way too complicated, and I have seen cases where users completely lost usage of their iPad because of an Apple ID issue. Apple’s explanation was that they were only trying to protect the owner of the iPad from eventual theft!

Life with Microsoft is not much simpler. The company wants you to have a unified Microsoft account identity, whether it is to access Hotmail or use Skype. You cannot have separate passwords for each of these services anymore and must use a Microsoft identity. The headache associated with this system, the complex process to recover information if you lose it, it is all but justified. Some Skype users say they miss the days when it was not a Microsoft product, before 2011.

Let us not forget about online banking. Whereas this is now the norm, not all banks know how to do it smoothly, how to make all their patrons feel comfortable and safe using the system, regardless of age group, gender or professional background. I have compared the clients’ online banking interface of four major banks established in Jordan. I would say only one does it really well, two would rate as average and the last one would rate as downright poor.

Surprisingly, dealing online with the two main providers of mobile telephony and Internet services in the country, namely Orange and Zain, is no picnic. This is a disappointment and also a contradiction, given that these two entities are supposed to be at the top, at the avant-garde of high-tech.

Another disappointment cause by the complexity of the IT world is the fact that almost 15 years after they have been introduced, the various biometrics identification methods, including fingerprint and iris scans, are not widely implemented and have not been adopted by all parties. These were supposed to free consumers from the traditional, complex identification processes based on passwords. At this point in time only high-end smartphones, some rare border points of entry and a few banks are using iris scan to identify the population.

Ideally, we would love to have biometrics identification when using a computer and accessing the web with one of the popular browsers such as Chrome, Firefox or Edge.

On the “uselessly, desperately complicated” list is the eternal question of compatibility between operating systems (Windows, Android, Apple OS, ….), devices and software applications. It is unbelievable to come to the sad conclusion that after almost 40 years, and while honestly acknowledging that some progress has been achieved in that sense, there are still huge issues of compatibility in the industry. I cannot count the times when, after an automatic update performed by Windows, I had a message saying that this scanner, that printer, or this software application, would not work anymore.

Doug Garnett, president of Protonik, an innovation firm based in Oregon in the US, likes to be more specific about the issue and says that “Innovation is not complicated – it’s complex. So is the challenge of marketing innovative products.” This is in part true, of course, but I am certain that designers and programmers do not always put themselves in the users’ shoes as they should, otherwise they would certainly be able to come up with products that are simpler to use. Let us keep on dreaming.